O Fenômeno

The last of the romantics. The last true #10. The end of the Era of the Individual. Juan Roman Riquelme represents a lot of things in football. Nutmegs most of all. And a lot of young Brazilian footballers are named after him for all these reasons. Hani and Justin talk nutmegs, romance and nihilism in this one.

We are a complete mess. Hani left his space heater on for this one so a lot of it was unusable (Justin also forget to record an entire episode so he's not blameless either). But in between all this drama, Justin and Hani spoke a bit about the Cote d'Ivoire legend - Didier Drogba. Among the most nightmarish of strikers, Justin didn't like Drogba at first (don't worry he does now). Drogba may not be the best African player of all time, or even the best striker for that matter (cough Eto'o), but he's arguably the greatest.

Hani ran into Nicolas Anelka at the mall in Dubai once.  Anelka was a ridiculous talent who burned a lot of bridges. He made a lot of headlines for incidents not related to his play: leaving Arsenal, the 2010 World Cup and the quenelle gesture. There's so much to unpack here, but we try to peak into the complex mind of Anelka here - particularly concerning his desire to be adored. A common talking point on Anelka is that his career could have turned out different. Justin and Hani debate who is responsible for a respectable career that could have been legendary. Hani also tells the story about meeting El Hadji Diouf at a club in Dubai. It's a better story than his Anelka one, anyway.

We're taking a midseason break. We'll be back with 5 more episodes in Season 1 before laying out a vision for Season 2. In the meantime, please donate if you can to the people in Beirut who are reeling last week's blast. 

There are just too many great stories to tell about Marcelo Bielsa. Our favorite is the one about Benjamin Mendy, though the Chilavert one on an airplane is good too. This is the person who found a way to combine Argentina's two diverging football philosophies and influenced Guardiola, Simeone, Pochettino and Sampaoli (among others!). Is he the most influential manager alive? Hani doesn't think so. Also, new break and outro music from Julian Forte!

Abby Wambach has scored A LOT of goals. Some of them in training against Justin. But this All-American great was a figure of complexity. Her greatness in scoring goals and social activism was just one part of her legacy. Substance use and problematic comments on nationalism are another. And Jess Malone joins TSWR as the show's first guest.

Is there another defender with this much swag? Much like fine French wine, Lilian Thuram gets better with age.  We talk about Thuram's brace against Croatia, his conversion to center back, his public stands against Sarko's racist rhetoric and policies and how fucking cool he looked doing it all.  We recorded this episode the day after Juneteenth 2020. #BlackLivesMatter #JusticePourAdama Intro/Outro music by Francesco Fusaro

One question haunts Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima's career: What If? The REAL Ronaldo's career took place over two very different chapters. In this one, Justin and Hani dissect the legacy left by early and late Ronaldo, how Ronaldo was the first modern, global football star, and debate how good he would be if he played in the modern era (spoiler: really good, but expect some spicy takes!) Also, Justin's excitement over learning Portuguese takes an embarrassing turn.

In what other domain does the world's best struggle to stay paid and employed? Marta's given us a lot of herself. And not just on the pitch. Justin and Hani talk about Marta's activism, her struggles to find a club and what legacy she's already left behind despite not yet hanging up her equality-symbol boots. Justin also drops some legit SPICE in the pantheon segment that Hani just isn't ready for. Intro/Outro music by Francesco Fusaro

A brief intro from Justin and Hani.