Nessun Dorma Retro Football Podcast
Episodes
USA '94 - Part Three
13 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
No World Cup has seen as many goals on average in the last 30 years and much of that was down to the some of the fun and games in Groups C and D. Mike...
USA '94 - Part Two
06 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Right, it’s time to get stuck into the football as Groups A and B come under the microscope. Mac Millings is back to happily reminisce about the USA...
USA '94 - Part One
29 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
We’re back! After a six month absence to deal with newborn babies and fight with schedules, Nessun Dorma returns to celebrate the 30th anniversary ...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: Division One 1984-85
18 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Our last draft of the year goes back to 1984-85, the season when the greatest team in Everton’s history romped to glory. Martyn, Gary and Mac Millin...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: England in the 1990s
20 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Martyn and Rob are joined by Rob Fletcher (aka 90s Football Writer) to pick their England XIs from a storied decade. As well as reaching the semi-fina...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: Cricket World Cup 1992
13 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
With the 2023 World Cup entering its final week, Martyn, Gary and Rob are joined by Jonathan Hungin and Andrew Miller for another cricket draft - this...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: Cricket World Cup 1999
06 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Nessun Dorma ventures into new territory this week, with Martyn and Rob joined by two special guests for our first ever cricket episode. Jonathan Hung...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: Champions League 1999-2000
30 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Martyn and Rob are joined by Rob Fletcher, author of 1992: The Birth of Modern Football, and Ally Bain of Retro Football Analysis to pick their teams ...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: Premier League 1992-93
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Martyn, Gary and Rob are joined by Rob Fletcher, author of the superb 1992: The Birth of Modern Football, to draft their teams from the inaugural Prem...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: France 98
16 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
It’s a big one this week: France 98, a tournament full of great games and all-time-great players. Martyn, Gary and Rob are joined by the Guardian’...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: England in the 1980s
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week’s draft is a challenge: picking an XI from England internationals of the 1980s. Martyn, Gary and Rob are joined by… nobody, and that’s...
The Nessun Dorma Draft: Euro 96
02 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We’re going draft daft over the next few weeks, with a mini-series devoted to arguing over the best XIs from various tournaments, seasons and eras. ...
S5 Ep9: Souness's Rangers revolution
21 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Gary and Rob talk to Martyn about his book Revolution: Rangers 1986-92, and how Graeme Souness changed Scottish football when he became player-manager...
S5 Ep8: Nessun Dorma Book Club
14 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the Nessun Dorma Book Club, a kind of sporting Late Review but without Tony Parsons. The premise this week is simple: Mike, Gary and Martyn...
S5 Ep7: The Nessun Dorma Draft: Italia 90
07 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the inaugural Nessun Dorma Draft, in which we each pick an XI from a particular tournament, season or era. Given the name of our podcast, w...
S5 Ep6: Euro 88 (final)
31 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In the last episode of our Euro 88 special, Martyn, Gary and Rob are joined by Jonathan O’Brien to discuss the final in Munich and the tournament as...
S5 Ep5: Euro 88 special (semi-finals)
24 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Both Euro 88 semi-finals were intriguing culture clashes. The first match, in Hamburg, was loaded with historical significance. West Germany v Netherl...
S5 Ep4: Euro 88 special (matchday 3)
17 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
By the final round of group games, Euro 88 was effectively a six-team tournament. Denmark and England were already eliminated and barely had any pride...
S5 Ep3: Euro 88 special (matchday 2)
10 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Euro 88 was only four days old when the second of group games began, but our old friend jeopardy was already running amok. After a nervous start, the ...
S5 Ep2: Euro 88 special (matchday 1)
06 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Our look back at Euro 88 continues with the first round of group games. On Friday 10 June 1988, the tournament kicked off with a tense match between W...
S5 Ep1: Euro 88 special (tournament preview)
26 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
A new series of Nessun Dorma starts with the first part of our deep dive into Euro 88, the last major tournament in Europe before the big bang of Ital...
