Football Daily - UCL Debrief: ‘Embarrassing’ Liverpool get away with it in Paris

Episode Date: April 8, 2026

Arne Slot remains under pressure as Liverpool manager after the Reds were dominated by European champions PSG at the Parc des Princes in Paris. But, with only a two-goal deficit, do the Anfield side still have a chance in this tie?Steve Crossman is joined by ex-Liverpool midfielder Charlie Adam, former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson, senior football reporter Ian Dennis and French football journalist Julien Laurens to dissect Wednesday night’s game. And you’ll hear from Reds boss Arne Slot.Later in the show, reporter Mike Minay and Spanish journalist Ernest Macia explain how Diego Simeone made history with Atletico Madrid at Barcelona’s Camp Nou.Timecodes 03:00 Does this move the dial at all on Slot’s future? 04:45 “Playing a back 5 sends the wrong message” 05:30 Did Slot betray his and Liverpool’s principles? 12:50 Van Dijk on the back 5 13:15 Do Liverpool really have another famous Anfield night in them? 14:30 How good is Khvicha Kvaratskhelia - could he be a Balon d’Or winner? 18:30 How can Liverpool stop PSG’s fluid attack at Anfield? 19:40 Arne Slot on PSG’s quality and why he played a back 5 22:47 How Atleti won at the Nou Camp for the first time since 2006 24:16 Spanish journalist Ernest Macia explains what Barcelona lacked 25:20 How good was Julian Alvarez’s free-kick?!Live / BBC Sounds commentaries: Thu 2000 Bologna v Aston Villa in UEL, Sat 1500 Brentford v Everton in PL, Sat 1500 Burnley v Brighton in PL (Sports Extra), Sat 1730 Liverpool v Fulham in PL, Sun 1400 Sunderland v Tottenham in PL, Sun 1400 Nottingham Forest v Aston Villa in PL (Sports Extra), Sun 1400 Crystal Palace v Newcastle United in PL (Sports Extra 2), Sun 1630 Chelsea v Manchester City in PL.

On the Football Daily podcast, Champions League debrief. With Steve Crosman. Hello there, welcome to the Champions League debrief. Liverpool have been beaten 2-0 at Paris-Sangman in the first leg of their Champions League quarterfinal. The night's other tie finished Barcelona and Nill, Atlatico Madrid 2. Aletti's first win at the camp now in 20 years. More reaction on the way to that. Our major focus, though, is the Park Day Prance.

We've got Charlie Adam with us in studio in Paris, Ian Dennis, Paul Robinson, and Julianne Leone. Ian, this was 2-0 going on for five more? Well, they got away lightly, Steve. I mean, Paris-Sanchaman's dominance should have produced a greater margin of victory. Duet's deflected shot gave the defending champions an 11th minute lead.

We then had a moment of individual brilliance from Quarats Kalia to secure a fine second after 65 minutes. But when you consider that Mamadash Philly made at least three significant saves, Dembele squandered a great chance in the second half and he struck a post late on. You had VAR and a...

overruling a penalty award for Canate's challenge on Zaire Emory, but Liverpool were fortunate when VAR didn't intervene after Canate's push on Mendes. And Liverpool, at the end of the day, didn't have a shot on target. This was just a damage limitation exercise. The tie is still alive. However, you would back Paris Saint-German to score at Anfield, and Liverpool have an awful, an awful lot of work to do for the return leg. Jules, 2-0 home win in a Champions League quarter final

is clearly always a good thing. But do you think Louis Enrique will be thinking this tie should be over now? Yeah, yeah, maybe. I think they would look back at the game and think, okay, they should have been, like DeNo just said, three, four, five, easily. I mean, the stats are such an embarrassing reading.

