Schrodinger’s Ball

# 52: Man City FA Cup Winners; Will Pep stay? Can Cherki break Bruno's assist record?

Note: This episode has been recorded just following the FA Cup Final result. (So please excuse the speculation before Pep Guardiola departure news)
 
We are joined again by a friend of the pod; Yashraj to discuss Man City's FA Cup Triumph
We discuss the amazing finish by Antoinne Semenyol, 2 brilliant stops by helmet wearing Rob Sanchez and the 2 penalty calls for Khusanov's tackles on Joao Pedro and Jorrel Hato. Man City have done the domestic double. 
 
We also speculate the future of Pep (which is unfortunately clear after Fabrizio Romano's announcement) and if Man City can clinch the title with where the challenge lies in the next 2 games of this season. 
Finally we discuss why Bruno deserves the PFA POTY and can Cherki or Nico O'Reily win the PFA YPOTY award this year. 
 
Hosts: Chinmay and Raj
Guest: Yashraj

# 51: GW 35, 36 Review: Liverpool loss to United; draw to Chelsea; Alonso to Chelsea?; Bruno wins FWA

We are back for an episode covering the Gameweek 35 and 36 games covering the United vs Liverpool; Liverpool vs Chelsea games, United vs Sunderland draw and Chelsea's loss to Nottingham Forest.
Other topics covered include; Slot getting booed at Anfield, David Ornstein reporting Chelsea and Alonso positive talks, Bruno winning the prestigious Football Writer's Association Award beating Rice and Haaland and the controversial VAR call leading to Arsenal winning against West Ham and Barcelona retaining their La Liga title in style on an el-classico night and Rashford's move to Barca getting stuck in haggling.
Hosts: Sanket, Raj and Chinmay

# 50: United special: Double over LFC; Return to UCL (feat. Neha Dinesh Anand)

We mark the #50 episode with our biggest guest ever. We invite Neha Anand a popular sportscaster, actor and avid Manchester United supporter. 
We record this episode at the precipice of Manchester United completing a double (a win at Anfield and Old Trafford) against their arch rivals Liverpool. We discuss the grit and determination in the performance, the positive impact Michael Carrick's coaching has had on this team and how UCL football is a gamechanger for this team.
We also address the expectations with squad building, replacing a behemoth like Casemiro, rewarding the magnifico with a major honor at Manchester United and why Carrick has done everything right to earn this job.
Host: Sanket
Guest: Neha Dinesh Anand (Instagram: @nehadineshanand)

# 49: Liverpool victory; Chelsea FA Cup win; Manchester United vs Liverpool Preview

We record this episode on the weekend as Liverpool showed their ruthless side in breaking Crystal Palace's back at Anfield and Chelsea finally score a goal against PL opposition after a 5 game drought.
We also preview the Liverpool - Manchester United derby with both clubs gearing for securing Top 5 finishes. Chelsea faces Nottingham Forest who will be facing Villa in the Europa League. There is also the matter of UCL games between PSG and Bayern Munich and Atletico and Arsenal.
Hosts: Raj and Chinmay

#48: GW 34: Chelsea complete collapse; Rosenior sacking; United and Liverpool stand on business

This podcast focuses on the Premier League fixtures with United resiliently holding a 0-1 lead vs a helter-skelter Chelsea who failed to register a single big chance with 21 shots attempted, almost solidifying United's place in the Champions League next year with Bruno registering another assist. The Chelsea decline hit a tipping point when they showed at Amex Stadium with no tactical know-how, no intent to defend or press and what was evident to owners is that Rosenior had to be sacked following this result. We discuss potential replacements, while understanding that the process is still in incubation stage.Everton lost to their Merseyside rivals owing to a spectacular assist by Cody Gakpo to Salah and VVD scoring a clutch header to earn all 3 points.
London clubs seem to be in a bad phase currently where Spurs conceded a late goal to Brighton getting a draw and Haaland and Cherki's finishes were enough to earn City all 3 points and taking a lead for the first time in the Title Race in its last few yards.
Hosts: Chinmay, Raj and Sanket

#47: Liverpool UCL, FA Cup Visit, City thrash Chelsea, United lose to Leeds, hairpull