World Cup special: West Germany vs France, 1982
18 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Nessun Dorma returns from hibernation for a one-off special ahead of the World Cup, and a deep dive into one of the greatest matches in its storied hi...
A selection from 101 Great Goals
14 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Mike and Gary pick a couple of goals each from the legendary BBC VHS This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subs...
ND Extra Time: When The Seagulls Follow the Trawler by Tom Whitworth
29 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Gary Naylor chats to Tom Whitworth about his book, When the Seagulls Follow the Trawler: Football in the 90s. They get into the thrills and spills of ...
ND Extra Time - Euro Summits by Jonathan O'Brien
09 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
We're back for another Extra Time and with the rescheduled Euro 2020 on the way, Mike has a chat with the author of the definitive history of the tour...
ND Extra Time: The Accidental Footballer by Pat Nevin
04 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Our Gary talks to the much loved Pat Nevin about his new memoir, The Accidental Footballer, already a bestseller. En route, we hear about Tommy Tuchel...
S4 Ep11: The Final Day 1993-94
19 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
It’s a shift in focus in this episode as Nessun Dorma takes a look at the bottom half of the Premier League table, and the extraordinary denouement ...
ND Extra Time – Silver Linings by David Hartrick
10 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
We’re back with another Extra Time, our little offshoot that takes a broader look around the world of football culture. This week our guest is David...
S4 Ep10: Liverpool 4 - 3 Newcastle, 25 Years Later...
11 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
25 years after that night at Anfield; Lee, Mike and special guest Scott Murray consider Keegan, Evans, Collymore closing in and all the other kamikaze...
S4 Ep9: Aston Villa’s Glory Years, 1980-82 - Part 2
12 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Having looked at the Villa players individually, Lee, Gary and Mike return to discuss what they achieved collectively. The hors d’oeuvre is Villa’...
S4 Ep8: Aston Villa’s Glory Years, 1980-82 - Part 1
05 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Once upon a time in the Midlands, there was a moneyball miracle. Come and join Lee, Gary and Mike as they travel all the way back to 1980, one of the ...
ND Extra Time: Johan Cruyff at Feyenoord
25 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In 1983, Ajax decided not to renew the contract of Johan Cruyff, reasoning he was past it at the age of 36. So Cruyff, in the highest possible dudgeon...
S4 Ep7: Kevin Keegan's England - Part 2
12 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In Part Two, Keegan goes into full Keegan mode, with the smiles broad as England take a 2-0 lead against Portugal in their first group match. The pane...
S4 Ep6: Kevin Keegan's England - Part 1
05 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Kevin Keegan - England manager? What a loser!Lee, Rob and Gary unwrap that reductive statement and conclude that while Joseph Kevin Keegan may have lo...
S4 Ep5: Arsenal’s Double 1997-98 (part ii)
15 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Gary, Rob and Mike are back to discuss the transformation of Arsenal during Arsène Wenger’s first full season.We take an in-depth look at two Pre...
S4 Ep4: Arsenal’s Double 1997-98 (part i)
08 Jan 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Arsène? Who could ever forget him. Yet in September 1996 Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger was a relative unknown in the UK when he left Nagoya Grampus E...
S4 Ep 3: France 98 pt 3 – the denouement
08 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
We’ve arrived at the last eight in France, and Gary, Rob and Mike have much to discuss.Settle in for a chat about two of the greatest World Cup matc...
S4 Ep2: France 98 pt 2 – the Round of 16
01 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
That isn’t a misprint – we really have spun the thick end of two hours out of one round of World Cup football. Gary, Rob and Mike return for a re...
S4 Ep1: France 98, Pt 1 - The Groups
06 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, then you're Nessun Dorma's target demographic. We're back, and to open season four we're focusing on the ...
Bonus Ep: Middlesbrough 1996-97
02 Jul 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Middlesbrough’s 1996-97 season was the mother of all rollercoasters. They reached two cup finals, lost them both and were relegated – yet they wer...