I think if you're Liverpool, a Liverpool player, staff member, fan, club director, anything. It's just embarrassing, I think, what they produced tonight or what they didn't produce actually tonight. But from a PhD point of view, you could be disappointed by the result in a way. It's still a 2-0 win in a quarter-final of the Champions League. But the way you play tonight, we're talking with Robo just off air and up during the news,

but the rotations, the permutations between players. And with Sanrique said something really interesting the other day. He said, wow, my dream is to have a squad of 20 players, and those 20 players can play in every position bar goalkeeper, of course. And he said, Nuno Mendez, he could play a left-back, left-midfielder, left-winger, right winger, number nine. And to be fair, today, we saw Nune Mendes, left winger at the end and then left back, obviously,

in his favourite position. But that's the idea. And with San Riqui is coaching those players to play in all those positions in the same game with all those rotations, which I think Liverpool had just no answers tonight, once again, like last season. Charlie, I feel like the future of Arnorslot, it's still going to be the talking point here. And we spoke a lot before the game about where the kind of dial is on his future,

how the players might be feeling, how we know fans are feeling, certainly some of them. Does the result and or the performance tonight move that dial at all for you? Listen, we could dissect it and we can realise that PSG is a very, very top team in Europe against some very top players. I don't think it changes the dial. Again, it's a performance that they've gone away into Paris, who have dominated the game.

And I think you give not an arrogance, but ultimately a thing that you say to yourself, By the way, this is a very good Paris-Sangerman team. They're the champions of Europe. It's a tough place to go. We've been outdone. We've been out-classed, but we've managed to Nick 2-0. And I think what Julian was saying there about Enrique,

I think there's just real clarity in what he wants Enrique as a coach. And I think I'll look at Mikkel, I look at Pep, I look at Vincent Company. They're all quite similar coaches in terms of every player could play the position. They could play a position. You play a winger at fullback. You could play a centreback in midfield, and they'll know their jobs.

At the moment with this Liverpool team, I don't know if they know the jobs. They're going man for man. They're all over the pitch. They've been killed on transition so many times this year. And again, tonight, too many runs. People are not matching runs. And if you don't do the hard yards and you don't match the runs in behind,

becomes so difficult. And the movement at the top end of the pitch is electric from Parasangerman tonight. And it caused so many problems. I suppose, Paul, it's one thing to know and recognize that you are as a club quite a long way behind the opposition. and that was probably true of Liverpool before the Man City game kicked off the other day and it was certainly true before this game kicked off

but when you see it play out in front of you when it's just underlined how far off the best in the world you are now that's a big problem. Yeah, you're not wrong. I mean that was our best against their best. That was our champions against their champions and our champions weren't even anywhere near but they came here tonight.

Obviously they're not in a good run of form at the moment. The confidence is very, very low and there are a team that are creaking, hence the reason that he played the back five As soon as you play a back five, it sends the wrong signals out to me. That's not playing to Liverpool's strengths. That's defending their weaknesses and defending against what attacking problems that the opposition are going to give you.

Because in Hakimi, Mendez, Kevarekogalia, Dewe, he knew Arna Slot, the problems that his team would have in the wide areas. And they were so submissive just by playing that formation, but then throughout the whole game, I mean, you look at the possession stats. It really is, like Joel said, from a Liverpool point of view, if they did it on a smash and grab and it was nil or got away with a 1-0 victory or a 1-0 defeat, it had been, okay, They've come here and they've done a job.

But there was nothing good about that performance tonight from Liverpool. The thing is, though, yesterday, Steve, he was talking on a slot about how Paris Saint-Germain liked to play football the way he likes to play, and he talked about going toe-to-to-to-to with him. And he was referencing about how he doesn't like people who time waste. Liverpool, from the very first minute, were out to try and kill the game by time-wasting. Now, of a certain generation, that's what used to happen. But he went all against his principles, and at no point did Liverpool look to try and compete here against Paris-S-Germain.