We discuss the fixtures in GW 31 and GW 32, where Chelsea lost to Everton and Manchester City conceding 6 goals and scoring 0. The only positive result midweek was the thumping win against Port Vale where Chelsea scored 7. Chelsea now faces Leeds United in the FA Cup Semi-final and United in the League at Stamford Bridge.
Manchester United has received 2 unusual red cards with Maguire and Lisandro suspended for the Chelsea game. Manchester United came flat footed against Leeds in 1st half awarding them an Okafor brace with impressive pressing. Bruno notched another assist but unfortunately left Old Trafford with 0 points.
Liverpool have had a tumultous week where PSG eliminated Liverpool from UCL Quarter finals and City eliminated Liverpool from FA Cup after pumping 4 goals. A ray of hope in securing Top 5 came when young Rio inspired a win against Fulham
We also discuss the spicy fixtures with Atletico Madrid and Bayern eliminate Barcelona and Real Madrid from the Quarter Final. We discuss how one side of the SF is protagonists and the other side contains more pragmatic teams

#46: Man City Special: UCL Exit, EFL Cup victory, FA Cup match vs Liverpool

We welcome Yashraj, an avid Man City fan to our latest episode to discuss the tail end of this season where City was expected to fight on multiple fronts under Guardiola's leadership. 
We cover their UCL exit versus an apparently weakened Real Madrid, the emphatic EFL cup victory denying Mikel Arteta yet another trophy. Finally Raj the Liverpool fan previews the FA Cup quarter-final tie v/s Manchester City this Saturday.
Host: Raj
Guest: Yashraj

#45: Chelsea Special: A Club in perpetual crisis?

We invite Chayan or Football Frenzy (@footballxfrenzy777) a Chelsea fan and a content creator on Instagram and Youtube. He shares his story on why he supports the Blues and what is his fondest memory supporting the club.
We host an intense 1-on-1 conversation with Chayan to discuss the current state of the club. We start with the new coach changes and our verdict on Maresca and Rosenior now. We also discuss the dip in form since UCL exit, Enzo Fernandez rumors.
Finally we discuss and present 2 views on the ownership. The host presents a more soft view on BlueCo while the guest discusses why this is an untenable situation. 
Host: Chinmay
Guest: Chayan

#44: GW 30 Review: Chelsea horrible week, Liverpool held at Anfield vs Spurs, United smash Villa

In this episode we cover the PL games in GW 30 and the RO16 Leg 2 for Chelsea and Liverpool
We start off with Liverpool getting held at a frustrating draw against Spurs at Anfield as despite the massive attacking talent in Liverpool, their only goal was scored a Dominik Szoboszalai Free Kick which rolled over Vicario's fingers in the goal. The Hungarian has broken Liverpool's record for most direct FKs by a single player in the league. Raj questions Slot's decision to play Frimpong at RW and Szoboszalai at RB eventually leading to Richarlison getting a free run in the Liverpool box for the equalizer. However he lays the major chunk of blame on Liverpool's attack. We also discuss what made Liverpool be so good against Galatasaray smashing 4 goals past the Turkish Giants, who could have even conceded more
We also discuss the misery Chelsea has been inflicted with in both Champions League and the League as Newcastle beat Chelsea with a simple goal at Stamford Bridge and PSG widen the scoreline to finish off Chelsea. Chinmay raises major doubts over the future of Liam Rosenior.
We also briefly touch the United vs Aston Villa game where Bruno gave 2 assists, the 2nd one to Cunha being absolutely world class and securing a relatively straightforward win vs the Villians. Aston Villa is on the brink of collapse in the league. There is a discussion if Bruno can rise up in the Balon'dor odds if he plays well for Portugal in the World Cup
Hosts: Raj, Chinmay, Sanket
 
 

#43: English teams dacked in Europe. United lose to Newcastle, Liverpool lose to Wolves

We all have our woes to share this week. 
Chelsea began March with a bang beating Aston Villa convincingly at Villa Park with Joao Pedro getting his first Premier League hattrick. There was a scare on the weekend as Wrexham nearly dragged Chelsea into a scary scoreline in Extra Time. Chelsea lacked creativity in their B-squad as the team somehow got over the line. The real shock came on Wednesday as PSG avenged Chelsea with a 20-minute sucker punch finishing the home time 5-2 with a mountain to climb for Chelsea
Liverpool also had a mixed week with 20th place Wolverhampton Wanderers beating the champions at Molineux with a 2-1 score despite a Salah goal. Liverpool thrashed the same Wolves in FA Cup with an inspiring performance by Rio Ngumhoa and Andy Robertson
United and Carrick finally face a loss as 10 men Newcastle beat United at St. James's Park with a difficult goal by Will Osula. United has been dragged back in the Top 4/5 race due to this result.
Finally we discuss how this week has bought the English coefficient considered to be very comfortable as Spain and Germany make good progress. This is especially jarring since Barcelona and PSG both have their weekend games moved whereas the UCL opponents in Chelsea and Newcastle face off on Saturday.
Hosts: Chinmay, Raj and Sanket