S3 Ep10: Rovers Revolution
17 May 2020
Contributed by Lukas
It’s 25 years since Blackburn Rovers won the Premier League title in incredible circumstances. In the last episode of our current season, Rob ta...
S3 Ep9: Escape To Victory
19 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Possibly the oldest football we have ever discussed, as we take on the 1981 film about a match in the 1940s. Join Lee, Scott Murray and Carrie Dunn ...
S3 Ep8: Man United under Big Ron
16 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
In five and a half years at Old Trafford, Ron Atkinson made Manchester United glamorous again. Rob talks to Wayne Barton, author of Que Sera Sera, abo...
S3 Ep7: Graham Taylor's England
08 Apr 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Gary and Mike are joined by special guest Lionel Bernie, ghost writer of the fantastic Graham Taylor autobiography 'In His Own Words', for a look at t...
S3 Ep6 Pt2: Mexico 86 - The Knockouts
29 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Now that Silsoe’s “Aztec Gold” has faded out, it’s time to put on “Aztec Lightning” by Heads. Gary, Rob and Mike are back to complete thei...
S3 Ep6 Pt1: Mexico 86 - The Groups
22 Mar 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Strike up "Aztec Gold" by Silsoe, because we’re about to take you on a 2-part journey back to the 1986 World Cup in Mexico. In this first episode Ga...
S3 Ep5: The Season of Sleaze
26 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Rob and Gary take a (very) long look at the 1994-95 Season Of Sleaze, including drugs, battered taxi drivers, bungs, a kung-fu kick, a tearful pr...
S3 Ep4: Rangers' 92-93 European adventure
19 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Rob and Scott Murray talk about Rangers' greatest European Cup season and have another chat about a Journeyman and an Underrated Hall Of Fame Nom...
BONUS: Interview with Rob Sloman, Howard's Way director
05 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
To celebrate the release of the 1980s Everton documentary Howard's Way, our Gary has a good old chat with the director Rob Sloman. *apologies for som...
S3 Ep3: Euro 88
27 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Our next episode is here as we take a good, long (and believe us when we say it's long) look at Euro 88. Netherlands triumph, bicycles in the air, BE...
S3 Ep2: Ardiles and The Famous Five
27 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Come with us back to 1994, when Tottenham went mad under Ossie Ardiles and played The Famous Five. We have a good old chat about what that was all ab...
S3 Ep1: Liverpool & The Perch
25 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Rob Smyth and Scott Murray are here on our return episode to consider an addition to the Underrated Hall Of Fame, another Journeyman Of The Week ...
USA 94
26 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Rob and Mike are back for a special episode to celebrate the 25th anniversary of World Cup USA94. We take a good old deep dive into all the talk...
ND Extra Time: "Diego Maradona" review
12 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The new documentary "Diego Maradona" is in cinemas this week. Gary has had an early peek at it and in this bonus episode he let you know what he thin...
S2 Ep4: Nottingham Forest - the "inbetween" years (1981-93)
12 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We have a chat about Nottingham Forest’s "inbetween" years*: after the European Cups, and up to the relegation in 1993. To help us along on the jou...
S2 Ep3: Oldham Athletic 1989-1994
28 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we allow Lee to wallow in the gorgeous warm waters of a time when his football club didn’t cause him abject misery as we take a look...
S2 Ep2: November 17, 1993 - the end of the road to USA94
14 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Rob and Mike chat all about November 17, 1993, the last great night of international tournament qualification; an evening that ended careers, mad...
S2 Ep1: August 17 1996, Beckham, Ravanelli, Humphreys!
19 Sep 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We're back for Season 2 and we kick-off with a good old deep dive into the opening fixtures of the 1996-97 season. Lee, Mike and Gary consider Beckham...
