England’s unbelievable night at the Azteca: World Cup Daily

Summary

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Football Weekly: England’s Unbelievable Night at the Azteca – World Cup Daily (July 6, 2026)

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into one of the most thrilling nights of World Cup action as England survived a chaotic, exhausting, and unforgettable 3-2 victory over Mexico at the Estadio Azteca—a stadium where Mexico had lost only twice in the past 100 years. The panel also covers Norway’s stunning elimination of Brazil, the scandal surrounding Folarin Balogun’s USA ban being suspended, and looks ahead to the next rounds, blending expert tactical analysis with trademark Football Weekly banter and wit.

Host: Max Rushden
Panel: Barry Glendenning, Archie Rhind-Tutt, Nikki Bandini, Lars Sivertsen

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. England’s Wild Win Over Mexico

[03:35–21:50]

• Atmosphere & Drama at the Azteca

  • England defeat Mexico 3-2 in a game described as “permanently the 90th minute for about 20 minutes” (Nikki Bandini, 03:52).
  • England break the Azteca curse: Mexico hadn’t lost there in 26 games (03:35).

• First Half Madness

  • Jude Bellingham scores twice early on, giving England a 2-0 lead before Mexico’s Quinones volleys one back.
  • Nikki: “England have done the thing that’s supposed to be hardest to do... and then the Quansah red card, suddenly it’s like, oh, actually is this all going to fall apart?” (09:45)
  • The game’s relentless pace: “Permanently in the 90th minute” and “one of the best World Cup matches I’ve ever seen” (Nikki Bandini, 03:52).

• Turning Points & Moments of Chaos

  • Jarell Quansah sent off after a rash tackle (14:17).
  • England win a penalty immediately after going to 10 men; Harry Kane scores to restore a two-goal cushion, but VAR then denies another chance and Raul Jimenez brings Mexico back again (09:45-12:21).

• Heroic English Defending

  • Dan Burn and Jed Spence come on to help England “helms deep” in their box (Max Rushden, 11:30).
  • “There was balance, there was grit, there was resilience,” Max insists (07:19).
  • “I salute Jordan Pickford for 26 long balls. I counted them. It was sensational.” (Max Rushden, 05:31)

• Unforgettable Final Half-Hour

  • England defend deeply as Mexico siege their box, “defending heroically” even as players “couldn’t walk” (05:16, 14:53).
  • The panel describes the exhaustion: “I can’t think of too many games where the fans of a team end up being in the same condition as the team on the pitch by the end of it, because we were all so breathless...” (Max Rushden, 05:31).

• Bellingham Shines Again

  • Two goals and a goal-saving clearance before halftime.
  • “He’s a massive, big player for the big occasion... I think he’s emphatically answered anyone who thought Morgan Rogers should be in ahead of him.” (Barry Glendenning, 12:56)
  • Nikki: “Bellingham was the one who took the ball off... It was Montes...so much happened in this game that you almost can’t pick it all out.” (15:33)

• Game Management and Tuchel’s Tactics

  • Praise for Thomas Tuchel for game management, aggressive use of substitutions and deploying dribblers over passers (Max Rushden, 11:30).
  • “The time that we chose to helms deep in the end and just batten down the hatches—it worked perfectly.” (Max Rushden, 11:30–12:21)

• Mexico’s Regrets

  • Mexico made mistakes in the final third and “squandered their man advantage” (Barry Glendenning, 09:04).
  • Archie: “I thought maybe [Mexico] were the better team in the first half, despite being 2-1 down. They just had two moments of being undone by really, really excellent England attacking.” (20:25)

Notable Quotes:

• “This was one of the best World Cup matches I think I’ve ever seen.”
  — Nikki Bandini (03:52)
• “I salute Jordan Pickford for 26 long balls…”
  — Max Rushden (05:31)
• “He’s a massive, big player for the big occasion. We kind of knew that, anyway, it’s great to have him in the side.”
  — Barry Glendenning on Jude Bellingham (12:56)

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2. Norway’s Historic Win Over Brazil

[23:50–35:47]

• Emotional Norwegian Reactions

  • Lars Sivertsen: “I was cackling like a lunatic for about five minutes after the second goal.” (24:01)
  • Haaland’s second goal: “He just twatted it, didn’t he?” — Barry (28:45)

• Tactical Flexibility

  • Norway’s manager Solbakken praised for bold halftime changes: “Brave and assertive moves to make at halftime... I like a coach who doesn’t wait the extra 10, 15 minutes” (Lars, 26:16).
  • Oscar Bob and Scheldrup instantly impact proceedings.

• Brazil’s Struggles

  • Barry: “I was baffled by Brazil’s approach to the game... sitting back and attacking on the counter. That’s very much not the Brazil I grew up watching.” (28:45)
  • Missed penalty, underwhelming tactics, and frustration with Ancelotti.
  • Neymar’s bizarre taunting of the Norwegian goalkeeper after scoring a late penalty despite still losing (33:10–34:16).

• The Narrative of World Cup Failure

  • Brazil’s recurring knockouts by European teams—statistic cited: Last three eliminations, generated 8.48 xG, allowed only 2.02, but remained toothless in big matches (Nikki, 29:52).

Notable Quotes:

• “It’s the biggest—can’t get none more big.”
  — Lars, on Norway’s win (27:13)
• “Norway played like you’d expect Brazil to play, and Brazil played like Norway.”
  — Max Rushden (31:21)
• “He just twatted it, didn’t he?”
  — Barry (28:45)

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3. Folarin Balogun Controversy: 'One of the Biggest Scandals in World Cup History'

[37:11–45:48]

• What Happened:

  • Folarin Balogun’s red card ban for the USA is suspended by FIFA after apparent lobbying from Donald Trump, according to reports.
  • Belgian FA and their coach express outrage, as do other managers and pundits.

• Historical Context and Fallout

  • Barry Glendenning calls it “a scandal...one of the biggest scandals in World Cup history” and points out the dangerous precedent and hypocrisy (38:12).
  • Nikki notes: “It’s just such a ridiculously dangerous can of worms... if Balogun comes in now and plays a big role... it’s going to be a thing everyone talks about forever and... I hate it.” (42:57)

• Procedural & Integrity Concerns

  • FIFA claim the suspension is for a technicality in VAR protocol; skepticism remains.
  • “If this ban was suspended through some... transparent process... I don’t think anyone would have a problem with it. But...this ban was suspended on the back of a nod and a wink between Gianni Infantino and Donald Trump, it’s a scandal that isn’t going to go away.” (Barry, 38:12)

• Reactions and Jokes

  • Archie jokes: “The US could choose to suspend a Belgian player of their choice... and then one saying since Belgium complained, they’ve been replaced with Rotherham United, and now Belgium have to play West Brom in the Carabao Cup.” (44:31)

Notable Quotes:

• “This is right up there with any [scandal], and possibly bigger. If this suspension was lifted through some very transparent process... but because this ban was suspended on the back of a nod and a wink... it’s a scandal that isn’t going to go away.”
  — Barry Glendenning (38:12)
• “It’s just such a ridiculously dangerous can of worms… I hate it.”
  — Nikki Bandini (42:57)

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Additional Noteworthy Moments

• On Jarell Quansah’s Red Card:

  • “We were clutching our pearls yesterday about the dirty Paraguayans. That tackle was way worse than anything anyone in a Paraguay shirt did yesterday.”
    — Barry Glendenning (16:23)

• Panel Banter Highlights:

  • The “actual pain” of watching the final moments, the superstition of hiding in the bedroom for luck.
  • Max: “I can’t think of any more hated Swiss person. Well, maybe Sepp Blatter…” (41:45)
  • Reference to social scenes: Barry’s gifted "Mexico hat," not a sombrero, for expense reasons (19:22).

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Opening and chaotic match recap: [00:45–05:16]
• Epic first half and why this was a classic: [03:35–05:16, 09:45]
• Turning points (penalties, red cards): [09:27–14:37]
• Tuchel’s tactical choices & substitutions: [11:30–12:21]
• Bellingham/Burn praise, Mexico’s regret: [12:55–13:29, 20:25]
• Norway’s historic win over Brazil: [23:50–35:47]
• Analysis of Brazil’s tactical failures: [28:45–31:21]
• Balogun ban controversy and scandal: [37:11–45:48]

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Language & Tone

The show maintains its usual mix of sharp analysis, irreverence, and wit. Max orchestrates the discussion with energy and empathy for the fans’ experience. The panel blends deep football expertise with their signature sardonic humor.

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Memorable Quotes

• “It was a game that was permanently in the 90th minute for about 20 minutes.”
  — Nikki Bandini (03:52)
• “There has been a more exhausting half an hour watching England?”
  — Max Rushden (intro)
• “He’s a massive, big player for the big occasion.”
  — Barry Glendenning on Bellingham (12:56)
• “He just twatted it…”
  — Barry Glendenning on Haaland’s strike (28:45)
• “It’s the biggest—can’t get none more big.”
  — Lars (27:13)
• “A scandal that isn’t going to go away.”
  — Barry Glendenning on the Balogun ban (38:12)
• “It’s just such a ridiculously dangerous can of worms ... I hate it.”
  — Nikki Bandini (42:57)

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Final Thoughts

This episode is a roller-coaster ride through one of England’s most draining and memorable nights, the collapse of Brazil at the hands of Haaland-powered Norway, and the off-pitch intrigue of FIFA politics. It’s unmissable for anyone following World Cup drama, providing both catharsis for England fans and context for global listeners.

Transcript

[Max Rushden]

This is the Guardian.

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[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

This episode is supported by Boss formal wear provider for the U.S. men's national soccer team. For soccer's biggest event this summer, the U.S. is playing on home soil and Boss will be dressing the US Players and coach Marizio Pochettino in Boss Performance Businesswear for their off pitch appearances. Boss and the USMNT share the same values discipline, precision and the confidence to perform under pressure. US Fans can look sharp too in the Boss Performance collection and wear their passion with special fanwear capsule and embroidered badges in national colors. Own the moment with confidence. Discover the Boss Performance collection as worn by the US Men's national soccer team and the fan capsule of jerseys, polos and jackets in national colors. Wear your passion your way. Available [e-mail] or at your nearest Boss store. Your own Boss. Hello and welcome to the Guardian Football Weekly. Were you applauding offsides, cheering goal kicks. Lord knows what it was like at 5 to 4 in the morning. The board went up for 11 minutes. 11 concert. Couldn't walk. Jed Spence on the floor spooning it clear. Dan Byrne heading the ball into the opposition half. How were you when Jon Stones rolled it inches wide? Has there been a more exhausting half an hour watching England? Harry Kane couldn't even talk. There was a game before that game. Mexico went close, Pickford brilliant. And then Jude Bellingham. And Bellingham again. Was this going to be easy? No. Quinones brilliant volley. Bellingham won. Goal saving clearance. Half time. Nothing silly. First five and then Jarell Quansah dived in. He'd been excellent. His leg rolled over the ball and into the Mexican shin. It was a red panic. But then Gordon fell in the box. Harry Kane nerveless. It would all be okay. But then Var, conspicuously absent for the last couple of weeks, noticed Harry Kane's errant kick. Penalty. Raul Jimenez doesn't miss them. And then the panic. They all crumpled at the final whistle Breathe in that altitude. An unforgettable football match. There is balance here. Not everyone supports England. Don't worry. Before that, Erling Haaland sunk Brazil. One header and one wallop are truly historic. The biggest day in Norwegian football. We'll get Lars thoughts on that. And then there's Folarin Balogan's red card suspended ahead of the US game with Belgium. Purely coincidental that Trump called Gianni to ask for that to happen. It stinks. And the worst bit is it's not a surprise. Mark Langdon's left us a voice note about tomatoes. Not now, Mark. We'll answer your questions. And that's today's Guardian Football Weekly. On the panel today, Barry Glendenny. Welcome.

[Barry Glendenny]

I think you covered everything in your intro, Max, so if you don't mind, I'll just head off and go to bed.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I did say, do you want to go out for dinner after this? And you said, not with you. Okay, fine. Archie Rintut. Hello. Hi, Max. You'll come for dinner? I'm very much in on the night shift tonight. Nikki Bandini. Hey, Nikki.

[Nikki Bandini]

Dinner time. It's breakfast time over here, Max.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

No, of course. Let's start then with Mexico two England, three in Mexico City. Mexico hadn't lost at the Azteca in 26 games. Two losses in about 100 years. An unbelievable football match. Niki, you watched this like most of our audience, at 2 in the morning. How was it for you?

[Nikki Bandini]

It was so worth it. I mean, it was. I was just saying before we came on air, there's no way I'm going to be able to sleep after this despite not having gone to bed yet, because I'm absolutely wired from that. I think the first half, that the last. You want to call it the second quarter now because I've been ruined by hydration bakes. But that. That second part of the. The first half after Bellingham's two goals and then the goal back for Mexico, it was like watching. I saw someone say this on. On Social, so I'm sorry for stealing this line, but it was just a game that was permanently in the 90th minute for about 20 minutes. It was just constantly like, oh, my God. And we were not even a half time yet. And now that feels almost like ancient history, because so much happened in the second half as you. As you laid it all out. This was one of the best World cup matches I think I've ever seen. I really do. I think this was. It's. It's. I. I know we all have recency bias. I know we all have have focus bias as well, because of course we're talking about England, but I thought this was such an entertaining game of football, it faded a little bit at the end. I think actually after all the talk about England and altitude, it felt like Mexico ran out of steam at the end of the game. But it was. It was chaotic. Brilliant, wildly entertaining football with lots of flaws. I'm not suggesting it's the best in terms of absolute quality of World cup games, but in terms of entertainment, this was magic.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Well worth staying up for as an England fan. Archie, that last half hour, I can't remember who turned to who and said, well, they can't do this for half an hour in like the 75th minute. And it was absolutely exhausting. And they defended actually sort of heroically.

[Max Rushden]

I think I was tucked away in the bedroom of our apartment out of superstition in that we were continuing with the same formation that we had against, against Congo. And let me tell you, living this alone was an even greater hell. The agony, I'll tell you, it wasn't that I had cramp in my leg from just tensing all the time and when I saw the substitutions, that it was Dan Byrne and Jed Spence coming on for Nico O'Reilly and Elliot Anderson, I wasn't full of joy. I was thinking, he's taken off the defensive midfielder who doesn't have a yellow card. This better work. And are we not betting in a little bit too early here? I thought back to half an hour before when I'd said, I think it was at nil 2 and this game doesn't seem so memorable. And Barry went. It still very much could be in the sense that if Mexico win it, and to be honest, you knew that if Mexico were to score, then the game was done because England looked completely out of it. I can't think of too many games where the fans of a team end up being in the same condition as the team on the pitch by the end of it, because we were all so breathless, but I salute Jordan Pickford for 26 long balls. I counted them. It was sensational. Can we think about how much hang time there was on the ball each time? I reckon we were up to about two minutes. And there was. Oh, it was glorious. And you could just go down each member of that team. And when you think about the complaints of the previous four games, oh, well, you know, it's not looked that good here. It all went out the window. And that's why I think it was even more beautiful.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Baz

[Barry Glendenny]

I totally got it. It's quite funny actually, because we did one of our little diaries on the way out of the apartment to come to this studio and I was philosophical enough about it, but it's like a 12 minute walk to the studio, which I did alone with my thoughts and by the time I got here, I was crushed. I won't lie, because all sorts of scenarios as to what might happen next for this England team were playing out in my head and none of them were satisfactory as far as I was concerned. So, yeah, the shit just got real, as they say, in terms of the fearometer. Having said that, I think England are to be applauded for that heroic defensive performance. I very much enjoyed Dan Burns cameo.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Amazing.

[Barry Glendenny]

I mean, has anyone headed it further? Yeah, well, they say the ball travels further at altitude, so when Dan Burn is heading it at full power, it's. Yeah, it's going to travel.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I was saying I hope Dan Burn gets cramped because it would take so long to stretch that leg. I was like, if someone's going to get cramped, be damn, Byrne.

[Barry Glendenny]

But I think Mexico feel they left this behind them. They had the chances to win it. Even though he scored a penalty, it really wasn't Raul Jimenez's day. He missed three big chances in the first half. I think two brilliant saves by Jordan Pickford. And as much as I dislike the England football team, I do have a soft spot for Jordan Pickford and Henderson because of their Sunderland connections. Jordan Henderson managed to get booked without being on the field. I'm not sure why.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Another five seconds will take you with time wasting.

[Barry Glendenny]

Yeah. Mexico, when they had the man advantage and they were throwing the kitchen sink at England, they were overhitting cross after cross after cross. And the ones that weren't overhitting, they were putting too close to Pickford and I think they squandered their man advantage. And that will be a source of big regret for them and for me, I suppose.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Niki, there are so many sort of turning points in this game. I guess actually England winning that penalty so soon after going down to 10 men is so crucial. And Anthony Gordon, who won it, there's so much talk about the wingers and who played well and who hasn't played well so far this tournament. He had a brilliant game.

[Nikki Bandini]

Yeah. I mean, let's remind ourselves, by the way, Mexico never conceded the Azteca. That's the thing they don't do. They don't concede goals at the Azteca ever. So the fact that there's been this moment of chaos in which Bellingham scored twice in the first half already is England have done the thing that's supposed to be hardest to do. They've already done the bit, it's supposed to be the hard bit. And then the Quanza red card. Suddenly it's like, oh, actually is this all going to fall apart? The timing of that penalty is, is so huge, Max. Like you say, it is such a, a back breaking moment for Mexico and credit to them for, for not yielding to it because they did of course get another goal back and, and put themselves in striking distance again. But I, I do think again, if you're the team that is in your big forge, I mean the whole thing, God, Max, the whole game is so much theater. Like I kind of want to throw in here because it's gonna be completely forgotten amongst everything else needs to be said. But like five minutes into the game, I think it was lira gets in a little squabble with Harry Kane and there's just this moment when the camera's on lira and he's doing such a pantomime villain face. I love it. I loved everything about the nonsense that was going on with it. But yeah, you know, this is your theater, this is your Aztec. You don't concede goals. And giving away won that cheaply for them. I think that was a really, really obviously killer mistake for Mexico. But such excellent, excellent opportunism by Anthony Gordon who saw that moment and went for it. And that's kind of the story of the night all over for England. And again, little things that'll get forgotten. Elliot Anderson pouncing on the ball to start the move that leads the second Bellingham goal. England were all about taking their moments when they arrived and that's why they're

[Max Rushden]

going through in praise of Thomas Tuchel. The way that England paced the game from the start. They made sure to just keep their shape and not do anything too silly. But also when you look at how England made a decision not to pass the ball too much and instead to dribble lots because thankfully there are lots of good dribblers in this team. And we saw that on many occasions with Gordon Bellingham, Bukayo Saka actually got stopped more. But that's another decision that Tuchel got right in that Saka paired with Quansah was excellent for the defense on that side. And we saw Nico O'Reilly going up a little bit more. It was so well played. And look, ultimately the time. I know you don't like Lord of the Rings, Max, but the Time that we chose to helms deep in the end and just batten down the hatches. It worked perfectly. So it has to be said, credit to Thomas Huchel.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah. Just a note on Harry Kane that when that penalty graphic came up, there were all those goals that he'd scored. There was the one against France that was like 25 miles away. And think producer Joel said they've had to. They've had to zoom back for that. And you're watching that going, that must. Maybe it doesn't go to his head because he scored so many penalties, but, you know, he missed such a massive penalty in the World cup four years ago. You don't know how many World Cups he has left. That's a huge moment for him. And we haven't yet talked about Jude Bellingham yet, Barry. And you know, what an amazing. Like, to score those two goals and that clearance in that short space of time was unbelievable.

[Lars]

Yeah.

[Barry Glendenny]

He's a massive, big player for the big occasion. We kind of knew that. Anyway, it's great to have him in the side. I think he's emphatically answered anyone who thought Morgan Rogers should be in ahead of him, which is not to disrespect Rodgers in any way. I think he's a terrific player. But Bellingham has been excellent throughout this tournament and was excellent again tonight.

[Max Rushden]

Yeah.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

And I'm sometimes guilty of saying he's doing too much.

[Barry Glendenny]

I think you have a point when you say that, though.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah.

[Barry Glendenny]

There are times. There was one stage this game, he did a lovely bit of control, took the ball away from two Mexicans into space and then tried to take on another one instead of passing. So I kind of concur with your opinion that sometimes he does try to do too much. I think you could say the same tonight about Quinones, who has been brilliant for Mexico in this tournament. But after he scored, he started taking pot shots from stupid places or shots that were obviously going to be blocked when other options were available to him. And that was. There were other Mexican players doing that during kitchen sink time. Again, just, you know, shooting the ball into a wall of players. It's obviously going to be blocked. It might get a lucky deflection, but, you know, maybe try something different.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

And it's such a relief for Quanta, Right, who had a. Who had a brilliant game until that moment, and he is foolish to go to ground. And at the. You know, when the ref waves play on most of us in the room, like, oh, it's fine. And then you see the replay and you Go, oh. And then you see it again. You go, and I think he's unlucky, Archie, that he rolls on the ball, but it's, you know, it's a definite red card.

[Max Rushden]

It's a definite red card. Maybe if we lobby in the right way to FIFA we can get it overturned. Let's find out. But yeah, as soon as you see it go, Var, you know exactly what's coming. Max, how did you find the final 20 minutes?

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Oh, I mean, just so exhausting. I think, like everyone. Just the fact that we were so deep and it was, it was either the left winger for Mexico and you could see Conso just couldn't walk. He like couldn't breathe. He was like a zombie. You were like, you're like, God, look at him, the poor bloke. I don't know if he got all the altitude sickness for the whole thing, the team, but he was absolutely, excuse my language. And then it was the little guy on the right, he's got a lovely left foot and it was just like. I thought Spence and Gordon did a really great job doubling up on him. Just making it really hard to get the crosses in. But, oh, every time they got a corner, every time it was just, just the exhaustion levels are incredible. Yes, Niki.

[Nikki Bandini]

Things that get forgotten in all this. Bellingham scores the two goals. We haven't even mentioned that Bellingham basically saves it from being 2, 2 at halftime. Bellingham was the one who took the ball off. I can't remember who it was, Mon. The ball fell to. Was it Montes? I was about to. I think it was Montes. And, and that's the thing. There's. There's so much happened in this game that you almost can't, can't pick it all out. It's funny how you're. You're talking about the end of the game, Max, because I actually felt like England really controlled the end of that game so well. My, my worry levels weren't even that high at the end. I thought that England were, were really, really strong. And I think again, the substitution is fantastic. Obviously mentioned by him, but Stones as that very nearly stick it in his own net at the end. But doesn't.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Oh, God, yeah. We've only just heard Harry Kane's voice.

[Barry Glendenny]

It broke in a pre post match interview. Can I just interrupt this loving briefly at the risk of sounding like Barry Boskill, I think you were being incredibly generous to Jarell Quonsa for saying he was unlucky to get sent off. We were clutching our pearls yesterday. About the dirty Paraguayans. That tackle was way worse than anything anyone in a Paraguay shirt did yesterday.

[Lars]

It.

[Barry Glendenny]

Okay, yeah, that's, that's all I have to say about.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I, I, I think he was unlucky, but he definitely shouldn't have gone to grass. It's a really silly thing to do. I, I, I, I, but I, I think he's unlucky because if, if his B foot doesn't roll on the ball, then he doesn't go into the guy's shoe.

[Barry Glendenny]

I think he does. Do you think? Very much think he does.

[Nikki Bandini]

It's, it's a wild tackle. I mean, it's a wild tackle. I'm with, I'm with Bazness. I don't know if it's worse than what happened yesterday because yesterday there was some pretty bad stuff, but it was, that was a very easy red card.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah. Well, at least it means we get to continue the right back problem. That's a, about, it's just so exhausting. I mean, I suppose I don't know if the time is now to look ahead to us playing Norway, Archie, but you sort of think that, you know, we actually talked about France yesterday in the dressing room, what it would mean to get off that pitch against that side kicking you and what it means and like the belief that you have and obviously these tournaments, they can, you know, it can be over like that. But in that England dressing room now, after all the talk of the altitude and how difficult this was going to be and it was, and it was like a heroic effort and they'll all be. So many people will be so broken. But the spirit that gives you and psychologically that gives you is just incredible.

[Max Rushden]

You can look at it two ways. You can say, look, this shows our character, this shows what kind of a team we are. And maybe people were writing us off back home after the first four games that we couldn't bring a consistency of performance. But you can also say emotionally how much this might drain the players as well and how difficult it's going to be to how do we match that high that we've just reached? And there's also a very uncomfortable element to the Norway game in that Premier League fans and England fans know so well so, so much about their two best players in Martin Odegaard and Erling Haaland. And it's kind of like, oh, yeah, how do we deal with that? Because as we'll get on to, they did very well against Brazil today. So it's nice to actually, as an England fan, not have a feeling of we should beat them. And that was, I think, also what made this such a enjoyable win. Because coming into it, I was not thinking, oh, this Mexico team, we all knew about the altitude. We all knew how well they played so far in this tournament. Unless you were Brad Friedel, Ultimately, this is an excellent win. And to be honest, one of my favorite England wins that I can remember.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

That's a good point. That you don't watch that half hour when England don't have the ball, or when they do, they're passing between their centre backs going, what are we doing? Why are we not attacking or pressing? You're actually kind of quite satisfied that they're just keeping it tight, I think. Barry, you've already ordered a long boat, haven't you?

[Barry Glendenny]

Well, our social scene very kindly bought me a Mexico hat, baseball cap because they were either too tight to or couldn't source a sombrero. A sombrero and some maracas. Yes. So it's in the Burr Collars Burg EAA Club. So I'm gonna hold on to that.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I think they probably are.

[Barry Glendenny]

And it's been you. I'm sure it'll end up in some. So that means they could push it through expenses.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Well, I was going to say, you know when someone says, you've read 300 articles this year, we're funding really important journalism and actually we're trying to buy Barry a longboat and a drum and

[Barry Glendenny]

a hat with horns sticking out.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Exactly. Do you have any thoughts on the game against Norway, Nikki, or anything else from this game? There's just so much, as you say, there's just so much to cover.

[Nikki Bandini]

Just pulling things out of my head and saying things at random. Sorry, Max, it's probably not very helpful,

[Barry Glendenny]

but there's just so much, very much rmo.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah, I think so Things out your

[Barry Glendenny]

head and say them.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Did you have any other thoughts about this game, Nicky, or the Norway game?

[Nikki Bandini]

Yeah, I mean, the only thing I suppose in all of this is. Have we said enough about Mexico? Who? I thought the first part of this game, they came out so well. I think England handled it well. But I thought the energy and the directness in the early part of the game and you saw Mora get on the board and you thought, oh, is this gonna. Actually he ends up not having so much impact. But I thought they really with something at the beginning of the game and I thought they were oddly. I thought maybe they were the better team in the first half, despite being 21 down. They just had two moments of being undone by really really excellent England attacking, efficient attacking. Getting to watch them at the Aztec has been a treat. Let's just say that even without being there, it's been a treat to see them in a World cup playing there and having that energy.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

And actually Maura and Lira are were fantastic.

[Max Rushden]

I thought Maura was the one who was robbed for the second goal. He will be picked up, I'm sure by both emotionally by his teammates, but also by a club at some point. Eric Lira as well, 26 years of age, plays for Cruz Azul in Mexico. If he wants to go somewhere else, I think he's shown more than enough at this tournament that there will be plenty of takers. I think from a Mexican point of view, this game will hurt so much more because not just it was at the Azteca, but it felt like they lost it rather than England won it in that they just didn't pick their moments correctly.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

That'll do for part one. Part two, we'll do Brazil, Norway. Hi, podfans. Max here. Barry's here too.

[Barry Glendenny]

Hello.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Global Weekly is supported by Gradient fc. Now, Barry, with the World cup underway, we know player performance will be under a microscope, from superstars cementing legacies to upstarts vying for big summer transfers. But with 48 teams and up to six matches a day, it's hard to catch every moment. And that is where the Gradient FC app shines. Player rankings update daily during the World cup so you know whose performances are trending up or down on the world stage.

[Barry Glendenny]

How does it work?

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Well, gradients rankings use the same grades trusted by clubs across Europe's top leagues for player recruitment. Each match is graded by a team of experts who evaluate over 2000 actions per match, not just by outcome, but by execution. So, for example, a completed pass that leads the receiver into danger is graded negatively, while one that puts the receiver in on goal is graded positively. Now, I know you hate making match predictions, Barry, but maybe all that could change at the World Cup. With Gradient fc. With head to head player comparison tools that show who's best across more than 100 grades and metrics, it's easy to build and defend any prediction. And here's something else that will appeal to you, Barry. It's free.

[Barry Glendenny]

Fantastic.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Explore it for [e-mail] or download the GradientFC app from the Apple Store or Google Play.

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[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Wel to part two of the Guardian Football Weekly. So a great win for Norway. They be Brazil 2:1. I caught up with Lars full time. Lars, I don't want your xg. I don't want you running the numbers. I just want to know how you

[Lars]

feel the expected feelings. The xf. Yeah, Giddy, Max. They're giddy. I was cackling like a lunatic for about five minutes after the second goals. I became completely incoherent, which I think is the only way to respond to this kind of situation.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I think you're right. I mean, that second goal was. That really was Erling Haaland just going, ah, I'll just score.

[Lars]

It's a weird sort of. He's really good at shooting from range. Like he's got a great. He's got a foot like a traction engine. We know this, but he almost never does it. Which is maybe why the defenders didn't see it coming. Because you notice they're not really closing him down, they're just, okay, he's on the edge of the box. Yeah, we got him under control. There's not a ton of runners around. And then he goes, oh, whatever, I'll shoot. He should do it more often. He's really good at it.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

The Nyland save, the one where the defender was higher, I can't. I couldn't remember who it was. I mean, it's an amazing piece of goalkeeping. How did you feel as that ball was looping towards the back of the net?

[Lars]

I actually shouted. I had an involuntary physical reaction, which I'm quite a stoic football watcher, generally speaking, watching it with friends who I think are often surprised that I'm not more like obviously emotional. But I just, actually just shouted no, very loudly because I could see what was happening. And you don't want to like, you don't want it to go wrong like that. Like that's just unfair and sad. This kind of looping, nonsensical, unbelievable from him today. Saving a penalty, saving that, saving several other things. And this is a goalkeeper who's been questioned by everyone like he's been our. He's been our number one for a long time but he's never been like the sort of. This is. We're. We're very happy and comfortable to have nil on him.

[Mark Langdon]

Go.

[Lars]

He's often been on the bench for various club teams. This is the guy who was on the bench for Reading not that long ago or it's just a couple years.

[Wayfair Advertiser]

Right.

[Lars]

He's been constantly questioned and doubted by absolutely everyone. So for him to turn up like this. I mean I. I would have said. I don't remember if we talked about. I mean I don't. My mind's a little gone at the moment. But if we did like a Norway preview pod, I would have flagged him up as a weakness 100. I would have said that I have to be honest. No hold my hands up. So for him to have a day like this where he just stops everything like I. I have to expect them to save the last penalty as well. I mean they didn't. Doesn't matter. But there will. There will be a new on statues now for sure. There should be. There should be many of them and they should be very large. Which is again not something I ever would have thought I was going to say out loud.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

But here we are soul back and made those changes at half time and. And they both worked.

[Lars]

He made the exact changes I would have expected him to make after 65, 70 minutes minutes. Alex Solos at right wing is a strange situation but something of we. We'd like Alex Solo to be on the field. We can't play both him in all enough fun. So we stick him out wide and just off you go. Alex just be a winger Even though you're 6 foot 5 center forward and it's an awkward position for him and I think he does a heroic amount of work to try to make it work. But it's not his natural position. And Oscar Bob offers you obviously more quality on the ball. And Nusa was a little. Not at his best. Maybe a little not super good defensively in the first half. So Sheldrup was there. He was jumping at the bit and I thought he was very positive when he came in. So I thought those were really brave and assertive moves to make. They were to make it a halftime. I think I like a coach who sort of. There's no need waiting the extra 10, 15 minutes. Like these are probably the changes we're going to make anyway, so we might as well make them now.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

How big is this for Norwegian football?

[Lars]

Very big. The biggest it's very clearly the biggest result match performance in our history. It's the biggest every thing. It is one of those things that, like, I'm almost like I'm in America and I'm having a great time this summer. But I'm also kind of sad I'm not at one of the big published watch parties at home, never mind in the stadium. Like, it would have been fun to be at home with the friends and family for this. No, it's. It's. It's beyond anything that we've ever done on a football pitch. You could already debate that beating Ivory coast in a knockout game. You know, we'd never won a knockout game before, so that was big. But this is. This is absolutely ridiculous. You asked me how big it is. It's the biggest. It's full big. Can't get none more big.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

XB expected. Bigness is bigness. Absolutely delighted for you.

[Lars]

XG famously can never be 100xb. This is 100xb. And the XF is out of control. Just now remembering it when the second goal went in, I. I sat down in the pub, which is a strange thing to do. I was standing by the table because I couldn't sit down, and I just sat down and I was sat on the floor laughing in the first sort of 15 seconds. I guess that's how I react when these things happen. You learn new things about yourself every day.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I'm excited for how happy you are, Lars. You enjoy the rest of your day.

[Lars]

I'm excited for how happy I am in Mexico.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Cheers, my friend.

[Lars]

Hi. Bye.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Look, Lars said there's a lot of it there, Baz, but we all loved that Harland second goal so much.

[Barry Glendenny]

Yeah, he just twatted it, didn't he? The ball came to him in acres of space outside the penalty area. It's like, well, we don't need to mark this guy. Who's this guy? We don't need to mark him. And he had to look around and he just went wellied it and put it in the bottom corner. Great goal. I thought Norway were deserving winners. I was baffled by Brazil's approach to the game. Just sitting back and attacking on the counter. That's very much not the Brazil I grew up watching. And I presume Carlo Ancelotti will get hammered for it in Brazil. And I'm sure he also had his reasons for setting up like this. But it didn't work. They had their chances, sure, two very good chances. Shortly after, Norway went 1 nil up. But if you're going. If your approach to a game like this is going to be this meat, you have to take your chances because you're not going to get many of them. Yeah. And that's. They didn't do it.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

And they missed the penalty as well. I mean, Nyla was brilliant in goal, but, yeah, I mean, Lars has done a lot on Norway. Nikki, what did you make of Brazil's approach?

[Nikki Bandini]

I agree with Bas. I think it was. It was really underwhelming. I think that it is one of those things where you can. We always write narratives to fit results. Right. That's how it always happens. And this was definitely a game where if Brazil do take those chances and they're really good chances, right, it's a penalty to start off with. Then when Endrick goes through, really bad first touch, but he should score. Right. That. That's. There's two times where they should score and if they score those goals and they go through, maybe we go. Well, it was a bit cynical, but it was what they needed to do to get past a dangerous Norway team. And, and. And you don't think about it anymore. And actually this feel now, the recurring narrative with Norway, I saw it was James Benj of CBS was posting that in Brazil's last three World cup eliminations, they've actually put up shots worth 8.48 XG. They've allowed 2.02 now, I'm sorry, XG is boring. No one cares about it. But I do think there's a point there, which is that actually Brazil have now got this absolutely entrenched narrative that what happens at World Cups for, what is it, the last four cycles, get through the groups and lose to the first European team you play, that's basically been what they do over and over again. And it. It is worth saying that in all of those games, it's not like they haven't made chances to do something different. They have. And actually, what you need is to have someone as ruthless as Erling Harland on the end of it, because if you take those chances, everyone has to tell a different story.

[Max Rushden]

Speaking to a Brazilian friend of mine, this is our worst World cup campaign in decades, and getting knocked out by Norway is one of our biggest embarrassments in a World cup. For sure. That's despite the circumstances of the game. And I think it's partly to do with the fact that Norway played like you'd expect Brazil to play, and Brazil played like Norway, and yet Brazil were the ones who created way more chances in this game. And Martin Odegaard, I Found an interesting figure because usually we just associate him with great creative moments, but actually Brazil got after him quite well. It's just they couldn't take the chances after they got after him and Odegaard just kept going. He didn't let himself get affected by those mistakes, of course. Oja Neuland.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Wow, that save is unbelievable.

[Max Rushden]

I think if you're a Norwegian fan, when you make that save from Christopher

[Mark Langdon]

Ayers,

[Max Rushden]

it wasn't an attempted own goal because I don't think you ever tried to score an own goal. But it's at that moment you go, you know what? I think this is going to be our day. And that Norway have a hoodoo over Brazil. What a team to have a hoodoo over.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I don't know, five times, isn't it?

[Max Rushden]

That is an insane thing.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

And actually we mentioned it with Lars, but that change at half time was big from Solbakken and both the players that came on played really well.

[Barry Glendenny]

Well, Schlederup played a part in both goals and was. Had. Had a real influence in the game. And Oscar Bob, he. Let's just say he was a credit to the Murphy cat after whom he is named.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I was gonna. Actually, I was gonna say, yeah, maybe he's. He's stepped out of the shadow of Danny Murphy's cat, Bob.

[Max Rushden]

No, he was.

[Barry Glendenny]

He could caused Brazil all manner of problems. He was excellent.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

We should mention Nick as well. Like the. The shit talking from Neymar for that penalty is like, what are you. Mate, what are you doing?

[Nikki Bandini]

Oh, my God. Like one of the most ridiculous scenes of the whole tournament. Talking about pantomime earlier. But, yeah, you're losing two nil in the. The eighth minute of seven minutes of injury time. You score a penalty, you're still losing. And that's the moment to go and talk. Well, since you said it to the goalkeeper who's just had an absolute blinder, and then this very dramatic crying afterwards when they go out. That was. That was a really weird scene. That was a really weird scene. I just want to sort of add as well, because I feel like maybe it got lost in there while I was talking about the XG and everything. I think Brazil deserved to lose this game. I'm not. That was not by any means me saying I think Brazil deserved to win this. I think Norway deserved to win this game. And it did feel like in some ways that Neymar moment is emblematic of something more fundamental. That's just not right in the attitude, isn't it? I mean, if that's your. Your Response to scoring when. Who knows? Maybe if you go grab the boy at the net and charge back, you can find some miracle. It's very weird.

[Max Rushden]

Very, very weird, that Neymar moment. Phil Kitramolides, who we've had on before, said, if you want a translation of what happened, I went, phil, tell me all about it, please.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah, okay.

[Max Rushden]

So Neuland was trash talking Neymar in Spanish and Neymar was replying to him, where do you want it? And when Neymar scores, he runs up to Neuland and goes, ami, no, as in, you don't do that to me.

[Barry Glendenny]

Right.

[Max Rushden]

Is that the time to pick that battle?

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I don't think so.

[Max Rushden]

I don't think it is. And there's also, after that, you saw that when Norway were trying to run down the clock, Martin Odegaard was having the time of his life doing skills against Neymar as a professional. Who would have grown up watching him as well. A little bit.

[Lars]

Bit.

[Max Rushden]

That must have been such, such a joyous thing. And to see that Neymar then loses his rag and you just see Martin Odegaard celebrate like that. Yeah, a great moment for Norway. Just one more thing to add with the Brazil just quickly. Carlo Ancelotti might point to the fact that he had several starting 11 players be out with injury and that kept on coming. Militao Raphinha, Rodrigo Vandersen, their right back, I think is worth pointing out him missing the tournament because of. I mean, we saw with Danilo for that Scheldorp cross for Haaland, that didn't help. And Lucas Pakatar as well. He's got a contract until 2030 that they signed before the World Cup. I'm sure there will be calls in Brazil that there should be a Brazilian coach again, but he's got a lot of problems to sort out.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

All right, well done to Norway. So England. Norway is on Saturday, I think. And that'll do for part two. Part three. We'll discuss the excellent news that following Balogan and it's back in for the US Against Belgium.

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[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Welcome to Part three of the Guardian Football Weekly. So tomorrow Portugal play Spain, USA play Belgium and literally the whole of today up until the first game and even during the first game was this news that following Baligan is available to play for the US after his one game ban was suspended by FIFA. Their statement in line with Article 27 of the FIFA disciplinary code, the implementation of the match suspension is suspended for a probationary period of one year. The guardians reporting that Donald Trump lobbied FIFA to lift the ban. Sources have told the Guardian Trump made three calls to FIFA FIFA starting from Wednesday to ensure the change was made. Trump thanked FIFA in a post on Truth Social thank you FIFA for doing what was right and reversing a great injustice. President Donald J. Trump, the Belgian FA said they were astonished. Belgium head coach Rudy Garcia said, I didn't know that at The World cup the 5th of July is actually the 1st of April. It's April fools. We're not defending the national team or federation, we're defending football. Norway manager style stole back in after the game, said it's a big mistake by FIFA. It's not a great conclusion and it stinks.

[Barry Glendenny]

Barry yeah, it's a scandal and I think it will end up being one of the biggest scandals in World cup history. And there have been other scandals surrounding this World cup. The Somalian referee Omar Arafan not being allowed into the country, the treatment of the Iranian team. And I think this is right up there with any of them and possibly bigger. If this suspension was lifted through some very transparent process that is also available to anyone else who gets a red card in the tournament, I don't think anyone would have a problem with it. And you know, I, I think the red card Balogan got was justified. Others think it wasn't that kind of irrelevant at this point. But because this ban was suspended on the back of a nod and a wink between Gianni Infantino and Donald Trump, it's a scandal that isn't going to go away. And the irony is that if Baligan wasn't a good footballer, Trump would be lobbying for him to have his birthright citizenship revoked. So make of that what you will. So I feel sorry and embarrassed on behalf of the USA fans and I mean the fans who have been supporting the USA for a long time, not just the ones who started watching soccer three weeks ago who seem to think this is great because this, they're going to be tainted by association with this scandal, which as far as we know is not of their making. And it's unfair on them, it's unfair on Baligan and because he's going to be forever associated with it. And I think this is something that will be talked about, about long after I'm gone off this mortal coil. And, and it's, it's, it, the precedent it sets is, it's disastrous.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah. Since the introduction of yellow and red cards at 1970 World cup, no player has ever received a red card and gone on to play in the team's next match. Garrincha was sent off in the semi final in 62. He was cleared to play in the final, but there were no automatic bands there. But that wasn't necessarily all above board in 1962.

[Barry Glendenny]

I think it's, people are equating this with the ban we've already talked about that was suspended on Ronaldo's behalf. The two of two games of a three game ban he got for being sent off against Ireland. This is completely different because the Ronaldo ban wasn't suspended due to the intervention of some high ranking Portuguese prime minister or president.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

We should say that. FIFA sources reportedly denied that White House pressure influenced the disciplinary outcome. And actually on that, that the journalist Lena Hammond said, look, recently FIFA suspended Nepal's football federation over government interference. Several federations have faced sanctions for the same reason. So like, you know, it is in the statute, isn't it? You're, you're, you cannot get involved politically. Right. You're, you're, you know, the, your FA is meant to be separate and in many cases it isn't, but it's meant to be separate. And, and for Belgium. Now of course this is massive motivation for Belgium, but it has also, you know, Baligan wasn't playing. They have planned to play a team that didn't have this guy on the team and now they have to plan differently.

[Max Rushden]

It's difficult to add too much to what Barry said there because it's all spot on with the hypocrisy of it, I'd add. To be honest, though, did they need it? Even the way they've been playing at this World cup and everyone stepping up

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

as a team, I mean, it isn't Pele. It's good.

[Max Rushden]

But still, football is also about dealing with the injustice that you face as a team and whatever USA go on to do at this World Cup. It now also fosters the conspiracy theories from every previous game where people may look back at refereeing decisions and go, oh, but was that one also part of this? And the mental arm wrestle that I find constantly having in my head during this World cup of enjoying the football before it, then going back in the way of the people intent on ruining the football is, look, obviously it's not the worst thing, right? You know, in terms of a problem, but it's still something that I'm sure that other people are going through as well, because it's just infuriating. And look, Gianni Infantino, a man without shame. He must be the most hated guy from Switzerland that I can think of. I cannot think of any. I mean, probably before Sepp Blatt.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Yeah, but everyone's going, you know, blazer wasn't all that bad, you know, and for the referee as well, it's, you know, what happens if Baligan flies into someone after five minutes? You know, Nikki, I don't know if you could add anything.

[Nikki Bandini]

Well, it's. I think anyone who was paying any attention at all to the noise during the games today would have heard the same joke being made in some variation 100 times over. Oh, why isn't someone on the phone about the Quansa red card or even Declan Rice's yellow card at the start of the game? The problem is now you've opened the. The door to this question of, well, so a red card that we all understood, everyone in this podcast, everyone watching understood, if you get a red card, you're not playing the next game. That's always been clear. And the explanation that was given and was explained by Christina uncle very well is that this is not again, first of all, they haven't revoked the red card, they just suspended it. And it's about a technicality of how the rule was about how the VAR was used. Right. So what the US has challenged the red card on is, oh, well, they use slow motion and still frames when you're not supposed to use that you're supposed to use real time speed replays to decide these things because everything looks worse in slow motion. Well, are we certain they didn't do that for Quanza? Are we certain they didn't do that for the penalties? Should we go back and take away some of the penalties that happened in this tournament because the VAR was done incorrectly? I mean, it's just such a ridiculously dangerous kind of worms. Yeah, it feels like. It feels like if Baligan comes in now and plays a big role and they knock out Belgium, it's going to be a thing that everyone talks about forever and. Yeah, I hate it. I don't know what else to say. I hate it.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

I hate it. On the flip side, I did two posts that did reasonable numbers. One suggesting that the US could choose to suspend a Belgian player of their choice, and they're toying up between Telemans and De Bruyne, and then one saying that actually, since Belgium complained, they've been replaced with Rotherham, you know, United, and now Belgium have to play West Brom in the first round of the Carabao cup in August. So, you know, I'm surprised those tweets did.

[Barry Glendenny]

Good one.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Thank you so much, Barry. I thought you'd like them. Anyway, Portugal play Spain.

[Barry Glendenny]

I. I suggested and was widely ridiculed by a number of Americans who. Whose timelines I checked, and none of them had posted about football slash soccer before 20 or 22 days ago, citing all sorts of historical precedent that didn't take long to demolish. To avoid being directly tainted by association with this chicanery is just leave Baligan on the bench for the game, not play him. But that won't happen because Poch has come out and said, like everyone that really loves the sport and trusts ethics and integrity, I leave it there. I don't really need to carry on, do I? We celebrate this decision. Yeah, do we, Poch?

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Okay, well, that'll do for today. Stay tuned for some Mark Langdon information, but for the time being, thanks very much. Thank you, Archie. Thanks, Max. Sure we can't persuade you for dinner, Barry?

[Lars]

What?

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

If we didn't talk about football?

[Barry Glendenny]

I wouldn't be good company for you. No, he won't be good company for me. So I'll just paddle my own canoe on this one and then we can

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

all hug in the morning.

[Barry Glendenny]

Hug in the morning?

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

You can paddle your own longboat.

[Barry Glendenny]

Yeah, I'll paddle my own longboat to the beat of my own drum. Good.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Thank you, Nikki.

[Nikki Bandini]

Thanks, guys.

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Football Weekly is produced by Rory Simon and Matt Bentley. Varney. Our executive producer is Joel Grove and we'll be back tomorrow.

[Mark Langdon]

Hi, Matt, Mark Langdon here. Just thought I'd give an update now I'm back home. So for breakfast this morning I a crumpet. I'm sure everyone will agree that the only reason you have a crumpet is to just put lashings of butter on it. And I, I didn't disappoint in, in that regard. So it was mainly butter with a little bit of crumpet. I'm sorry to disappoint the bridge fans out there, but didn't have a bridge today. Got up late in preparation for the England game. So it was straight into lunch, which was prawns and seafood sauce and then I call them bagels and other people call them bagels, but you know, bagel, bagel, tomato, tomato, all the same, really. And talking of tomatoes, I was at a hospitality event yesterday and the starter was a plate of tomatoes. I actually thought somebody was on a wind up there. Then in terms of dinner, went to a Turkish butcher's supermarket, got load of chicken sheets, some Turkish flatbread, spicy rice, new potatoes, some garlic sauce and also some, some mixed salad leaves. Did then leave the mixed salad leaves in the fridge. Totally forgot about them until the rest of the food was demolished. So we'll have to have them later on in the week. Anyway, in preparation for the England game tonight, I've got some bacon rashes and I've got very strong views on the best and worst of the sort of bacon rashes sort of varieties out there at the moment. Maybe we'll save a top five for the international break pods, but for now, enjoy the rest of your trip in America and I'll speak to everyone soon.

[Max Rushden]

This is the Guardian.

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[Nikki Bandini]

Every style, every home.

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[Max Rushden]

Decisions made in Washington can affect your portfolio every day. But what policy changes should investors be watching? Washington Wise is an original podcast from

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

Charles Schwab that unpacks the stories making

[Max Rushden]

news in Washington right now and how

[Archie Rhind-Tutt]

they may affect your finances and portfolio.

[Max Rushden]

[e-mail] WashingtonWise.