Ranking the Champions League Last 16

Hello Rank Squad, here's a special Cyber Week treat for you - this week, we're opening up our Patreon offering to everyone, to show you what you'd be getting if you took the plunge and became Ultras. The first of two extra episodes is here - our Monday Postbox, where we talk through the weekend's action and answer as many questions as we possibly can. Opening up in the Premier League, we field some bits about Spurs' title-challenging credentials, comparing Jose's time in North London to his time at Old Trafford, question how City can get out of their rut of inability to break teams down. It's a similar story at Arsenal for Arteta, and there's some love for Liverpool after a highly impressive win over Leicester; and for Tammy Abraham, who is making Frank Lampard's selection dilemmas harder with a series of good displays. After the break we hop to the continent, starting with a discussion of Dortmund and the ever-more impressive Erling Haaland, as well as a deep dive on how Milan have turned things around to sit pretty at the top of Serie A. Then we head to the New World, with a look at the MLS Playoffs, some thoughts about players wearing shirts tucked in, and a peek at where managers such as Allegri and Pochettino may end up next to finish off. It's Ranks! If this has caught your fancy, and you want more of it - come join the Ultras over here to get your questions answered and become part of a fizzing community! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

23 Marras 20201h 1min

The Championship is a wild world, and it's formed some of our most loved stars of the Premier League and beyond. Nobody encapsulates that more than current PL Poster Boy Jack Grealish, who spent three explosive years setting the Championship alight before returning to take the top flight by storm. It's not just him though - right now Ollie Watkins, Patrick Bamford, Jarrod Bowen and loads more are all having their moment in the sun; and we wanted to get ahead of the curve on who the next ballers ready to take the step up are. So we called in one of the big guns and welcomed our friend Ali Maxwell of the Not The Top 20 Podcast, the experts on everything Championship and beyond, to the virtual studio. We discussed a whole load of players, including Brentford's Josh DaSilva and Rico Henry, Reading's Michael Olise, Swansea's Ben Cabango and Stoke City's Tyrese Campbell - looking at how they play, where they might fit, and who has their eyes on these young stars. We also got a quick update from Ali on some of the big name loanees in the second tier - Liverpool's Harvey Elliott and Harry Wilson, on loan at Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City respectively; Tottenham's Ollie Skipp, who's anchoring the midfield of Norwich City; and Chelsea's Marc Guehi, back at Swansea City. This week's 'Things We Loved' included Dean talking about Wayne Rooney taking on the (player-)managerial hotseat at Derby County; Sam discussing the Football Manager 2021 beta and how much he's enjoying it; and Jack pouring out some praise for the joyful, swashbuckling USMNT and their new crop of young ballers taking up the mantle. There's a new Melon of the Week from the International Break, and Sam's Gibberish involves the very 'English' things that he just doesn't like, to much chagrin. It's Ranks! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

18 Marras 20201h 12min

It's time for our first guest on Ranks FC and who better than our old friend Jimmy Conrad, USMNT legend and modern media mogul, who joins us to look at the most shocking things that have happened this season, from Liverpool to Messi to VAR and beyond, we cover it all, from the Champions League to the Gala Dinners that may or may not be happening this winter. On top of that, Dean leads some chat about what's going on over at Real Madrid, Sam pours out some love for West Ham's Declan Rice and Jack harps on for a bit about Sassuolo, who currently sit second in Serie A, just two points behind Milan and without a loss so far. Dean gives out a Melon of the Week to someone very close to his and Jack's hearts, and Sam's Gibberish Rankings look at tips to surviving the winter months. Oh, and the poems are back. It's Ranks! If you fancy two extra episodes a week, come and join the Ultras on Patreon - it's a whole load of fun: patreon.com/ranksfc. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

