It's the Merseyside derby this weekend, and we get into that a bit with this week's guest. After all, our guest Stephen Warnock came up through the Liverpool academy and has been to Anfield and Goodison Park many times — and to Everton's brand-new Hill Dickson Stadium once. That one's at Liverpool's cathedral, however, and it's not the marquee match of the weekend. Neither is Man United-Chelsea.

The big one is Arsenal vs Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday, and it could tell us a lot about whether the Premier League is about to see a two-horse title race, a three-way, or even four if Chelsea get involved. For his part, Warnock thinks it will come down to just Arsenal and Liverpool, though there's always the chance of injuries or a tactical mastermind maneuver from Pep Guardiola. The Catalan will certainly have something up his sleeve for his old student, former Man City assistant coach Mikel Arteta, who will hope his newly super-deep squad can challenge on all fronts this season.

Beyond all that, Warnock also talks about a couple of his more idiosyncratic managers back in his playing days, Big Sam Allardyce and Neil Warnock. He also talks about sharing a flank with streets-won't-forget Barclaysman Morten Gamst Pedersen, and these are the kind of behind-the-scenes stories you'll find — along with some expert insight on the fitness and recovery side — on his new podcast venture, Strain on the Game.

Check that out, but first: Have a listen here, leave a review if you enjoy yourself, and check out more sharp conversations and on-the-ground reporting at The Football Weekend.com.

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The 2026 World Cup in North America is less than a year away, and while the club season has now kicked off in earnest, we'll have a number of international breaks before the big show. Each one is an opportunity to take stock of the various national teams across (nearly) every continent and see who’s on their way to the United States, Canada, and Mexico next summer.

We’ll take those opportunities with a series of shows in those windows where club football is on hiatus, and joining up for the inaugural edition is Felipe Cárdenas, senior writer for The Athletic covering national teams across North and South America.

We got into the U.S. Men’s National Team, Mauricio Pochettino’s performance, and the controversy around this summer’s Gold Cup; Lionel Messi’s last ride with Argentina and his chance to add a line to his resumé that could really settle all debates; Carlo Ancelotti’s bid to put the icing on his own cake with Brazil; Chile and Colombia’s struggles; Bolivia’s 13,000-foot home field advantage; and how Mexico and Canada are setting up as hosts.

(And to come clean: I mispronounced Felipe’s last name in the intro! Ignore my “ñ.” We learn.)

Get more sharp coverage of the world's game at TheFootballWeekend.com ↗️

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The violence, the sectarianism, the proxy war linked to The Troubles in Northern Ireland and what it means to be Scottish — all of it is tied up in the Old Firm, Celtic vs Rangers, Glasgow’s white-hot derby. A particularly ugly Scottish Cup final at Hampden Park even saw alcohol banned from Scottish football stadiums.

But what about the commercial side?

Because from the beginning, all concerned have recognized the financial opportunity generated by Scotland’s greatest rivalry. “The Old Firm” name may well come from a cartoon that satirized the whole thing as a joint business enterprise, and fans have rebelled against the two clubs and the authorities for reasons financial. Some local companies, like Tennent’s brewers, have even chosen to sponsor both Celtic and Rangers simultaneously — because to choose just one could mean financial ruin. After all, both sides are more than happy to stage a boycott.

The 447th Old Firm derby was played Sunday, as early as possible to (theoretically) keep the number of pints consumed beforehand to a minimum. Rangers have won 171 of those meetings, Celtic 170. Last year, ahead of the first Old Firm of 2024/25, Chris McLaughlin of the BBC Scotland joined the show to run through the rich and tempestuous history of this very particular derby match.

Get more on this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAGSb8lq12g&pp=2AYB

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Here's a proper Big Match Preview, and it’s a big guest to help us do it. Andrew Mangan is the proprietor at Arseblog, the preeminent fan chronicle of Arsenal Football Club, and he joins us to look at the true doozy ahead this weekend. The Gunners will head north to Anfield on Sunday to face Liverpool in the first proper title clash of the Premier League season.

