Chapter 1: What makes a football game great?
It is not war and death and famine. It's not that at all. It's the opposite of that. It's to persuade there's a world outside of that. That's why sport's important.
The big question many of our World Service members have been wrestling with this week is, did we spend too much time, not enough time, or just about the right amount of time talking about Lyndon Baines Johnson this week? It's time for our weekly Second Captain's Tasting Menu. My name is Ciarán Murphy. And honestly, I think we Goldilocksed it pretty nicely. But hey, that's just me.
Now, how we ended up talking about LBJ so much is a mystery to me. But he has a certain gruff appeal which appealed to the tailoring, Ken. Tailoring being the family business, of course. Elsewhere on Planet Second Captains, we caught up with Ireland international Harvey Vale. Currently in the last week of his club season with QPR.
We remember Harvey being brought in at short notice for the playoff against Prague. Even the rumours that Ken helped, well, if not start, then at least stuck, that he was in line for a starting place out of nowhere in his first international cap. But his journey through the Chelsea youth system as a young player through to the first team was not easy.
And that's something we discussed with him as well.
I was super proud of it because to get through sort of Chelsea's academy and to play for the first team is no easy feat. It's super hard and it's ruthless. I probably learned so much there at one point when I was training with the first team and played a few games. I was training and playing with some of the best players in the world. So you learn a lot about yourself and
And there's been lots of different managers. You learn different styles and everything like that.
Lots of different managers, lots of different owners even. I mean, you were there. I wonder if you can remember the summer of, I guess, 2021. This is when Frank Lampard was the manager. And if I'm not wrong, Chelsea had a transfer ban, right, at that time.
Yeah.
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Chapter 2: What was Harvey Vale's journey through Chelsea's youth system?
In each training session, if you didn't pass to the right foot, he'd make a point of it. In each presentation before a game, he'd say, this is how we're going to play, this is why we're going to play, this is what's going to win us games. It was really good to work with a coach of that calibre.
It's interesting, just when you're saying that, it reminds me of Troy Parrott did an interview a couple of months ago with a colleague of ours, Miguel Delaney, and he talked about... Well, he was obviously at Tottenham when he was about the same age you were when you were at Hull, and he was going on loan and kind of things like this, and talking about how frustrating he found it, but he said...
I thought I knew everything and I realize now that I didn't know anything or I knew nothing. You know what I mean? He's looking back from the perspective of only sort of four years later.
I wonder when you think about your own career, you know, where you're at now compared to then, how do you think, what do you think you've learned or how do you think you've sort of developed in your attitudes or you're thinking about the game compared to then?
I think he's probably spot on. I think there's times you look back and at the time you might have not been playing or whatever and you were fuming, whatever, and then you look back on it now and you think, oh, it's probably the right decision for me. I was in charge then or whatever.
But yeah, it's just playing games, it's training, it's just understanding the game, different tactics, different managers, different players, how to play in different systems. There's so much to learn and obviously I'm only 22. I've still got a long way to go in terms of that. But you can definitely feel it season on season. You start to just understand the game as a whole a bit better.
Obviously, the new Chelsea owners that come in and start buying a lot of players. And I don't know if you and your kind of fellow Chelsea Academy guys were thinking, well, what were you thinking?
It was tough. I'd probably say, yeah, at the time it was a bit like you start questioning it a bit. I guess you're thinking like, oh, does that mean they're not going to show faith in us or no trust in us? And you start doubting yourself a bit. And there's probably been quite a lot of lads that have left the academy or wherever for that sort of reason.
They didn't feel like there was a chance there anymore.
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Chapter 3: How did the transfer ban impact Chelsea's academy players?
He wants a team to come at them, and when Aaron Danks is in charge again, the team is coming at them.
He's finally met his Moriarty in Aaron Danks. It was just, like, I mean, okay. Vince and company described it as a clash of ideas, and then actually he, I mean, he said clash of ideas, and then in the next sentence he said both teams have the same idea.
I thought, okay, well, that's good. Yeah, because I thought I'd misunderstood this game entirely.
This was not a clash of ideas. This is what happens if two teams with the same idea just meet. And we've seen these kinds of examples of games before, and this was the best outcome of that type of situation. Because you have Luis Enrique saying, this is the best match I've been involved in. Marquinhos says, it was the game we dreamed of playing since we were kids.
Then you've got Kenny Cunningham saying this.
it can't be by definition it can't be a great game having that many mistakes on the pitch people are making no it can't be it can't be it can't be a great game a great attacking game what's a great game then a great game when both fastest at the game both teams are playing at their optimal level yeah exactly
of course a nil I've mentioned it before come on I would take the event as AC Milan European Cup final Old Trafford nil all I did that game many days a week it turned out to be great how good was that game Benny rubbish you finish off absolutely rubbish I'm out of here I tell you finish off Gattuso got man of the match that's how good it was
little drive by on Gattuso there former Rangers man by Neil Lennon yeah it was good fun in the studio last night I gotta say oh sorry the question we're all wondering is did Noah actually get to stay up or oh because I so was that a half time you appealed for him to stay I appealed for any kid who and this is kind of where I'm at at the moment Noah in Champions League it's like you can stay up for the first half yeah whatever and then
but I just I appeal to the nation to parents around the country to let everyone stay up but I included my own wife in that and yes he got to stay up but in fact he stayed up for the punditry as well afterwards very good I mean he's getting called up by Gary Breen he did I'm sure that went down well he did ask why did you ask Kenny did he enjoy the game of course everyone enjoyed the game you don't know Kenny son you gotta watch more also don't editorialise me but he I mean Kenny Cunningham is making an important point there
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Chapter 4: What was the atmosphere like during the Chelsea game against Luton?
And instead, PSG cut it out. And the ball is then laid off to Kvartskillia. And at the moment, they've cut it out. Four Bayern players are out of the game because they're ahead of the ball or can't get into position.
Kvartskele then chips it over another four Bayern players we now have two on two and this was Douay against Douay and Demille against two and the Bayern players you see the way they run back right there it's Kane Kane is the furthest player back He's the closest player. Harry Kane is the closest player to the goal line as the ball hits the net.
Because they're desperately trying to get back and create numbers. And they actually do get the numbers back. The 2-on-2 becomes a 2-on-4 or 2-on-5. And it doesn't matter because Dembele just scores. Like, you know, through the defender, the goalkeeper... I don't blame Neuer for that one, actually. I mean, you can kind of go, well, should he get beaten as a near post?
Well, what if the ball like flashes in, cracks off the foot of your near post, completely unexpectedly through defender that's blocking your view?
The near post thing is stupid. It's just one of those. It's one of those conventions that gets trotted out in football that makes absolutely no sense.
And also, maybe if he dives, you don't criticise him. The fact that he's just stood there makes it look like, oh, he should be reacting quicker.
It's like, the ball's in the net before he sees it. Do you agree with Kenny Cunningham that that nil-nil Champions League final was a better match than... what we saw last night.
No. Greatest game ever. No, no, of course not. Of course not. Now, there is like, there's a whole school of thought about this.
Well, BP and Patreon pointed out Jose's old quotes. Do you remember Jose talking about 5-4s?
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