The High Performance Podcast
David Seaman: Ronaldinho’s Goal, Gazza’s Pain & Wenger’s Genius (E416)
15 Jun 2026
Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What moments shaped David Seaman's career as a goalkeeper?
As a goalkeeper, you're literally 10 seconds away from a major mistake, no matter how well you've played in that game. You made that one mistake, that's what everybody will remember. When the ball was coming over, I was thinking to myself, hit the bar, hit the bar. And I heard it hit the net. And then it's like, what's going to happen now?
I came out of my net, Becks and Sven talking to me, but got no idea what they said to me. Can we talk about the day that Arsene Wenger walked through the door? Arsene who? His first week, he changed everything. And Arsene's encouraging him to pass it and play. And I'm like, wow. Never shouting, just little instructions every single game. Which of those three holds the best memory?
You're a 96 one, yeah. Because as much as it wasn't a successful tournament, it was, but we didn't win it. Do you know what I mean? It was special. We went into that under massive pressure.
you know everybody wanting Gazza out of the squad and all that sort of stuff you know it was quite a lot of pressure going around but then we we draw with Switzerland in the first game you know so that would even built it even more and then and then we've got Scotland next so Yeah, it was a special tournament because, for me, I felt the England team made England fans love England again.
You know, because before it was a little bit volatile.
Yeah, and what do you think happened that made them love England again?
They just saw us coming back, coming back from... Hardly, you know, we went to Singapore and a certain Mr. Gascoigne decided to do the dentist chair. And then all the pictures came out from that and the fallout from that wasn't very good. So I don't think the country felt that we were preparing in the right way or whatever, but it was just added pressure. Yeah.
Were you there that night in Singapore?
Do you know what? I would have been.
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Chapter 2: How did David Seaman feel after Ronaldinho's famous free kick?
And this is why I wasn't. So we played against a dog and duck 11 in Singapore and beat them about 11-0 or whatever it was. It was just... And then we got told we could have a night out because we were flying back the next day. So I go up to my room and I start getting changed and that.
And I just come out of the shower, I sat on the bed, put the telly on, and it was Arsenal against Sheff Wednesday Cup final. I was like, oh, I'll watch this for a little bit. And that was it. I bumped.
You fell asleep? I fell asleep, exactly. And then I woke up the next morning, like go down for breakfast, and I'm hearing about all the carnage that went on and all the fun as well.
Yeah. Oh, that's the interesting thing though, isn't it? I think the press picked up on that as a wholly negative thing. Yes. But in a team, I wonder whether actually... And, you know, we can talk later as well about Arsenal because there was a lot of more recent criticism about the Tuesday Club and the drinking that went on.
But I wonder what the value is in those moments actually for team spirit.
For players, I think it's massive. You know, because everybody gets together. You know, even... Even like some, not with England, but like with Arsenal, like when you said about the Tuesday Club, you know, some of the Shire players, you know, they came along and it brings them into the squad. It brings them into the squad even more.
I want to talk a bit about Euro 96 because you talk about the pressure and the scrutiny that comes with playing for England. But I never felt that you felt that because the easy smile, the ponytail, the laugh, that's like you almost looked like the calm... member of those England squads to me.
Yeah. Yeah, I was. Inside, there's a lot more going on than I was showing. Because as a goalkeeper, you're literally 10 seconds away from a major mistake.
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Chapter 3: What was the impact of Arsène Wenger on Arsenal's culture?
And no matter how well you've played in that game, you made that one mistake, that's what everybody will remember. And that happened a couple of times, like massive ones. But the... But that's just the way I was. You know, I wasn't, when I was getting ready in the dressing room, I would be nice and calm.
You know, Martin Keane, he used to say to me, like, if I felt myself getting too excited or whatever, he said, I'd just look over at you. And he says, you'd be there just like deadpan. You know, I was just concentrating. And he said, but that helped him. Which mistake still hurts the most when you think back?
The Brazilian game, the Ronaldinho one, you know, because... And I still get asked today, you know, like, did he mean it? And I say, well, I know he didn't. I was told he didn't mean it straight after the game by Gilberto Silva, who was an Arsenal teammate, but playing for Brazil. And I said, but it doesn't matter. He still went in from...
like 35, 40 yards, you know, and that for me is a goalkeeping mistake no matter what happens, you know, but, you know, the fact that I went, I think I went to go to my right and then changed it to my left, blocked out and I couldn't move. What was going on then? Do you know what? When the ball was coming over, I was thinking to myself, hit the bar, hit the bar because I knew I wasn't getting it.
I know I wasn't going to get anywhere near it and I was just thinking, I just wanted to hear the sound of it, hit the bar, And I heard it hit the net and I was like, shit. Yeah. You know, and then, then we've still got half an hour to go. Right. So I'm on the pitch now and I'm thinking to myself, am I going to get treated like Beckham did in 98 if the scoreline stays the same?