I think they would try to compete but they were outclassed and by the way I don't think it's a bad thing I don't see it okay he's went to five because he respects his opponent and he goes

yeah we're no in great form we're not as good as what what we expect to be at the moment we have to try something different against a team in opposition who are flying high champions of Europe you know so they've got real good threats

in the top of the pitch so I don't think it's a negativity I just think you have to respect what your opponent is if pet played five ever be like he's a genius because it's Pip Wardiola. Arnyslot goes he's under a bit of pressure, the results of not been there

and he plays a back five, oh, it's negative. No, sometimes he's got a He's never done it, he's never played a back five. Pep's never played a back five. Pep played a five. By doing that five weeks ago against Arsenal. What they've done tonight, the way that they've played today, they've sent out the wrong signals.

What happens is in a back five is you end up becoming into a defensive shape. But there's nothing wrong with him going saying, by the way, I think we need to with a back five. There's nothing wrong with that. At the end of the day, he makes a decision what he feels best for the game because it's a tough game there. If he goes and plays 433, he could have got crucified. And that's what's happened before. He's went with a back five. Okay, not perform well, different things in that and you hold your hands up.

Liverpool never performed, but this PSG team are a top team. So, I don't, listen, I don't see any problem why he can't go to a back five. He's just never performed again and that's something that he'll have to understand and the players have to understand about. with the back five really is that Liverpool didn't come here to play football tonight. That's not what they came for and this is not Liverpool. I don't really care if you're in good form or not good form. If you still have good players to play better than what we saw, expected goals is 0.18.

Like Deano said, no shots on time. The three shots in 90 minutes, the three they had are all on the edge of the box. That's all. They just did nothing. And you can play the back five as long as you come here to play football, not just park the bus. And I agree with you on the back five. Marino's parked the bus for years and become,

hero. But this is not Slot is not Morino You need to find a way You find a way a way of winning a

football match and if that's going to back five that Fee felt that was great for this group you do it and you have to

go against your principles or whatever you go against it you have to find a way. But then it has to work

and if it doesn't work then all of a sudden you're under a wee bit under a wee bit more pressure if it doesn't

work but everybody goes oh Marino plays five at the back and oh it's amazing and that

so what you find a way I don't care if I'm But when you've never done it in your two years here, almost two years here, and then suddenly you said they haven't even worked at, somebody was telling me earlier, they haven't even worked at it on training. Well, at the end of the day, that's why he's paid the big bucks at Liverpool.

He makes a decision as the coach what he feels best. So for us to have an opinion on, back five, back four, whatever, it does not matter. Slot makes a decision with his coaching staff, and that's the way they felt that was the best way to get a result in Paris, and Germant. But what we'll judge him on and what we'll talk about, his results and performances.

Of course you will. And he hasn't been able to do that with what he's done. And that's just another game. And that adds more pressure to him. So he's gone away from what he feels is right, playing 433 or 4-2-3-1, and he's went to a back five. If he doesn't win the game, he adds pressure to himself.

But as a head coach, you have to make these decisions what you feel right on the moment. And, you know, that's the way you do it as a coach. And you say, but he's not worked on it. Of course they've worked on it. They understand what there is. It's principles. It's wingback jumps to full.

back, slide over, what your problem is, you end up having Canate in the wide area as a full back defending or Joe Gomez defending wide 1v1 in a left back position. You know, there's nothing different. Front three still pressed the back three of PSG. So again, it's just, there is different ways of playing the game and trying to find ways of winning. And he felt that a back five was the right way.

Has it worked? No, that's where he is. There's also the possibility, Paul, that Arna Slott looks at it and thought, I'm just going to do something completely different because I can almost guarantee if we do what we have been doing then there's only going to be one result. So maybe it was just a big dice roll. Whether he rolls a one or not is another question.

