The Big Interview

This is the second part of my interview with Paul Clement and – if you have got here quickly – it’s part of your preparation for the Champions League final.

It’s rare that we get somebody breaking down what matchday is like at that extraordinary level of sport, but that’s what you have here.

The tactical presentation that gave Paul palpatations; the reason they can’t leave the hotel as a team; the Ronaldo effect in the tunnel before the game; the staggered nature of the celebrations – and why, at Madrid, they never last too long.

Enjoy!

Graham

Season 2013/14 was a special one for Real Madrid. It was the season of La Decima, their 10^th European crown. Paul Clement, assistant to Carlo Ancelotti, saw it all. And this is his account.

From a fastidious breakdown of a typical day on the training ground with Ancelotti, Zidane and Hierro (not a bad crew to hang around with) through the positional alterations and squad characters that lifted the team at crucial times.

Paul’s going to take us up until the end of the second leg of the Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich. Part two, which we’ll put out on Champions League final day on Saturday, is all about that thriller: La Decima.

Enjoy

Graham

Shortly after the interview you are about to hear, Michael O’Neill would be near the front of the field for the next manager of Celtic. It won’t be the last time he’s quoted for headline jobs.

We met in Edinburgh and he broke down in fascinating detail the way he shaped and guided a Northern Ireland squad to this phenomenal achievement of qualification for Euro 2016. He carefully separates the message and the delivery and explains why both need to be perfect to get the best results. If you can enlist world champion boxers or stadium rock stars to aid your cause, so much the better.

Enjoy!

Graham

What Eddie Howe has achieved at Bournemouth is remarkable and after spending an hour with him at that club, it’s impossible to imagine that this is the high-water mark in his young career.

Here’s a different kind of football mind: highly analytical, but also reflective, aware of the influence of his work on his life, and the other way around.

He started his managerial career operating under a transfer embargo, determined to improve the players he had to work with. It’s become his signature – if you listen to this and try to put yourself in his dressing room, I think it’s easy to imagine how it works.

I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did.

G

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Last summer I interviewed Chris Waddle. He talked about Cantona, Gascoigne, Francescoli and this Riyad Mahrez fella he was convinced was about to have a big season. Just listen to this.
Chapeau, Magic Chris!