That's on the pitch.
Oh my goodness. You're thinking that during the game?
Yeah.
Yeah.
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Chapter 4: What are David Seaman's three non-negotiables for a winning culture?
And how do you balance that with actually then having to do your job?
I found it hard, but I did it. But I was aware that I was really nervous after that. And there was a couple of times where I found myself thinking, I've got to go and get that cross that wasn't mine. You know what I mean? So it totally goes against what I always used to preach to other goalkeepers and what I used to do myself.
once you've made a mistake, try and relax a little bit and then build it step by step by doing little things. Because if you start thinking that you've got to go and make a save or you've got to go and get that cross, you might make another mistake. So I was aware of that in the game. And then obviously they go down, Ronaldinho himself gets sent off.
They go down to 10 men and we still don't equalise. And then it's like, what's going to happen now? And that's why when I came out of my net and I've seen pictures of like Becks and Sven talking to me and Ray Clemens, and I've got no idea what they said to me. On the pitch, on the full-time whistle? After the full-time whistle, yeah.
I mean, the interesting thing is, I saw Ashley Cole recently talk about that when he came out of the dressing room after that, that he said the press were salivating and didn't want to have your head on a stick and he spoke up for you to them and he felt that that came at a cost to him in terms of...
his own relationship with the press afterwards well i was sat next to him at the uh at the champions league cup final right and i've stuck up for ashley before you know like when he left arsenal and i've always told the truth of you know what i knew then and he and he's always you know like he stuck up for me as well you know and he said that the the press were like almost like laughing a little bit yeah at me you know because i i remember going into a press conference afterwards and i could not hold it together you know i just kept crying because i was too emotional and
You know, because even when the final whistle went, and like I said, when Sven and Becks came to me, I then went to the England fans and it just like, I was like, oh God, you know, it's that feeling of letting everyone down. That's what it felt like. You know, then all that emotion comes out.
Well, stay where you are, because in a moment, David's going to explain how nervous he was returning to England after his Ronaldinho mistake. But then what happened that almost moved him to tears?
So I'm now going back on the plane, and I'm still thinking like, oh God, what am I going to get treated like? Got off the plane at Heathrow, and there was like thousands of fans there, and a load of them started singing my name. Because I'd had a good tournament, which gets forgotten about. I'd played well. And even in the Brazil game, I'd done well.
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Chapter 5: How did David Seaman handle the pressure during Euro 96?
I think you get a bit moved even now thinking about it.
I know, because that's like a moment in time where you don't know what's going to happen. You know, I saw what happened to Bex. You know, totally unjustifiable and horrible at times. You know, not just like the stuff we saw, you know, the stuff like when he's just walking in the street and things. All that goes through your head when...
I landed and I remember I'd got my son Robbie on my arm and he was only he'd be what two and but then people started singing my name and it was like massive relief did you have a tear um no I don't think I did not then I shed enough before that trust me yeah I bet what after the mistake after the after the game you know like they like said like on the pitch
In the press conference afterwards, I tried to do that. Couldn't do it. Then we get back on the coach. We go to the hotel where all the family are waiting for you. There as well. You know, it's just this... Yeah, just a feeling of letting everybody down.
But what's that like, though, for, like... A Rotherham lad that doesn't... that's almost been trained to keep your emotions bottled up. You don't let the world see what's going on in there.
That was uncontrollable. You know, because like you say, I'm trying to fight it. I'm trying to not cry. You know, I'm a six foot four Yorkshireman.
Yeah, yeah, that's what I mean. And your generation doesn't show emotions like that. So how does it leave you feeling?
It just comes out and then you just feel... I don't know, just vulnerable, I think. And then, you know, I'd got people around me there that looked after me. And, you know, it was just, yeah, I couldn't control that. It was just emotion that just came out.
I remember on Harry's Heroes, the TV show that you did, when Paul Merson broke down in tears on that show. And I thought...
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Chapter 6: What lessons did David Seaman learn from his experiences with Gazza?
In a similar way, I thought that was a really powerful show of vulnerability from him.
Yeah, exactly. Were you expecting that? No, I was shocked when he came out because it was like, when I saw the clip of him, you know, in the taxi and that, it was just like, oh, I didn't realise that he was back to these, you know, to the old ways of... his gambling and I don't know whether he was drinking, but it was his gambling that was causing the most damage.
And seeing him being like that again really shocked me. And then seeing Razor Rudder and then Merce having a real ding-dong at breakfast, because I was there for that, me and my wife Frankie were there for that, and it was ten times worse than what we saw on TV.
You know, it was really bad, you know, and I'm, and I was like trying to, I didn't know like who to try and help because Mercer's my mate and Razor needs help. Yeah. You know, so that, that was a real tough time, you know, but then that, that's different. That's not like emotion for me. That's to try and go and try and help someone.