It was a defensive setup. That's what it was. It was coming away to get a result in the Champions League and it was damaged limitations from the outset. They offered very little to nothing going forward the whole game. But you could see the structure that they were in. They would reverse and sit in this back five with the three in front of the back five

as soon as they lost possession. They wouldn't necessarily drop deep but the shape was something clearly that they've been well drilled into doing. Once they lost possession, we get back in this defensive shape, we try and protect the wide areas. But as the game went on,

the quality just showed from PSG. You look at Hakemi Mendez in the wide areas, regardless of what shape Liverpool, we're in four, five, six, play what you want. They were getting torn apart all over the pitch in the second half. I wonder, Jules,

if, as I asked Charlie at the start there, whether or not the dial has shifted on slot after tonight, I wonder if maybe things not getting any worse is not going to effectively save him. things probably needed to get much better and they certainly haven't done that. Yeah, I have to say I'm struggling to see him

on that bench next season. I just think this season has been disappointing and I know it's not just on him. I know there was the injuries and the arrival and the money spent and the new signings, all of that to integrate in the squads. I just think too often this season, they haven't been good enough.

And that's on him, not just tonight. Because tonight, I think it's a good debate about the back five and the setup and the kind of mindset that they had. But all season long, really, they haven't been good enough and they should have been much better than that. And I think I can understand the fans' frustration of some of them certainly around slot

because even in terms of intensity, and again today, you could look at the second goal, the Vars Kelia go, amazing goal. There's 27 passes from PhD in that move. So for 27 passes, there's not a Liverpool player close enough to the ball or to a PhD player to make an interception, to make a tackle. Look at the way.

Varas Kelly runs away from Gravenbache. I mean, I don't know, Gravenbache has been one of Liverpool's best player last season for sure, and even to some extent, this season. And yet, this is not good enough at this level. I'm sorry, and then we can talk about intensity. I'm just not sure that his met,

that Slot's message is getting through anymore. That's the issue of us. There's some decisions that, again, that's what I'm saying. I'm just trying to think back on where it was. Maybe Gravenberts doesn't track the run properly of the attacker. So again, Karate must have been out in the wide areas. trying to deal with the winger.

And I've seen a number of times where the ball's over the top, Fandike's over on the left-hand side. Kinati's on the opposite side of the pitch still. Not covering space. You're not coming over and trying to get into shape. So there was big gaps. When you go man-for-man, you get dragged everywhere. And if you don't get it right,

the space is open up. And even opportunity for, I think, DeBelli has a shot where they slide it through the middle of the defense. It's because of man-for-man, and they're opening it up in space. So it's a huge. below in terms of what? When you play man for man,

you have to get everything right for work. Some quotes here from Virgil Van Dyke. Talk about playing the back five. He says, you have to communicate, well, you've got to follow your man and wait for the right moment to win the ball. We have the opportunities to do them on the counter.

We didn't do it well enough. Hopefully we'll be better at Anfield. I'm not happy losing. The only positive is we have another game next week. I've been to many special evenings at Anfield. Our fans are the backbone of the club. Hopefully they can be there for us. I mean, I know, Ian, it's not the same.

first-leg score line as that famous tie you did, the comeback against Barcelona. But it feels like it would need a performance on that level. Definitely the performance, but only twice in the Champions League of Liverpool progressed after a defeat away from home. Chelsea 2007, they were beaten 1-0 at Stamford Bridge, obviously won the second leg by a goal to 0 went through on penalties. And then that Barcelona game that you're referring to in 2019 when they turned around that 3-0, first-leg deficit at the new camp with that famous 4-0.

4-0 win, but I just can't see it. I really can't see it, only because Paris Saint-Germain, I would back them to score a goal. I think they're going to have to... Liverpool are going to have to produce the perfect performance to try and even just get the tie level, not to win it, but just to level the tie because Paris San Geman outclass them tonight.

Well, it's one win, isn't it, in the last six games? And that win was against the very poor Galatasarise side at Anfield. This is not something new with Liverpool. This has been building. They've had false dawns this season the win against Galatasaray at home, the 5-2 win recently against West Ham and you think the corner's been turned

and I think they've had too many of those occasions this season Liverpool and they've not been able to continually put in a level of performance and that was just another example of it tonight. Let's turn it on to PSG then because yes Liverpool were poor but PSG are great I mean there are so many things we could pick up on but Fetchikvah at Scalia Charlie

we talked to him a bit before the game it wasn't just the touch and the run on the finish it was the little faint before he shot just totally in control and at the peak of his powers. Yeah, he's a top talent again, playing for Napoli and getting a big move to PSG. He was, you know, I said at the start of the show, but getting rid of these superstars and your name, Miles Messi and Bappy, people like that.

Usman Delenbelly's stepped up to the plate in terms of he's the sort of main guy for them. Dewey's a top top player and, you know, when you're getting that rhythm and you feel confident and you feel like, you know, you're one of the best players in the Champions League, it elevates you at a different level. Yeah, the quality he's shown at times tonight was terrific and, you know, could have had a couple more goals and also PSG

will be, I think if they look back on it, they'll be disappointed, it's only 2-0. It is one for you, Jules, right? It was about this time last year where we were sort of talking about the prospect of somebody like Raffinia, maybe winning the Ballondeau, because he was in great form, Barcelona looked really good. Now, in the end, if you're not in a Champions League final,

you're probably not going to win the Ballandoor. I wonder, if this wasn't a World Cup year and Georgia aren't at the World Cup and if they were they wouldn't win it. But if it wasn't a World Cup year, I just wonder if Kfarrett Skellia would be right at the top of that conversation. Yeah, I think he's still a bit underrated simply because I think

he plays for Georgia and it's a small country. They don't have really the lobby that a French guy or an English guy or Brazilian guy or a Spanish guy could have and that's it because again today, I know the goal is brilliant. He's run just to finish, everything is brilliant, but everything is done for the team as well,

not just in attacking position, but also out of position. The way he helped his fullback in Unomendos, we saw in tackling at some point on the halfway line, on a transition from Liverpool. All of that is just so important in a team. And that's what it brings. And again, I'm glad we highlighted him before the game

because obviously we were right and he scored a great goal. But it's the whole job, the whole work that he does for this team that is very special. By the way, we haven't talked about the actual Ballondo holder, Usman Dembele. And the reason we haven't done that is because he could have scored a hat trick and somehow ended up with nothing. Yeah, he had that chance, great chance in the second half where he's blazed it.

And I honestly thought that was going to be the second goal. And then he hit the in the post late on with a real fierce stroke, right-footed effort that beat Mamadashvili. You throw in the fact that Mamadashvili made at least three excellent saves. The one from Kvarekirkeli that took a deflection off McAllister in the first half, the one from Hakemi in the second half. This could easily have been five or six for, for Bressier. Paris Saint-Germann and I don't think they could have had any complaints Liverpool on that evidence. You know the thing with Dembele is it would be disappointed. Sorry, Robert, before you go.

It would be disappointed because he should have scored that one in the second half. There's the one in the first half on that counter-attack that Duay and kind of Connate pushed towards him and it takes you first time. But imagine if you're von der Leck or Conate and that's why the back five tonight, I'm not so sure because Dembele is not your traditional number nine. He's the guy if you look at his hit map. I mean, Luis Enrique has destroyed the idea of a hit map anywhere for his players. because like we said, they just play everywhere, all of them. But him especially must be so hard to mark or so hard to defend against because you're Conati and Vondike and you can't always go everywhere with him

because he literally goes everywhere. So everything else that he brings this team outside of, okay, he missed a couple of really good chances tonight. But it's just everything that is so unsettling for the opposition. They are a joy to watch, an absolute joy to watch when they play like that. You can see the movement. What we talk about, the movement off the ball. And I said it in commentary,

there is always somebody available. And they control the tempo. game, whether they're keeping the possession, rotating the ball, or whether they're actually going forward with a purpose. They control this game from start to finish, and you could see the way that they control it. The movement is incredible. Like Joel said, then, they're very, very difficult to pick up. It's fluid. It's interchangeable. But they all seem to know what each one's doing. They're a very, very good watch. So how do Liverpool stop them next week? I don't know. I think the risk is you have to go for it, but you have to be really brave. You have to go man, man, man marking everywhere on the page from the get-go and almost do like man-marking, which is

I know it's impossible over 90 minutes, but have that kind of structure which Liverpool don't have. And that's why I'm a bit skeptical, even outside of me being a PhD fan. Are you a PhD fan? No, but I just don't know seriously how in six days' time you can turn this and find the right structure to deal with all that movement and rotation.