It comes on the back of a very active transfer window for both sides, and we got into that along with the rich history between the two clubs and why they differ in some fundamental way — as far as heritage and culture — from big-money upstarts Chelsea and Manchester City. Plus, Andrew offers his view as an Irishman on the Irish thread that runs through both of these clubs.

Fair warning that this is a meeting of two devout Arsenal partisans, but there’s plenty for everyone to enjoy along the way!

Get more at TheFootballWeekend.com ↗️

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Liverpool will travel to St. James’ Park to round out Matchweek Two in the Premier League, and in another time it might merely be a rematch of last season’s League Cup final, or just a meeting of two major institutions of English football who’ve never particularly liked each other.

But this one has a different kind of electrical charge, because the defending champion Reds are trying to pry Newcastle’s star striker, Alexander Isak, out of a black-and-white jersey. The forward is agitating for the move, and the Magpie faithful are not happy about any of it. The Swede isn’t likely to feature, but he’ll be looming over it all, and it’s sure to be a tumultuous atmosphere on Tyneside.

That’s just a small part of what we got into with this week’s guest: Clive Tyldesley, the legendary commentator for CBS Sports and Paramount+ who’s been calling the biggest games in European football for decades. Along the way, he’s seen a whole lot, and his vast experience and the wisdom thereof is now pouring into a new project: his blog here on Substack, where he weighs in on football’s current affairs with wit and insight.

He joins the show to talk Isak, Liverpool, the Club World Cup, why Sergio Busquets is the greatest walking footballer ever, and the state of the game he loves. Get more from Clive in your inbox each week:

https://ctyldesley.substack.com/

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When Robbie Earle left Port Vale for Wimbledon in 1991, he knew he was joining a cast of characters. John Fashanu, Vinnie Jones, Jason Euelle, Andy Clarke, Efan Ekoku and many more major personalities came together to make the ‘90s Dons one of the more charismatic sides in Premier League history.

They welcomed Earle to the crew as only they could: By stripping him naked during a team run through a public park and leaving him with just a traffic cone “to cover the most embarrassing bits.”

He quickly accepted the price of initiation into the Crazy Gang and enjoyed a nine-year stint in the English top flight with the Dons. He made 244 appearances and scored 59 goals from midfield. Nowadays, you can find him on your TV here in the States pretty much every weekend. That includes this one, because the Premier League kicks off later today on NBC Sports and Peacock.

Robbie first came by The Football Weekend ahead of a spring 2024 title clash between Manchester City and Arsenal, and he returned to preview Championship Sunday later that season.

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“Anfield is not the same anymore,” commentary legend Clive Tyldesley wrote on Substack in March, because “our relationship with our football heroes has changed…It’s now up to them to give us something to get excited about.”

But when I asked Liverpool fan and prodigious observer of the game Laurence McKenna whether he agreed with that diagnosis, he offered a different one: It’s not the tourist fans making their pilgrimage to Anfield who’ve dented the famous atmosphere, and it’s not necessarily some growing sense among those in attendance that they’ll cheer when they’re entertained. It’s the ticket resale platforms, Laurence said, who are all too willing to fill up the home sections with away fans and change the makeup of the collective Anfield organism.

For more on the deep history and changing dynamics of Liverpool’s famous stadium, check our Cathedrals feature:

https://www.thefootballweekend.com/p/liverpool-anfield-champions-league-night

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During Copa América last summer, Alexis Guerreros of The Cooligans podcast and Morning Footy on CBS Sports Golazo came by the Weekend to preview the Round of 16, and the standup comedian made a sharp point about Lionel Messi’s “elasticity” and his stunning physical resilience after all the kicks and hard tackles he’s taken in a long and storied career.

That’s just one reason that the little Argentine is the greatest there ever was, and from there we dove into a discussion of what a privilege it is to witness this man play. Nowadays, when you’re lucky enough to be there in the stadium, you can feel that everybody around you knows it, too: this is Michael Jordan, this is Wayne Gretzky, and we’re running out of time to bear witness to a genuine sporting phenomenon.

Get more Classic moments from The Football Weekend:

"Go, Go USA!" Ian Darke on His Massive Contribution to American Football Lore

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