Hello Rank Squad!In the latest episode of Ranks FC we're digging your Transfer Guru back out of his hiatus to talk all things January Transfer Window, so Dean is on hand to walk you through the latest that he has heard on what might be possible in the winter spending window and which clubs could be tempted into splashing some cash. DJ splits his ranking into two parts - starting with what clubs in the Premier League might be the most interested in doing business in January and why - looking at Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur in particular; before moving on to five players who are already attracting interest and could well end up being the big storylines of the window if someone decides to make a move for them. Before that, Jack talks about El Gran Derbi in Things We Love, waxing about a really impressive win for Betis in the Frying Pan of Spain, whilst Dean eulogises a little bit about the end of San Diego's incredible expansion season, where the Chrome and Azul put together one of the most immaculate freshman years that we've ever seen in MLS, but came up just short when it came to the crunch in the Western Conference Final against the Vancouver Whitecaps, who move on to play Inter Miami in MLS Cup. It's Ranks!
And remember, if you’d like more from the Rank Squad, including extra podcasts every Monday and Friday (including our weekly Postbox taking a look at the whole weekend of football) and access to our brilliant Discord community, then why not join us here on Patreon? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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56:22
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56:22
The Truth: Who are the Next Superstar Midfielders Emerging?
It's time for The Truth!Today the boys are discussing the emerging generation of superstar midfielders. We've had the £100m transfers in recent seasons of Declan Rice, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez, as well as a number of other big money moves - so which players are in the conversation to become the next stars in the middle of the park?We discuss some of the main contenders, starting with Nottingham Forest's Elliot Anderson and Crystal Palace's Adam Wharton from the Premier League; moving to the Bundesliga to discuss RB Leipzig's Assan Ouédraogo and Eintracht Frankfurt's Can Uzun; chat through Como's Nico Paz and Juventus' Kenan Yıldız from Serie A; as well as a couple of others - including Porto's Victor Froholdt and Wolves' João Gomes, who is linked with a January move to Manchester United. So, are these players destined for nine-figure transfers or should we not be getting excited too early? As ever, The Truth is somewhere in the middle...
And remember, if you’d like more from the Rank Squad, including extra podcasts every Monday and Friday (including our weekly Postbox taking a look at the whole weekend of football) and access to our brilliant Discord community, then why not join us here on Patreon? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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1:00:56
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1:00:56
Champions League Takeaway: Gunners Fire Clear, Mbappe’s Piraeus Poker, Liverpool's Woes Continue, Vitinha Downs Spurs & Everything Else
Hello Rank Squad!It's the second Champions League Takeaway of the week, looking back at Wednesday's action from the fifth Matchday of the League stage. We start at the Emirates, where Arsenal downed Bayern Munich 3-1 in the battle of teams previously perfect; before heading to Anfield, where Liverpool's woes continued with a harrowing 4-1 defeat to PSV Eindhoven that continues to leave Arne Slot with more questions than answers. In Part Two we head to Paris and discuss the holders PSG beating Tottenham Hotspur 5-3, in a game that saw an improvement from Spurs, but not quite enough of one; and also to Piraeus, where Kylian Mbappé scored four goals as Real Madrid held off Olympiacos' comeback to triumph 4-3 in a much-needed win for Xabi Alonso. And in the final part, we round up all the rest of the action - a late 2-1 win for Atletico Madrid over Inter at the Metropolitano, extending their exceptional home record; Atalanta getting the Palladino era underway with a good win over Eintracht Frankfurt away from home; Sporting's dominant 3-0 win over Club Brugge that saw some wonderful goals; Pafos' late goal to earn a point in a 2-2 draw at home against AS Monaco; and Copenhagen hanging on for a 3-2 win over Kairat Almaty at Parken. It's Ranks!
And remember, if you’d like more from the Rank Squad, including extra podcasts every Monday and Friday (including our weekly Postbox taking a look at the whole weekend of football) and access to our brilliant Discord community, then why not join us here on Patreon? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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1:10:16
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1:10:16
Champions League Takeaway: Estevão Wows, Barça Buckle, Pep's Changes Backfire, Snow Angel Yıldız & Everything Else
Hello Rank Squad!It's the first Champions League Takeaway of the week, looking back at Tuesday's action from the fifth Matchday of the League stage. We start at Stamford Bridge, where Chelsea put the hammer down on brittle Barcelona, inspired by their own wonderkid in the form of Estevão, who continues to drop awe-inspiring performances on the big stage; before heading to Manchester, where Pep made 10 changes and suffered the consequences, as Manchester City were well beaten by a punchy, plucky Leverkusen at the Etihad. In Part Two we head to Marseille, where Newcastle United's woes on the road continued as OM came from behind to beat them 2-1 with an Aubameyang brace; and also to the Arctic Circle, where the half-time introduction of Kenan Yıldız flipped the game on its head as Juventus fought back to beat Bodø/Glimt 3-2 late on. In the final part, we round up all the rest of the action - Napoli winning 2-0 over Qarabag thanks to the bottle opener Scott McTominay; Borussia Dortmund taking advantage of an extra man to beat Villarreal 4-0 in the all-yellow derby; Benfica adding to Ajax's woes with a 2-0 win in Amsterdam; Union Saint-Gilloise ending Galatasaray's outrageous unbeaten home run by winning 1-0 in Istanbul; and a drab 0-0 draw between Slavia Prague and Athletic Club. It's Ranks!
And remember, if you’d like more from the Rank Squad, including extra podcasts every Monday and Friday (including our weekly Postbox taking a look at the whole weekend of football) and access to our brilliant Discord community, then why not join us here on Patreon? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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59:05
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59:05
The Truth: Who are the Luckiest & Unluckiest Teams in the Premier League?
It's time for The Truth!Today the boys are looking at luck and the effect it has on any given Premier League season, off the back of an article that Sam has written about how you can quantify it over the course of a number of games. We examine the structure of how you try to manifest this in a discussion, and if this is something that you can have a sensible chat about in the grander scheme of football fandom. We discuss the variants - injuries across entire position groups, playing teams with serious injuries themselves, the context of a new manager bounce, VAR decisions that have been proved wrong by an admission or an apology, and a few more things besides, and come up with a solution to the question: does this all even itself out over the course of a season? Is it just a case of you play everyone twice or is there far more nuance to the idea of playing teams at the right time?As ever, The Truth is somewhere in the middle...
And remember, if you’d like more from the Rank Squad, including extra podcasts every Monday and Friday (including our weekly Postbox taking a look at the whole weekend of football) and access to our brilliant Discord community, then why not join us here on Patreon? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Welcome to Ranks FC - the show that takes football and puts it in the right order. Join Jack, Dean & friends every Wednesday for rankings that discuss the best of football across Europe, from the Premier League to Serie A, La Liga to the Bundesliga, Ligue 1 to the Primeira Liga and beyond!If you're here to hear about the best players on the planet, the next generation coming through, the biggest transfer deals and the under-the-radar steals, you've come to the right place - all with a positive outlook, Things We Love, and the infamous Melon of the Week. It's Ranks!