What have you learned being in sort of dressing room environments about being able to spot when somebody maybe can't articulate they need help, but you can see all the signs, what are they?
Yeah, they just, they stop talking. You know, they go into like a shell. And then that's, and I felt that I was good at spotting that. You know, and I always made a point of, new lads that came into the squad, especially England and things, you know, like when Becks came in, I was, I first, I went over to him and shook his hand and said, welcome to the squad and all that.
And he's told that story before, you know, but it was just something that I did with everybody. I remember how I felt when I first went into my first England squad, which was like back in 87, something like that. You know, I'm like playing a training with people like Brian Robson and Glenn Hoddle and Viv Anderson, Peter Shilton. Yeah. You know, and I was like, oh my God.
You know, and you just, you go in there and you just think like, I'll never get to that standard. Really? Honestly, yeah. You know, because like, they're like way ahead of you. Of course they're going to be, because they're older and they're more experienced. But when you're actually training with them, you're all on the same level. You know, I remember getting chipped by Glenn when...
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Chapter 7: How did David Seaman transition from player to coach after retirement?
And I never saw it coming. You know, it was only like 10 yards out and I was ready for a shot, a hard, low shot. And he went, chip. And it went, poof. I was like, I never saw that coming. I was like, oh my God, what sort of standard is this? Really? Yeah.
We'll be right back after a quick word from our partners. What's so interesting about the life that you've lived is, you know, 75 caps for England. You won the league three times, four FA Cups, European Trophy. All these amazing, great moments. You know, you're a genuine legend of the English game.
Yet the first thing you think of when you turn around and look at your shirts is, oh, a couple of bad moments.
Yeah. Why is that?
I know you do. I don't know. Well, because obviously it's England. You know, we'll talk about that one later. But the England situation is that never won anything for England. You know, and I go along with a lot of players now, you know, obviously since 1966. And that's like a regret, if you know what I mean, you know, because... I know how much football means to this country.
I know how much it means to the fans. I saw it in Euro 96 and I've seen it in other tournaments. Getting to the final at Wembley and all that sort of stuff. I want to be around when England win something because I think it's going to be epic.
Did you believe in those squads you were involved in that you would win a trophy for England?
Yeah, the 98 squad was really good.
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Chapter 8: What advice does David Seaman give to aspiring goalkeepers?
The 96 squad was like a rebuild of, because we hadn't qualified for USA in 94. So then Terry came in. Terry was just so good. Every box he ticked, man management, tactical, motivation, just looking at him. He's a proper manager and he knew how to look after players. But even to the fact when... Because obviously we didn't have to qualify. So we were playing friendlies before the tournament.
And every get-together, we would watch videos of Holland. We were like, why Holland? It's like, at some stage, we will play against Holland.
look at what the score you know look at the performance and he'd identified that early on yeah he said because Holland have set the bar high you know they are more like the team to beat you know them and Germany obviously but Holland were the yeah could you give us an example then of Terry's man management because as you know I've spent years working in football and so many England players of your generation say Terry Venables was the man on every level yeah
I'd love an example of why just the motivational side of it, of him saying, you know, come on, do it for the badge. You know, which when you flip that and you look and, you know, my experience of a foreign manager was Sven, absolutely miles apart. You know, as in I didn't get it from Sven. I got, you know, I got so much from Terry and Glenn as well. You know, Glenn Hoddle.
But Terry was just... He knew everything. He knew when to... Even, like, sometimes we'd be in the hotel. We'd been together for, like, quite a few weeks. And he'd go to me, like, David, take him fishing. He's getting on my nerves. Being Mr. Gascoigne. You know, so then I would have to take him fishing and look after him and everything. But...
But he knew when for me to go and look after Gazza a bit, because he knew that Gazza was such an important player of the squad. But he's not easy to look after. And he knew that about everybody. He knew everybody's character. And what was the secret to helping Paul be the best he could be? Keeping him happy, you know, and not...
You know, I've known Gazza for a long time and I've seen a lot of sides to him, you know, and some mad sides and some downsides, you know, but underneath all that, he's got a heart of gold, you know, and he would do anything for you. That's what I wanted to do. When I used to take him fishing, he'd mess about a little bit, but he loved his fishing. His passion for fishing was massive.
He bought then, and we would always fly fish because he could cast a really good line, but he'd be changing his fly so many times because he'd cast it out a couple of times. Oh, that's not working. And he'd take it out. His fly was out of the water more than it was in it because he was too busy trying to tie a new one on. But he just loved it. He was so passionate about it. But no patience.
Didn't have the patience of a fisherman. No. Yeah, I've done some filming with him since and made sure that he was all right. Because he's still got his difficulties. And we went and he absolutely loved it. And we were carp fishing. You know, and I said to the producers at the time and Ali Hamidi, I was like, right.
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