But if there's one way of going, like we saw Bayern doing it here in Paris and PhD made mistakes that night, but when they won't in the league phase, you just have to go for it. But you take enormous risk, which can backfire. because then you will leave a lot of space for them

and if your press doesn't work once or twice, they'll punish you. But that's why you have to go. And now Liverpool don't have the choice anyway. You can't, don't even give me like, let's wait for the first 25 half a night. No, you have to go out of the field straight away, get that crowd going and go for the juggler.

They're going to have to score three. I can't see PSG not scoring. So Liverpool are going to have to score three in my opinion. Right. Let's get some reaction from Arnes Slot. Parisier-Met was by far the better team today. I could have scored more than two goals. But the good. thing was that the players of Liverpool

today showed fighting spirit, kept going every time when, almost every time when they had the shot, we had a lot of bodies behind the ball or protecting our box, which was necessary because I already said, if you don't track back, if you don't run back, these players, like the ones from City,

are able to hurt you a lot. So yeah, last season at Anfield, we played a completely different game. After 10 minutes, we could have been already tuned a lot. But we need to have a better performance. And B, we definitely need our fans to help us to create an atmosphere where we can rise to a better level than we did today. I thought we could try to press them really high and aggressive because Jeremy and Milos are also two players. If you press Hakemi and if you press Nino Mendes, they play and they start to run.

No, they don't start to run, by the way. They start to sprint. And actually it's not even sprinting. It's just a level above sprinting. And you have to cope with that. and usually, usually players like Jeremy and Miloge are better equipped for that than out-and-out wingers. But I think we could also see that every time

when we try to press them high and aggressive, those were also the moments where we were completely ripped apart. I think that to five or six big chances of them when we tried to be high and aggressive. And in a low block means that we have probably more defenders on the pitch, more tight, more aggressiveness. And the second part, I think you notice this probably as well with bringing Joe in,

you have some set piece quality as well. Charlie. Yeah, I get it. There's a limit to what he can say as well. Yeah, but I don't think you can go man for man. I think there's just, when you go man for man, you get dragged everywhere. That team need to be in a sort of mid-block, ready to press, set triggers, set traps,

and then go with speed at the top end. Transition will be key for them. So again, speed at the top end of the pitch. But I don't think if you go man-for-man, they'll just drag you everywhere. like you say, tonight, they tried to go man for man at times. If you don't communicate, you don't talk to each other, then it's a huge killer for you.

So I think there will be a different game. I get that the crowd will be up and they'll be edgy, but they can't afford to just lose a go in the first 10, 50 minutes going gung-ho. It's not there. They need to be organised, disciplined and then counter-attack, but looking at the right moments to actually press the game. Thank you to Ian Paul and Jules in Paris.

We'll talk at Letico-Madrid's 2-0 win over Barcelona after this. Eames, new rules. We race live on BBC sounds. It's all right to the lights. On five live sports. A football daily podcast. Champions League debrief. With Steve Crosman.

In Spain, it finished Barcelona, Nill, Atlago, Madrid. To Mike, Mike, Maneer watching the game for us. Historic for Diego Simeone, Mike. Yeah, because it's their first win in the new camp for 20 years. February 2006, the last time. Athletico, Madrid, won in the home of Barcelona, whose players needed some consoling at full-time. Athletico players straight-faced.

Diego Simeone himself, straight up the tunnel. The whistle blew, he was gone like a rocket, back to the changing rooms. The goals will be the headlines. The subplot tonight is VAR from this game. Technology sending off Qabasi towards the end of the first half, tripping Diego Simeone's son, Jean-Louisie Simeone, who was goalside. The ball went between the pair.

It was clumsy from the resultant free kick. Julian Alvarez sent it into the top corner. Barcelona came out fighting second half, eight shots, no goals. It was one shot, one goal for Athletico, who countered and Solok flicked home a low cross. Barcelona should have scored themselves. They have plenty of chances, solid saves forced from one more so by Marcus Rashford. And Mn Mouin Amal, Rashford also hitting the bar with a deflected free kick.

Ronald Arouho was asked in his post-match interview about Netflix Barcelona. The Barcelona, the specialist in comebacks. They are going to need that next week. 2-0 their trail after the first leg. Let's speak to Spanish football journalist Ernest Massia. Ernest. I mean, we said it before the game. Diego Simeone, two-legged ties against Barcelona.

He just knows how to do it, albeit that red card was massive. Well, the red card was massive, but it was a red card. Or at least it's debatable, but I think you cannot question that it's not a hundred percent a red card. It's obvious that he's the last man, that he touches Simiolone. And so I think that you can award a red card. And I think that this is not a question. The question is that, well, Aledigo Madrid was very clinical. And they played the kind of game that they wanted to play.

And Barcelona lacked players like Rafina, so more quality player that is sharp. Rashford has played relatively well, but he's not sharp. He's not good at the finishing end. And, well, La Minjamal has played one of the best games I've seen in his career, but he was not awarded with a goal and well I think that Barcelona will have to and Athletical Madrid will have to defend this Neil too

which won't be easy because Barcelona will try to do their best but Rafina won't be there so I think that it'll be difficult for Barcelona and step forward for Aletico Madrid. And also similar to the chat we were just having about the second leg feeling that PSG are likely to score a goal at Anfield.

You got Julian Alvarez in your team. You almost feel he's guaranteed to score that was a superb freakie. Yeah, correct. That was a goal that he will remember for a long time. That was a perfect. I don't know if Lewandowski touches subtly the goal on the world, but I think that it's a fantastic goal. He is a superclass player, and I think that, well, that's why Barcelona wanted him in the past few months. But he's now too expensive for a team with financial problems. And that's what it is. but Barcelona needs more to achieve less.

Analytico of Madrid, again, with just one shot on target in the second half, they gave what they wanted. So this is football. Ernest, Grazie, take care of my friend. I must have said it badly. Ernest Massey, their Spanish football journalist. Charlie, just before we go,

you took a half-decent free kick once or twice in your career, didn't you? Yeah, it was not bad, was it? Yeah, not bad. I always think back to Blackpool at Old Trafford, final day of the season. Yeah, but that was again, that was in the new camp, and the Champions League was a big difference.

Well, I mean, old traffic is quite a big deal, straight for dead. However, that was special. Yeah, it was special. And he's a special player, isn't he? Alvarez. You know, when you think that he was brought in young at Man City, and then they brought Halland and put a lot of money into Holland and sold Alvarez. He's gone on to have top career in Madrid, and that's a special moment and he's a special player for them.

We've had a mercy, avu, and a gratis. But to you, I'll just say, tar. See you later, a big man. Cheers, man. That's it for this episode of the Football Daily. The Euroleagues is next on the fifth. As always, thank you so much for listening. Hello, I'm Tyler West.

And I'm Alfie Watts. And this is The Detour, the official companion podcast to race across the world. This is the post-episode checkpoint where you'll hear the latest chat around each episode from us and our race superfan special guests. Plus, I'll be joined each week by a resident travel expert, Alfie. That's you, ma'am.

I'll be revealing my optimal way to travel through each leg, including visits to all of those unmissable detours along the way. And we'll also have some not seen anywhere else exclusive content at the end of every episode. I cannot wait. The detour will land straight after each episode of Race Across the World. You can watch on EyePlayer or Listen on Sounds, where you'll also find extra bonus content. We'll see you then.