11 Marras 20201h 9min

Off the back of JWP's flurry for Southampton at the weekend, we decided to take a punt at trying to pick the best five set-piece takers in Europe. It's an ardous task for Sam, who has no fewer than five honourable mentions, but he finally gives us his reasoning behind his picks for the five men who he thinks are the best dead ball specialists UEFA has to offer, whether that be on corner kick, free kick or penalty duty. There's discussions on everyone from Leo Messi to Joshua Kimmich and beyond. In this week's 'Things We Loved' Sam pens a love letter to friend of the pod João Félix, who is really coming into his own for Atleti this season; Dean waxes lyrical about Brendan Rodgers' Leicester City and their thumping of Leeds United; and Jack explains why everyone should really be watching Real Sociedad, who currently sit top of La Liga and have won four on the bounce in some style. Obviously there's a Melon of the Week, which comes straight off the back of a Basque nightmare, and Sam's Gibberish sees him ranking the worst things about his new-found hobby - Golf. It's Ranks! If you want more from us, come join the Rank Squad Ultras over at Patreon - where you can get two extra podcasts and a newsletter every week from the Rank Squad. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

4 Marras 202056min

There's 20 club captains in the Premier League, but their ability levels are vastly varied. From club stalwarts who don't really play to talismanic leaders, we wanted to dig a bit into the heart of it, so we got Sam to rank all 20 on their footballing ability right at this very moment. Needless to say, arguments followed. It led on to a discussion about what the captain's role really is though, and just why the armband is so important. In Things We Love this week, Dean gets back to his investigative roots and looks at Pep's contract situation at Manchester City, and the problems that come with the delay to signing a new contract; Sam talks about Angeliño's new-found goalscoring form on loan at RB Leipzig (and why City could probably do with him back); and Jack explores Roma's start to the season within the context of their new ownership promising to make them "one of the greatest names in World Football" again. There is of course, a Melon of the Week (from the Bundesliga) and a counterpoint, the anti-Melon, if you will; before Sam rounds things off with his gibberish rankings - what he's missed most about driving, after getting back in a car for the first time in six years. We're just glad we weren't in it. It's Ranks! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

28 Loka 20201h 5min

Ranks FC is go! And we're launching back into Wednesday episodes with a big one - ranking the best attacks that European football has to offer. From the Premier League to Bundesliga, it's been a goal-fest since we returned for 2020/21 and we're here to take those clubs and put them in some semblance of an order. Sam takes on a gargantuan task, with a little help from the Rank Squad, and a wildcard in his pocket. Of course, on top of that there's 'Things We Loved' which this week include Pep's use of Joao Cancelo in City's game against Arsenal; Kylian Mbappe's form and just how bright his future is; and Dani Parejo's triumphant return to former club Valencia in the Derbi de la Communitat. As usual, Dean hands out Melon of the Week, although there's a surprise challenge, and we debut Sam's Gibberish Rankings at the end. It really is Ranks FC. If once a week isn't doing the business, and you want to join the Ranks FC Ultras with two extra pods and a newsletter every week, come find us on Patreon: patreon.com/ranksfc See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

21 Loka 20201h 2min

In the first full episode of Ranks FC, we talk to Leeds United and Northern Ireland midfielder Stuart Dallas who sets the record straight on Marcelo Bielsa, the agony and the ecstasy of Leeds, recording a documentary during a pandemic and just what Erling Haaland said to him when they swapped shirts. There's also some chat between Jack and Sam on Leeds' hot start to life back in the Premier League and why fans should continue to be excited about watching a Box Office Bielsa side. If you want more from Ranks, come join us on our Patreon, where you get eight extra episodes a month for about the price of a beer (and also we'd love a beer), so if you wanna join the Ultras, come and involved here: patreon.com/ranksfc See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

15 Loka 202031min

Welcome to Ranks FC, the new home of what was B/R Football Ranks, at the start of a new chapter. If you loved what we did before, you'll be glad to know it will take much of the same format as it used to on our staple weekly show; and if you were after more, well, there's plenty more coming at ya. Make sure you hit subscribe as we embark on a journey into the world of football with you - Rank Squad Forever. You can find us on Twitter at Rank Squad - and at Jack Collins, Sam Tighe and Dean Jones. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices 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.

13 Loka 20202min