Go Deeper

There’s no doubt that Bukayo Saka is Arsenal and England’s starboy. The individual accolades have been piling up ever since his name first cropped up on the teamsheet. Listed for the FIFA Golden Boy Award in 2021, he is the back to back England Men’s Player of the Season, twice he has been awarded Arsenal Men’s Player of the Season, he's the PFA Young Player of the Year for 2022-23, and now FIFA Balon d'Or nominee 2023. In short the 22 year old’s career is on the up and up. Over the course of this podcast The Athletic looks back on Saka’s brief story so far. Topics include first impressions of Bukayo as a boy, his values, how a player goes from the Academy to professional player, comparisons with Arsenal legend David Rocastle, the aftermath of the Euro 2020 Final, and what his future holds. You will hear from former players Ian Wright and Adrian Clarke, Saka’s former coaches Greg Lincoln, Stephen Morrow, Andries Jonker, Arsenal administrator Lynn Chaney, and The Athletic’s Amy Lawrence and James McNicholas. Get ready to fall in love a little more with the Starboy. Written and produced by Abi Paterson Sound mixing and production by Jay Beale Interviews by Amy Lawrence and James McNicholas Additional production by Mike Stavrou  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

To round up our series on Brentford we answer the outstanding questions on the Bees. What next for star striker Ivan Toney following his ban from football by the FA? How far up the Premier League table can the club go? And what are the club doing behind the scenes to ensure that they can keep improving year on year? Plus we hear about the women's team and how the club are supporting them. Hear from Chief Exec Jon Varney, Head Coach Thomas Frank, Captain Christian Norgaard, Performance Director Ben Ryan, Director of Football Phil Giles, Women's Head Coach Karleigh Osbourne, and Technical Director Lee Dykes on all this - and their thoughts on what the future holds for the club. Host: Jay Harris Producer: Abi Paterson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brentford Football Club suffered a devastating loss to their staff in November 2018 when Technical Director Robert Rowan passed away in his sleep aged just 28 due to a fatal cardiomyopathy episode. Christian Eriksen, the Danish international who had a heart attack on the pitch in 2021, was lucky. He survived and went on to play for Brentford from January 2022. In this episode we bring you their stories and tell you about the work that the club is doing with their community to raise awareness for heart charities. Hear from Robert's wife Suzanne Rowan, Head Coach Thomas Frank, Captain Christian Norgaard, Director of Football Phil Giles, B Team Head Coach Neil MacFarlane, Technical Director Lee Dykes and Director Nity Raj Host: Jay Harris Producer: Abi Paterson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What are the questions reporter Jay Harris gets asked the most? How does Brentford's recruitment work? And are they the moneyball club? Well in episode two we get all the answers, or at least as many as we could, from the staff and players at Brentford FC. Hear from Technical Director Lee Dykes as he explains how he's built a unique data system to make sure Brentford can recruit the very best talent, at a much cheaper price than the rest of the Premier League. Plus he tells us how he builds squads and why he has 16 positions on the field, not 11. Players Ben Mee and Christian Norgaard explain what persuaded them to join the West London outfit. You'll also hear from Director of Football Phil Giles and manager Thomas Frank. Oh, and don't call them moneyball. Host: Jay Harris Producer: Abi Paterson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jay Harris is given access all areas to one of the most intriguing clubs in the Premier League: Brentford. The club had the lowest wage bill in the top tier and yet were able to do the double over champions Manchester City and in their short two year stay (so far) in the league, beaten the big six at least once. So how do they do it? That's what we're here to tell you. First up, a whizz through the history of Brentford since owner Matthew Benham took over. Hear from Chief Exec Jon Varney, Head Coach Thomas Frank, Captain Christian Norgaard, Performance Director Ben Ryan, Director of Football Phil Giles, Women's Head Coach Karleigh Osbourne, Technical Director Lee Dykes, Director Nity Raj and club announcer Peter Gilham as they tell the Bees' story Host: Jay Harris Producer: Abi Paterson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the third and final episode of this documentary series, presenter Mike Zimmermann explores the legacy that Lionel Messi will leave behind. Matt Slater explains the motives behind the Saudi Pro League, and why Messi turned down nearly half $1 billion annually in favor of Major League Soccer. The relationship between Messi and Inter Miami started back in 2018 — Paul Tenorio takes us through the initial interest from Miami, the inner workings of a contract that includes equity and profit-sharing from Apple and Adidas, and how Messi will change Major League Soccer, both on the field and off. With MLS and Apple partnered for the next 10 years, a broadcast deal worth $2.5 billion, Richard Deitsch describes Lionel Messi's arrival in the US as "a massive catalyst" for Apple's soccer coverage and the media landscape. You'll also hear from Andrés Cantor, legendary Telemundo Deportes broadcaster, about how Messi is viewed in Argentina leading up to the 2024 Copa America and 2026 World Cup, both being played in the United States. Produced by Mike Zimmermann. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the second episode of this documentary series, presenter Mike Zimmermann explores what Lionel Messi’s arrival will mean for American Soccer. Pablo Maurer looks back at the stars who have tried to crack the USA, while Felipe Cardenas looks ahead to how Messi and Inter Miami will attempt to build on this. You'll also hear from Ex-MLS players Bradley Wright-Phillips and Nedum Onuoha, who talk us through playing Soccer in the States, and how they think the Argentine will fit in. Produced by Jay Beale.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to the Making of Messi, our new three-part narrative series.  Following in the footsteps of former stars of the footballing world like Pele, David Beckham and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Lionel Messi is attempting to crack the US with his move to Inter Miami. The Argentine has won it all in domestic and international football over a glittering career at Barcelona, PSG and for his country, Argentina. In the first episode of this audio documentary series, presenter Mike Zimmermann takes us on the journey of Messi becoming, in many people’s eyes, the greatest of all-time, or GOAT. We go back to Messi’s roots in Rosario, Argentina, hearing from Felipe Cardenas on his early years, Pol Ballus provides insight on his 20-year spell at Barcelona, and Tom Williams recounts his time at PSG. James Horncastle assesses his international career, which reached its peak in that epic 2022 World Cup win in Qatar. You’ll also hear from Michael Cox on Messi the footballer, and Nick Miller on the Messi the man, and the money. Produced by Mike Stavrou. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part two, The Athletic's Adam Leventhal continues his journey along the Turkish fault line, to reveal more stories of remarkable heroism, tragedy and finding refuge in football, four months on from the earthquakes. As all eyes fall on Istanbul and the glamour of a Champions League final, Adam finds a technical director who pulled five people out of the rubble, the story of a goalkeeper's wife whose cry for help sent shockwaves around the world, and visits Iskenderenspor - the team that played on. Produced by Adonis Pratsides Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the first of this two-part audio documentary series, The Athletic's Adam Leventhal heads to the capital of Turkey's south-eastern province of Hatay - home of first-division side Hatayspor - where former Ghana international and Premier League winger Christian Atsu scored a last-minute free kick, just hours before the first earthquake hit on February 6th. Adam interviews head coach and former Turkish international goalkeeper Volkan Demirel, as well as various other people connected to Hatayspor, about their lasting memories of Atsu and how the football club is trying to help an entire community rebuild. It's a harrowing insight into the realities of surviving a natural disaster and the scale of the destruction. Produced by Adonis Pratsides Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the eve of England's first ever Euro final, we look back at their darkest day in the tournament when Roy Hodgson's side crashed out to Iceland at France 2016. Oh, how we laughed at the time. Elsewhere, Wales made history, Italy and Germany participated in the worst penalty shoot out of all time, and Portugal and Ronaldo had a shot at redemption. It's Euro 2016, it's brought to you by those who were there from across the continent, and it's right here. Your experts in this episode: Stefan Augustsson for Iceland, Rafa Honigstein for Germany, Lynsey Hooper for England, James Horncastle for Italy, Tom Kundert for Portugal, Julien Laurens for France, Kristof Terreur for Belgium, and Tom Williams for Wales Your charming host is Iain Macintosh and your ace producer is Abi Paterson Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's the year the world was supposedly destined to end, but thankfully the Mayan calendar wasn't synced with ours and 2012 carried on meaning we could enjoy Euro 2012! Four years after tiki taka graced our pitches, it's back and ready for more - but are we? This is the tournament that brought two groups of death, Andy Carroll, and a lot of spying. It's Euro 2012, it's brought to you by those who were there from across the continent, and it's right here. Teams: Group A: Czech Republic, Greece, Poland Russia Group B: Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands, Portugal Group C: Croatia, Ireland, Italy, Spain Group D: England, France, Sweden, Ukraine Voices: Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Sasha Guryunov Rafael Honigstein, Lynsey Hooper, James Horncastle, Themis Kesaris, Tom Kundert, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here for just £1 a month for six months! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's 2008 and the world is obsessed with Barack Obama and Beyonce, over here we're more interested in events at Austria and Switzerland because it's Euro 2008 and it's great. Yes, there's no England, they failed in the rain at Wembley against Croatia. But there's Spain's tiki taka, Turkey's late late goal scoring, and one hell of a thunderstorm. Oh, and there's the French doing, well, nothing really. It's Euro 2008 and it's here. Voices: Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Sasha Goryunov, Rafael Honigstein, James Horncastle, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo, Juraj Vrdoljak, and Yordi Yamali Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here for just £1 a month for six months! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We arrive at 2004, the year of Frankee and Eamonn's musical back and forth, the blackberry, and one of the most unexpected tournaments in Euros history. We're in Portugal where there are teams on the up, like England, and teams on the down, like Germany. And this time there's a dark horse that no one expects will actually do anything apart from enjoy being there. How we never learn. This is Euro 2004 brought to you by the voices that lived and breathed it from across the continent. Teams: Group A: Greece, Portugal, Russia, Spain Group B: Croatia, England, France, Switzerland Group C: Bulgaria, Denmark, Italy, Sweden Group D: Czech Republic, Germany, Latvia, Netherlands Voices: Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, David Cermak, Rafael Honigstein, Lynsey Hooper, James Horncastle, Themis Kessaris, Tom Kundert, and Julien Laurens Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here for just £1 a month for six months! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ladies and gentlemen, it's the year 2000 and whilst we might all have enjoyed some Roman Gladiator gore at the cinema, sending pictures via text, and donning our Juicy Couture tracksuits (oo, get you) there's some serious football to be played. Specifically in the regions of Belgium and The Netherlands as 16 of the best teams in Europe gathered to do battle. This tournament brought us the madness that was FR Yugoslavia 3-4 Spain, a big England win followed by a bigger England loss, and a team that really solidified its status as the best. This is Euro 2000 brought to you by the voices that lived and breathed it from across the continent. Teams Group A: England, Germany, Romania, Portugal Group B: Belgium, Italy, Sweden, Turkey Group C: FR Yugoslavia, Norway, Slovenia, Spain Group D: Czech Republic, Denmark, France, The Netherlands Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Rafael Honigstein, Lynsey Hooper, James Horncastle, Sasa Ibrulj, Tom Kundert, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo, and Kristof Terreur Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Football's coming home to England in this Euro 96 episode - if you can bear to relive it! We've got twice the amount of teams as before, a lot of optimism, and, of course, twists and turns as one team really ruffles some feathers. It's Euro 96 brought to you by the voices that lived and breathed it from across the continent. Teams Group A: England, Netherlands, Scotland and Switzerland Group B: Bulgaria, France, Romania and Spain Group C: Czech Republic, Germany, Italy and Russia Group D: Croatia, Denmark, Portugal and Turkey Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: David Cermak, Niels Harild, Rafael Honigstein, James Horncastle, Sasa Ibrulj, Oliver Kay, Julien Laurens, Alvaro Romeo, Stewart Weir Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's 1992 and we are in Sweden for a tournament full of twists and turns, and a surprise addition who no one expects much off. Join journalists from across the continent as they relive this contest and its unexpected results. Teams Group 1: Denmark, England, France and Sweden Group 2: CIS, Germany, The Netherlands and Scotland Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Niels Harild, James Horncastle, Rafael Honigstein, Sasa Ibrulj, Oliver Kay, Julien Laurens, Olof Lundh, and Stewart Weir. Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is the story of Euro 88 told by experts from across the continent bringing their memories and stories as well as the facts and the iconic moments from the tournament. Without a single goalless draw or a sending off it is a tournament filled with drama and unexpected moments. Teams Group 1: Denmark, Italy, Spain, and West Germany Group 2: England, Ireland, Netherlands, and the Soviet Union Voices Host: Iain Macintosh Guests: Elko Born, Dion Fanning, Sasha Goryunov, James Horncastle, Rafael Honigstein, Oliver Kay. Notes Get yourself an Athletic subscription here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our final episode we tell the Steven Gerrard story, from those who played with him at Liverpool, to those who worked with him as a pundit, to the man who hired him for the Rangers job, and we hear from Gerrard himself. As for Rangers we answer questions about how they did it, and how they overtook Celtic's nine years of dominance, and whether this is the start of a new era where Rangers will be dominating Scottish football. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we get the inside story on Mark Warburton's time at Rangers ask how he created a side that eased to the Championship title, but then quickly capitulated in the Premiership. And we ask whether there was anything good to come from the abysmal reign of Pedro Caixinha. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we head down to the fourth division and ask: why did Rangers make such hard work of an apparently easy task? What’s Ally McCoist’s lasting legacy? And importantly, was any of it fun? Hear the story of Rangers' first game against Brechin City, through their promotions up to the Championship where the Rangers machine stuttered in the play off final to Motherwell. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rangers didn’t just win the Scottish Premiership this year, they absolutely obliterated the field, unbeaten at the time of writing and with the added bonus of stopping Celtic win their tenth title in a row. It’s been quite a journey back to the top, a journey they started from the very bottom. Over the course of the next four episodes you will hear the full story about why Rangers fell in the first place, how they climbed back to the summit of Scottish Football, and a rookie manager with no experience of the Scottish game, whatsoever, secured their first league title in 10 years. Hear from the players, the managers, and the chairmen as well as the fans, the journalists, and the reporters who watched this story unfurl from beginning to end. Show Notes Become a subscriber to The Athletic here and hear this podcast, and others, without ads. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Justin Fashanu would have been 60 this year. Everyone knows how he died, but what about how he lived? This 'Beyond The Headline' special explores Fashanu's experiences as a result of becoming the first British male footballer to come out as gay, the struggles and contradictions of his life, a complicated legacy and its impact on the sport today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are many questions around the ability and character of Big Sam: Why do clubs keep hiring Sam Allardyce? And why do clubs then often get rid of him? Is he best at clubs that really need him, rather than clubs that he needs? Of course the biggest one right now is has he bitten off more than even he can chew at West Brom? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Sam Allardyce arrived at Bolton they were in the bottom half of the second tier. Eight years later, he left the club as Premier League stalwarts with a couple of trips to Europe and a string of bloodied noses in their wake. After an ill-fated spell at Newcastle his career since then has been a patchwork of clubs who’ve hired Allardyce because they have to, not necessarily because they want to, and it hasn’t ended well at most of them. Including, of course, his one-game spell as England manager.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sam Allardyce was, unsurprisingly, a no-nonsense centre-back in his playing days, but a brief spell in America opened his eyes to a more advanced way of approaching football, which informed his work as a manager. We look at those early days, what he did then and how they shaped the Sam Allardyce that became Big Sam Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Manchester City gathered a staggering 198 points in Pep Guardiola’s second and third seasons at the club. But since then, things haven’t gone so well, so in Episode Two of this two-part special on Guardiola, we wonder whether it actually is good for the club that he’s signed a new contract, whether he can fix their problems and whether he will actually see out that new deal… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pep Guardiola tends to burn brightly, but relatively briefly. He spent four years at Barcelona before the pressures of managing them became too much, and three years at Bayern which were glorious domestically, but he fell short in Europe. In Episode One of our two-part special, we look at what his time in Spain and Germany could tell us about his future in England, with Manchester City. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The €222million fee that PSG paid for Neymar is so big that it may never be topped, but its significance extends far beyond that. We explain how it changed football in France, how it contributed to Leo Messi almost leaving Barcelona, and how it allowed Liverpool to build their current great team… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the summer of 2017, PSG had absolutely no plans to sign Neymar or any superstar, intending instead to build sensibly. Then they got a call that changed not only their plans, but the football world. This is how and why the most significant transfer of all time happened… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neymar was a household name before he even made his debut for Santos. We explore how he quickly became the most important player for not only his club but country, his controversial move to Barcelona and what should have been his greatest night at the Nou Camp… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part 3. The takeover fell through. All hopes of a renewed attempt have been dashed. Mike Ashley will continue to hold the reins through the 2020/21 season. What next? Are Newcastle United good enough to stay up? And will the fans come back if the stadium reopens? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part 2. What went wrong with the proposed takeover of Newcastle United in 2020? Who were the buyers? Why did Mike Ashley want to sell? And why did it all go so horribly wrong? Journalists and supporters recall the epic story that gripped the North-East this summer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Part 1. Mike Ashley bought Newcastle United in 2007. Ten managers, two relegations and two promotions later, his era seemed to be drawing to a close in the summer of 2020. What happened along the way? Journalists and supporters recount the highs and lows. Warning: Episode contains explicit recordings of the Joe Kinnear press conference... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices