Chris Lepkowski and Dave Bowler prepare for the 2021 Champions League Final by looking back at the history of the competition, starting with the year Chelsea were banned and Hibernian pulled a fast one, and why the League format isn't for them.Analysing the tactical pathways built by many of the former winners, we also bemoan our absence from the 1960 final - possibly football's finest ever match - while explaining why the likes of Steaua Bucharest and Malmo might need to wait a while for their next final.
Chris Lepkowski & Dave Bowler (@MagicOfFACup book author) swap the humdrum of League football for the excitement of the Cup, and wish others would do the same.From West Bromwich town hall, to Chas N Dave singalongs: everyone has their earliest, favourite and least welcome memories of England's oldest football knock-out.We're up for the Cup; so why is nobody else?
In the latest Just Look At His Face we talk about football's on-going struggle with racism and why the well-intended social media boycott feels like no more than a token gesture.Samba In The Smethwick End co-author Dave Bowler is joined by Chris Lepkowski, who explains why he opted to keep his social media account active during the three-day protest - despite being in agreement that action was needed.We also look at how discrimination has blighted football and discuss what happens next.
Dave Bowler and Chris Lepkowski discuss the ramifications of the proposed European Super League and how the seeds were sown many years ago, with barely a whimper of complaint.
For an eight year period from the mid-1970s, the West Midlands was to become an English football hotbed - not that many people realised.While Liverpool dominated home and overseas, and Cloughie hogged the back pages, a new wave of footballers and managers were to bring success and swagger to the Birmingham and the Black Country, along with several record transfer fees.And yet the apex of glory was to be short-lived as political and societal upheaval crept in.West Midlanders Chris Lepkowski and Dave Bowler discuss why the West Midlands has always slipped under the national radar, on and off the pitch.
Chris Lepkowski and Dave Bowler head for the Aztecs as they re-live two of the most enthralling World Cups - Mexico 70 and 86.From Pele to Maradona, we look at the iconic mundials and the personalities that shaped those winning sides.We also discuss the journey of the England side at the respective tournaments - from captains throwing the ball at referees, to goalkeepers being struck down by food poisoning.
Dave Bowler and Chris Lepkowski stick their boots on and tackle the great Leeds United team of the 1960s and 70s.From Jack Charlton's little black book, to John Giles's Rabona and Don Revie's superstitions, we ask whether Leeds should have won more during their period of dominance.JLAHF also pays tribute to Peter Lorimer, one of Elland Road's finest sons, and reflects on the Yorkshire club's supreme dominance of English football.
Chris Lepkowski and Dave Bowler revisit Sheffield United's infamous clash with West Bromwich Albion in March 2002.The second-tier fixture descended into farce after three Sheffield players were sent off, with a further two leaving the field injured - leaving referee Eddie Wolstenholme with no other option than to end the fixture due to an insufficient number of United players.Chris and Dave, then working for the Birmingham Mail and WBA respectively, give their insight into an extraordinary fixture and how it gave the visitors a huge leg-up towards a memorable automatic promotion.*** Dave Bowler is the author of The Lazarus Season: West Bromwich Albion 2001/02*** Chris Lepkowski wrote From Buzaglo to Balis, detailing the story of WBA's period from 1991-2002
Dave Bowler and Chris Lepkowski take a journey through the phenomenal managerial career of Brian Clough.From driving the team bus at Hartlepools, to delivering League and European success in the East Midlands - we analyse the career of a man many feel was the best England manager that never was. But would he have suited international management?We also look at the 44 days at Leeds, a seaside trip to Brighton and the sad demise of a managerial whirlwind.
Author Dave Bowler & journalist Chris Lepkowski take a look back at the dominance of Liverpool and Everton in the 1980s, against the backdrop of societal breakdown and political warfare.Separated by Stanley Park, Just Look At His Face explores the relationship between its two football clubs and a city crippled by a managed decline imposed by Margaret Thatcher's Government.***This episode was recorded before Ian St John's passing ***
Dave Bowler and Chris Lepkowski pick through the greatest elevens they've seen in the English top flight.Dave, slightly older, tackles a team from the 1960s and 70s. Chris, obviously younger, goes with the 1980s and 90s.
This week we look back on the life and managerial career of the great Sir Alex Ferguson. From his sacking at St Mirren, right through to his retirement. We take the scenic journey from Paisley to Manchester, via Aberdeen and Mexico - against the backdrop of football's evolution.This is look back on the glorious and inglorious moments of a brilliant career, pausing to reflect on those milestones that shaped and created one of football's greatest and most influential managers. From a man who rejected Arsenal and Spurs, to a ruthless winner who rebuked his side after a cup success - we hear about a personality who was willing to break up a winning side, yet had the warmth to help poorly friends in need. We talk about the manager. And the man. Sir Alex Ferguson.
This week we go in search of football's soul. Where has it gone? How do we get it back?Answers on a postcard, to the usual address. In the meantime, let's put football straight...
We look back at Graham Taylor's mission to tackle the Impossible Job. This is a story of qualification misery, tabloid heckling, Gazza's gut, Carlton Palmer and much more. And we might even mention a somewhat brutal fly-on-the-wall documentary.
Football is dead; long live football. The story of 1992 - Maastricht, fireworks, cheer-leaders and the birth of a global monster.
This week we head back to 1978, when English football clubs were given the green light to push their shopping trolleys into the continental markets. But while some football folks rolled out the red carpet, others simply didn't approve.Was it good for English football or not? We analyse the impact of those first foreign imports of the late 1970s. We also touch on some of the near-misses that would have seen some of the greatest players of the 1980s heading for the British isles...had it not been for circumstances beyond their control.
As the UK settles into life outside of the EU, we look back at a time English clubs were banished from Europe for other reasons. Chris Lepkowski and Dave Bowler discuss May 1985 and the few weeks that were to define English football in the short term and beyond...