S1 Ep19: Man United Finally Win The Title
01 May 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Rob and Mike chat about 1992-93, the season that United finally threw the 25 year old monkey off their back and hoisted the league trophy. There...
S1 Ep18: Footy on the tellybox
10 Apr 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We take leisurely ramble through football as experienced throught the cathode ray tube screen. Lee is joined by Scott Murray and Rob Bagchi to talk th...
S1 Ep17: Glenn Hoddle, England Manager
27 Mar 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The tenure of Glenn Hoddle at the helm of the national side is pored over by Lee, Mike Gibbons and Adam Hurrey. Is he in credit or debit after his Wor...
S1 Ep16: Diego Armando Maradona!
13 Mar 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We take off our shoes and paddle in the genius of the greatest of all time, El Diego. What made him so special and the impact he had on football and ...
S1 Ep15: Ireland under Jack Charlton
27 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
It's time to have a chat about the Jack Charlton period as manager of Ireland. We talk long balls, white baseball caps, Liam Brady's magazine based re...
S1 Ep14: Graham Taylor's Watford Revolution
13 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Watford's transformation for a Fourth Division side with a dog track for a stadium to First Division runners-up under the leadership of Graham Taylor ...
S1 Ep13 Part 2: Transfer Records from Francis to Shearer (1990 -1996)
08 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Part 2 of our ramble through the British transfer record from Trevor Francis's million pound move to Forest all the way to Shearer's £15m switch to N...
S1 Ep13 Part 1: Transfer Records from Francis to Shearer (1979-1989)
06 Feb 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Part 1 of our ramble through the British transfer record from Trevor Francis's million pound move to Forest all the way to Shearer's £15m switch to N...
S1 Ep12: Euro 96
23 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We discuss the summer of 1996 was quite as glorious as we all remember it with Lee Calvert, Rob Smyth and Mike Gibbons, author of When Football Came H...
S1 Ep11: Paolo Di Canio's West Ham
16 Jan 2018
Contributed by Lukas
We chat the Redknapp and Di Canio West Ham years with Jacob Steinberg, remember the late, great Cyrille Regis and have a long chat about one of our fa...
S1 Ep10: The Spice Boys
19 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A chat about the Liverpool Spice Boys with Rob Smyth and Scott Murray: the players, tactics, stories and whether those bloody white suits caused histo...
S1 Ep9: Howard Wilkinson's Leeds
12 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
We discuss the Howard Wilkinson period at Leeds United with journalist Rob Bagchi and also find time to reflect on another defuncy competition from th...
S1 Ep8: Everton 1984-85
05 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
A long chat about Everton's greatest season This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus...
S1 Ep7: Barry vs Motty
28 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lee Calvert and Rob Smyth are joined by Adam Hurrey to talk the backpass law, an underrated Arsenal cup win, the great Barry vs Motty debate and to se...
S1 Ep6: Liverpool under Kenny Dalglish
16 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lee is joined by Mike Gibbons and Scott Murray to talk about King Kenny's first spell in charge at Anfield. This is a public episode. If you would li...
S1 Ep5: Luton's greatest year & Le Tournoi
07 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lee is joined by Mike Gibbons and Luton's own Carrie Dunn to talk about the Hatters' great 1987-88 season, plus a look back at England's last internat...
S1 Ep4: Good Tournament, Bad Signing
02 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lee and Rob consider those players who looked great on the biggest stage and then were not so much afterwards before having a chat about two games tha...
S1 Ep3: Denmark win Euro 1992
23 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lee, Rob & Gary have a chat about Denmark's miracle win in 1992. Why did Michael Laudrup leave the squad? Were they really all on holiday beforehand? ...
S1 Ep2: Alex Ferguson at Man Utd, 1986-90
16 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Lee is joined by Rob Smyth and Mike Gibbons to discuss Alex Ferguson's difficult first period at Old Trafford This is a public episode. If you would ...
S1 Ep1: Italia 90
10 Oct 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Was it really the stinker everyone remembers? This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bon...