By Far The Greatest Team Football Podcast

How does a manager go from winning the Copa Libertadores and dominating Argentine football to taking charge of Oxford United in League Two — and just how great was River Plate under Ramón Díaz?
Season 5 of By Far The Greatest Team heads to Buenos Aires for the story of River Plate between 1995 and 2002, focusing the lens on one of the most successful managers in the club’s history.
With no guest on hand to provide adult supervision, Graham Dunn and Jamie Rooney attempt to navigate the wonderfully complicated world of Argentine football: two championships in a single season, relegation decided through three-year averages and a domestic structure capable of making the English pyramid appear almost straightforward.
At the centre of everything is Ramón Díaz.
A prolific striker nicknamed El Pelado, Díaz emerged alongside Diego Maradona in Argentina’s victorious 1979 World Youth Championship team before enjoying a successful playing career with River Plate, Napoli, Inter Milan, Fiorentina, Monaco and Yokohama Marinos.
He returned to River as manager in 1995 and inherited a club packed with talent, expectation and pressure.
What followed was an extraordinary period of success.
Across two spells, Díaz led River to five Argentine championships, the 1996 Copa Libertadores and the 1997 Supercopa Sudamericana. He did so while continually rebuilding his team and helping to develop an extraordinary succession of footballers.
Enzo Francescoli, Ariel Ortega, Hernán Crespo, Marcelo Salas, Marcelo Gallardo, Pablo Aimar, Javier Saviola, Juan Pablo Ángel, Germán Burgos, Celso Ayala, Roberto Bonano and Juan Pablo Sorín all played significant roles during the Díaz era.
The episode traces River’s journey from their 1996 Libertadores triumph over América de Cali through three consecutive domestic titles, victory in the final edition of the Supercopa and Díaz’s return to win the 2002 Clausura.
Jamie and Graham explore how River repeatedly replaced one outstanding player with another, combining an exceptional academy with intelligent recruitment and a footballing culture that expected attacking talent to flourish.
But understanding River also means understanding Argentine football itself.
Why were the traditional season-long championships replaced by the Apertura and Clausura? How could a club become national champion after just 19 matches? Why was relegation calculated using average points across three seasons — and what would have happened if the Premier League had adopted the same system?
There is also the small matter of Boca Juniors.
Jamie and Graham explore the history and mythology of the Superclásico, the cultural identities attached to River and Boca and why the rivalry cannot be explained simply as rich against poor. They also consider how Díaz’s success compares with the achievements of Carlos Bianchi, whose great Boca side would soon become River’s dominant rival at home and in South America.
The episode asks where Díaz belongs among Argentina’s finest managers, how his River record compares with Marcelo Gallardo’s modern reign and why his achievements remain relatively underappreciated in Europe.
Finally, the story takes an unexpected turn towards the Kassam Stadium.
In 2004, one of South America’s most decorated coaches arrived at Oxford United, bringing an Argentine backroom team with him and creating one of the most unlikely managerial appointments in Football League history.
How did it happen, why did it end so quickly and has any manager ever arrived in English football’s lower divisions with a more extraordinary CV?
🔑 Takeaways
Ramón Díaz’s journey from playing alongside Diego Maradona to becoming River Plate manager
How the Apertura and Clausura created two Argentine champions every season
Why relegation was calculated using average results across three campaigns
What English football might have looked like under Argentina’s unusual league system
How Díaz led River to five domestic championships and two major continental trophies
The importance of Enzo Francescoli, Ariel Ortega, Hernán Crespo and Marcelo Salas
How River’s academy produced Marcelo Gallardo, Pablo Aimar and Javier Saviola
The history, culture and mythology surrounding the River Plate–Boca Juniors rivalry
How Díaz compares with Carlos Bianchi, Marcelo Gallardo and South America’s other great managers
Why River’s failure to win the Intercontinental Cup matters when assessing their greatness
The extraordinary story of Díaz’s unexpected spell in charge of Oxford United
Whether sustained domestic dominance, continental success and constant regeneration make River Plate’s 1995–2002 side one of the great teams of its era
Join Us
Subscribe to By Far The Greatest Team wherever you get your podcasts and head over to our YouTube channel, where you can watch the show and discover additional football-history rabbit holes linked to the teams and personalities we cover.
Visit the By Far The Greatest Team website for accompanying stories, articles, typical starting XIs and the growing Greatness Index — our attempt to answer football’s most enjoyable question with a little more evidence:
How great were they?
If you enjoy these podcasts, please don’t forget to subscribe, leave us a rating and tell everyone about them!
If you enjoy these podcasts, please don't forget to subscribe and give us a rating and also tell everyone about them!

How did a club with a modest budget, a local owner and no obvious superstars produce a record-breaking Championship season — and then take the Premier League by surprise?
Season 5 of By Far The Greatest Team continues with the story of Reading FC between 2005 and 2008.
Jamie Rooney and Graham Dunn are joined by Reading supporter Steve Double to revisit the greatest period in the club’s history: a remarkable 106-point promotion season, an extraordinary first year in the Premier League and the painful relegation that followed.
The story begins with chairman John Madejski, whose stewardship helped take Reading from Elm Park to a new stadium and transformed a financially vulnerable lower-league club into one capable of reaching the top level of English football.
By 2005, the foundations were in place. Manager Steve Coppell, director of football Nicky Hammond and a quietly excellent recruitment operation had assembled a squad built upon organisation, continuity and players with something to prove.
After losing their opening match of the 2005–06 Championship season, Reading went on an extraordinary 33-game unbeaten run. They finished with 106 points, scored 99 goals, lost only twice and secured promotion to the Premier League for the first time in the club’s history.
The team contained no collection of expensive superstars, but it did possess outstanding balance. Marcus Hahnemann, Graeme Murty, Ibrahima Sonko, Ívar Ingimarsson, Nicky Shorey, Steve Sidwell, James Harper, Glen Little, Bobby Convey, Kevin Doyle, Dave Kitson and Leroy Lita combined to produce one of the finest second-tier campaigns English football has witnessed.
Yet Reading’s achievements did not end with promotion.
They opened their first Premier League season by recovering from two goals down to defeat Middlesbrough and continued to confound expectations, eventually finishing eighth with 55 points — narrowly missing out on European football.
Jamie, Graham and Steve revisit the memorable victories, the players who successfully made the step up and the sense of disbelief surrounding a club suddenly competing with some of the biggest names in world football.
They also explore the less glamorous ingredients behind the success: sensible ownership, intelligent scouting, tactical clarity and the value of keeping a successful team together.
Along the way, the conversation heads down several football-history rabbit holes — including the remarkable spread of goals throughout Reading’s promotion squad, how 106 points compares with other great league campaigns and where Reading rank among the best teams promoted into the Premier League.
There is also a wider discussion about football ownership.
Madejski’s relationship with Reading represented a model increasingly rare in the modern game: a recognisable local businessman investing in his local club, building its infrastructure and overseeing its journey through the divisions. Was Reading’s success evidence of what patient ownership could achieve — or a moment belonging to a version of English football that was already beginning to disappear?
The final part of the story provides a sobering contrast.
Important players departed, injuries exposed a lack of depth and the momentum began to disappear. Reading were relegated in 2007–08 on goal difference, despite winning 4–0 at Derby County on the final day.
How could a team capable of collecting 106 Championship points and finishing eighth in the Premier League find itself relegated only twelve months later?
And what should that decline mean for its place on the By Far The Greatest Team ranking scale?
🔑 Takeaways
How John Madejski helped transform Reading from a struggling lower-league club into a Premier League team
Why Steve Coppell was the ideal manager for a carefully constructed and unfashionable squad
The story of Reading’s record-breaking 106-point Championship season
How intelligent recruitment uncovered players such as Kevin Doyle, Steve Sidwell and Nicky Shorey
Why Reading adapted so successfully during their first Premier League campaign
How their eighth-place finish compares with the best performances by newly promoted clubs
The changing nature of football-club ownership and what Madejski’s approach represented
Why Reading were relegated only one
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How did a club drawing its players from one small corner of Europe conquer Spain twice — and just how great were Athletic Club’s champions of 1982–85?
Season 5 of By Far The Greatest Team continues with the remarkable story of Athletic Club, a football institution built upon identity, community and an unwavering commitment to developing local talent.
Jamie Rooney and Graham Dunn are joined by Rafa Torres, Bilbao born and bred and a former Athletic Club academy player, who offers a unique insight into the club, its philosophy and what Athletic means to the people of the Basque Country.
The story begins with football’s arrival in Bilbao through British workers and Basque students returning from Britain, before exploring the influence of legendary English manager Fred Pentland and the development of Athletic’s distinctive player policy.
That philosophy is often simplified as selecting only Basque players. In reality, Athletic recruit footballers born in the Basque Country or developed through academies within its territories — turning what might appear to be a restriction into one of football’s most powerful identities.
By the early 1980s, however, Athletic had gone more than a quarter of a century without winning La Liga.
Then came Javier Clemente.
Young, fiercely competitive and prepared to trust the club’s academy, Clemente assembled a side containing Andoni Zubizarreta, Santiago Urquiaga, Andoni Goikoetxea, Iñigo Liceranzu, Miguel de Andrés, Dani, Estanislao Argote, Manu Sarabia and Endika.
In 1982–83, Athletic travelled to Las Palmas on the final day needing victory and help from elsewhere. They won 5–1, Real Madrid lost in Valencia and Athletic became Spanish champions for the first time in 27 years.
Bilbao responded with an unforgettable celebration as the players carried the trophy along the River Nervión aboard the famous Gabarra.
But this was not a one-season wonder.
Athletic retained the league title in 1983–84, finishing level on points with Real Madrid before completing a historic double by defeating Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final. Endika scored the only goal, but the match is also remembered for the notorious confrontation that erupted after the final whistle.
Jamie, Graham and Rafa examine both sides of this extraordinary team: their togetherness, tactical discipline and resilience, but also the aggression and controversy that made them one of the most intimidating sides in Spanish football.
They also explore life at Lezama, the relationship between Athletic’s players and supporters, and why representing the club carries a significance that extends far beyond football.
The episode then asks whether Athletic’s limited European impact should count against them — or whether winning consecutive Spanish championships and a domestic double with a locally developed squad makes their achievement even greater.
🔑 Takeaways
How Athletic Club’s British connections helped establish football in Bilbao
The influence of legendary English coach Fred Pentland
What Athletic’s celebrated player policy actually means
Rafa’s experience inside the club’s academy and the importance of Lezama
How Javier Clemente transformed a young, locally developed squad into Spanish champions
The dramatic final day of the 1982–83 La Liga season
Why the Gabarra celebrations became such an important part of Athletic folklore
How Athletic retained the league and defeated Barcelona to complete the 1983–84 double
The brilliance, physicality and controversy surrounding Clemente’s side
Whether their identity, achievements and cultural significance make Athletic Club’s 1982–85 team one of football’s truly great sides
Join Us
Subscribe to By Far The Greatest Team wherever you get your podcasts and head over to our YouTube channel, where you can watch the show and discover additional football-history rabbit holes linked to the teams and personalities we cover.
Visit the By Far The Greatest Team website for accompanying stories, articles, typical starting XIs and the growing Greatness Index — our attempt to answer football’s most enjoyable question with a little more evidence:
How great were they?
If you enjoy these podcasts, please don’t forget to subscribe, leave us a rating and tell everyone about them!
If you enjoy these podcasts, please don't forget to subscribe and give us a rating and also tell everyone about them!

How can a team that failed to win the World Cup still be remembered among the greatest of all time — and did the Netherlands of 1974 change football more profoundly than many champions?
Season 5 of By Far The Greatest Team continues with one of football history’s most influential and endlessly debated sides: the Netherlands at the 1974 World Cup.
Jamie Rooney and Graham Dunn are joined by Dutch guest Lars Kuizenga, who brings his knowledge of Dutch football and a national perspective on a team whose influence extended far beyond one extraordinary summer.
The story begins long before 1974.
The Netherlands did not officially embrace professional football until 1954 and then missed six consecutive World Cups. Yet within two decades, Dutch football had been transformed. Feyenoord won the European Cup in 1970, Ajax followed with three successive triumphs, and the ideas developed by Rinus Michels, Johan Cruyff and their predecessors were ready to be presented to a global audience.
The Netherlands almost failed to reach the tournament at all. Belgium completed qualifying unbeaten and without conceding a single goal, but missed out on goal difference after a late winner against the Dutch was wrongly disallowed for offside.
Once in West Germany, however, the Netherlands appeared to be playing a different game.
They defeated Uruguay and Bulgaria in the opening group stage, with only Sweden holding them to a draw in the match that gave us the Cruyff Turn. They then dismantled Argentina 4–0, beat East Germany 2–0 and overcame defending champions Brazil by the same scoreline.
Across six matches before the final, the Dutch scored 14 goals and conceded only one — an own goal.
Cruyff was the conductor, but this was far more than a one-man team. Johan Neeskens, Willem van Hanegem, Ruud Krol, Arie Haan, Johnny Rep, Rob Rensenbrink, Wim Jansen and the unconventional goalkeeper Jan Jongbloed all contributed to a system built around intelligence, movement and collective courage.
In the final against West Germany, the Netherlands completed 16 passes before their opponents touched the ball. Cruyff burst into the penalty area, Neeskens converted the first penalty ever awarded in a World Cup final and the Dutch led after only 88 seconds.
But the hosts were European champions, filled with Bayern Munich’s finest players and led by Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller and Sepp Maier. Paul Breitner equalised from the spot before Müller scored what proved to be the winner.
The Netherlands lost the final but won something more complicated: immortality without the trophy.
Jamie, Graham and Lars explore the origins of Total Football, the personalities who made it possible, the internal tensions behind the beautiful image and how the team became connected to a wider period of Dutch cultural confidence and change.
They also ask whether the romantic memory has grown greater than the football itself — or whether the Netherlands of 1974 genuinely deserve to stand alongside the most successful teams in history.
