Champions League Takeaway: The Return of the Chaos!

Preview season continues here on Ranks FC, moving over the Iberian Peninsula from Portugal to Spain! La Liga is back, and there's brilliant battles up and down the table - so we were incredibly lucky to be joined on today's show by the expert analysis of Alan Feehely, editor of the mighty Football España.We pose five questions ahead of the season beginning: Who are now title favourites out of Real Madrid and Barcelona? Will Atleti improve now they are back in their underdog role? Is Sevilla's hold on a UCL spot in danger - and are Real Betis, Real Sociedad or Villarreal ready to succeed them? Who are the biggest regression candidates for the season ahead? Which promoted club is most likely to survive, and which surviving club is most in danger of the drop?There's also a Melon of the Week, where two candidates handily put themselves into contention - and Sam's Gibberish is about the things in his life that he wishes he liked, but he doesn't. It's Ranks! 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.

10 Aug 202258min

Hello Rank Squad!It's time for our fourth episode of our Big Season Preview Series - this time, a slightly shorter one on the Portuguese Primeira, and the major storylines ahead of this season. We take a dive into where all of Portugal's Big Three are ahead of this season - can Porto retain their title? Are Sporting still their closest contenders? Could Benfica, under Roger Schmidt, be back in this conversation?We also discuss a little bit of the 'best of the rest' - Braga's role of late, but are there challenges too from Vitoria Guimarães or Gil Vicente, last season's surprise package? It's all wrapped up inside here! 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.

5 Aug 202233min

When everything comes at once, everything drops at once! Moving from England across the Channel, we take to France to look at life in Ligue 1 this season - and we're joined by the expert analysis of Alex Collings, of the Football Per 90 Podcast and a writer for Scouted Football.We pose five questions ahead of the season beginning: Can PSG break their points record (on back of a lot of hype and smart summer) Who is the best of the rest? What can we expect from Paulo Fonseca & Lille? Who is the biggest regression candidate? Who is your tip for breakout star?There's also talk on the links to Amadou Onana, some revisiting of last year's thoughts and a discussion of Takumi Minamino's new role at Monaco. It's Ranks! 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 Aug 202251min

Hello Rank Squad! The summer has passed, the international tournaments have been concluded, and the return of domestic league action is just round the corner, so it's time for the second of our Season Preview series - and it's a big one, because the Premier League is back! We start at the bottom of the table, with the battle for survival taking place there; and end with the thrill of the title race - but in between we discuss everyone else too - from those consolidating to the fight for European spots - and all the mayhem and chaos that we expect to play out with a host of new faces and outcomes joining the PL. There's also a Melon of the Week and a really bizarre Gibberish Rankings with Dean taking the reins, so make sure you hang around for that madness. It's Ranks! 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.

3 Aug 20221h 6min

It's all systems go this week as we head into full preview mode! First up, the Bundesliga! We're joined by Jon Mackenzie of the mighty Tifo Football to work our way through how German football's top tier looks before the season opens.We talk a number of different categories - the Top Four, the European Battles, the teams looking to find their way back to European paradise, the middle-of-the-roaders, and the relegation scrap!How are Julian Nagelsmann's Bayern going to set up? Are Leipzig a genuine challenger for the title? Do Dortmund have the depth to mount a charge? What do the promoted giants need to do to survive? All these and more, answered in detail, in the first of our 5 League Preview episodes coming out in the next fortnight.It's Ranks! 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.

1 Aug 202259min

Hello Rank Squad!We've seen some massive movers and shakers in the market this window, but as we settle in the 'deep breath before the plunge' with less than two weeks left until we see the return of many of Europe's top leagues, we take a moment to check on the players who are still where they started the summer, and might well be available if the right option came up.We rank five categories - best overall player, best free agent, best forward, best goalkeeper and best defender - with Sam and Dean each picking a selection for each and Jack mopping up at the back with some honourable mentions.Things We Love discusses PSG's business under new Sporting Advisor Luis Campos, FPL selections as the Premier League draws ever closer, and the start of the Championship season this weekend, which promises to be yet another cracker.There's a Melon of the Week for a manager doing some strange things in Southern Italy, and Gibberish discusses Sam's commitment to being an eco-friendly man, at least in terms of subscription services.It's Ranks!If you'd like more from us (two extra episodes a week) and to join our wonderful Ultras community, why not come and give us a go over on Patreon as the new season gets going? 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.

27 Juli 20221h 21min

Hello Rank Squad! With pre-season firmly in full swing and the transfer merry-go-round showing no signs of stopping, we wanted to take a look at some of the big question marks ahead of the new season getting underway. We start at Manchester United, where the addition of Lisandro Martinez at CB has posed a dilemma - will it be club captain Harry Maguire or Champions League legend Raphael Varane who starts next to their new man? Then we shift to Bayern Munich, who have similar personnel dramas after the addition of Matthijs de Ligt - how does everyone fit in, in Julian Nagelsmann's system? Finally, we turn to Barcelona, whose plethora of attacking riches has just been massively added to with Robert Lewandowski joining their ranks. Xavi's front three in their first league game is anyone's guess for now!Things We Love discusses some of the big names who are said to be on the move but haven't actually secured their new homes yet, and the anticipation of where the big switches will come in August; as well as discussing Paulo Dybala's switch from Juventus to Roma, and the excitement surrounding having a player of Dybala's quality in a system that will actually suit him.Finally, Melon of the Week is awarded to a man struggling to get into his (or his team's) new groove in pre-season so far, and then in the Gibberish Rankings we each pick the three albums we would listen to for the rest of our lives, if we were forced to renounce all others. It's Ranks! 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.

20 Juli 202259min

Dean Jones is back, Rank Squad! And on that note, we wanted to give you a transfer ranking to match - so we did. We talked five Premier League teams who have serious work to do before the season begins, if they're to match expectations. From Wolverhampton Wanderers to Everton; Manchester United to Chelsea; and the new enigma that is Newcastle United - we considered where they are right now and what they hope to achieve before the window slams shut.There's also some chat about the business of Luka Jovic to Fiorentina and why it might herald a new era for players who have previously been trapped in their clubs; and the brilliance of the Lionesses and France from what we've seen so far of EURO 2022!Melon of the Week has many contenders, from Premier League pre-seasons, running out of beer in Switzerland, and clearing team-mates shots off the line in the Canadian PL; whilst in Gibberish Dean talks about the weirdest things he found in America - including the legendary Joey Chestnut. It's Ranks! 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 Juli 20221h 17min