🔑 Takeaways
How Dutch football developed from late professionalisation into European dominance
The contributions of Rinus Michels and Johan Cruyff to Total Football
How the Netherlands narrowly qualified ahead of an unbeaten Belgium side that conceded no goals
The tactical principles behind the famous 4-3-3 and positional interchanges
The brilliance of Cruyff, Neeskens, Van Hanegem, Krol and their teammates
How the Dutch dominated Argentina, East Germany and Brazil
Why the World Cup final changed after its extraordinary opening goal
Whether influence, performance and legacy can outweigh the absence of a trophy
The final ranking of perhaps football’s greatest-ever runners-up
Join Us
Subscribe to By Far The Greatest Team wherever you get your podcasts and head over to our YouTube channel, where you can watch the show and discover additional football-history rabbit holes.
Visit the By Far The Greatest Team website for accompanying stories, articles, typical starting XIs and the growing Greatness Index as we continue asking:
How great were they?
If you enjoy the podcast, please subscribe, leave us a rating and tell everyone about it!
If you enjoy these podcasts, please don't forget to subscribe and give us a rating and also tell everyone about them!

How did a club drifting towards another relegation battle become one of the Premier League’s most consistent challengers — and just how great was David Moyes’ Everton?
By Far The Greatest Team continues with the story of Everton between 2002 and 2013 — an 11-year period of stability, intelligent recruitment, European adventures, near misses and some wonderfully unpredictable footballers.
Jamie Rooney and Graham Dunn are joined by regular guest and Everton supporter Declan Clark to revisit the first Goodison Park reign of David Moyes.
When Moyes arrived from Preston North End in March 2002, Everton were level on points with the relegation places and seemingly trapped in a cycle of decline. He immediately described Everton as “The People’s Club” and began rebuilding its confidence, culture and connection with the supporters.
His first full season brought a seventh-place finish and the emergence of Wayne Rooney. A 16-year-old Rooney announced himself with that unforgettable goal against Arsenal before becoming England’s most exciting young footballer at Euro 2004. His tournament-ending injury and subsequent move to Manchester United left Everton without their greatest home-grown talent in a generation — but also helped finance the next stage of Moyes’ rebuild.
After narrowly avoiding relegation in 2003–04, Everton produced one of the great Premier League surprises by finishing fourth in 2004–05, above Liverpool and inside the Champions League places. Their European dream ended against Villarreal amid the controversy of Duncan Ferguson’s disallowed goal, but Everton had re-established themselves as a serious force.
Operating under the financial restrictions of the Bill Kenwright era, Moyes repeatedly found value where richer clubs were not looking. Tim Cahill, Mikel Arteta, Phil Jagielka, Joleon Lescott, Leighton Baines, Steven Pienaar and Seamus Coleman became the foundation of a team that finished in the top eight nine times during his tenure.
Not every signing worked quite so successfully.
Jamie, Graham and Dec revisit the chaotic, curious and occasionally loveable collection of players who passed through Goodison — including Per Krøldrup, Andy van der Meyde, Royston Drenthe and Denis Stracqualursi. Some disappeared almost as quickly as they arrived; others became cult heroes through commitment, personality and the willingness to run through a brick wall.
The high point came in 2009, when Everton reached the FA Cup final after defeating Manchester United on penalties in the semi-final. Louis Saha gave them a dream start against Chelsea by scoring after only 25 seconds, but Moyes’ best opportunity to win a major trophy ended in a 2–1 defeat.
The episode considers both sides of the Moyes legacy. He transformed Everton into a respected, competitive and remarkably consistent Premier League club, developed outstanding players and was voted LMA Manager of the Year three times. Yet there was no trophy, Champions League qualification ended before the group stage, and the biggest matches too often remained just beyond their reach.
Was Moyes the manager who restored Everton — or the man who eventually reached the limits of what that Everton could become?
🔑 Takeaways
How David Moyes restored stability and belief after arriving in 2002
The emergence, impact and eventual departure of Wayne Rooney
How Everton finished fourth immediately after one of Moyes’ worst seasons
The controversial Champions League defeat against Villarreal
Why Moyes became one of the Premier League’s smartest recruiters
The successes, misfits and cult heroes who defined the era
Everton’s journey to the 2009 FA Cup final
Whether consistency without a trophy should still be considered greatness
The final ranking of one of Everton’s most important modern teams
Join Us
Subscribe to By Far The Greatest Team wherever you get your podcasts and head over to our YouTube channel, where you can watch the show and discover additional football-history rabbit holes.
Visit the By Far The Greatest Team website for accompanying stories, articles, typical starting XIs and the growing Greatness Index as we continue asking:
How great were they?
If you enjoy the podcast, please subscribe, leave us a rating and tell everyone about it!
If you enjoy these podcasts, please don't forget to subscribe and give us a rating and also tell everyone about them!