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STICK TO FOOTBALL

STICK TO FOOTBALL – Episode 106: Jordi Cruyff

written by Hugh

Jordi Cruyff joins the panel for an unfiltered journey through a life shaped by football greatness – from Barcelona academy beginnings and a bond with Eric Cantona at Manchester United, to the weight of his father Johan’s towering legacy. The panel dig into Cruyff’s turbulent spell as Barcelona’s Sporting Director in the post-Messi era and share the inspiring story of his daughter Danae’s cancer battle and recovery.

00:00 – Intro

05:27 – Jordi’s Man United Experience

22:44 – Leaving Barcelona

25:12 – Growing Up the Son of Johan

39:39 – Tactical Insights and Team Dynamics

43:10 – The Genius of Romário

47:34 – Challenges at Barcelona Post Messi

1:07:27 – Battling Cancer with His Daughter

KEY QUOTES:

Jordi Cruyff on his dad distancing himself when he was at Manchester United…

“I think he always wanted to show respect by not appearing too much in Manchester. He would come for Christmas, for example, but he wouldn’t come to many games because I think he didn’t want to give any kind of presence pressure. My father just stepped away.”

Jordi Cruyff on football in Spain vs England…

“There is a clear fact: there is a difference between the two leagues. Spain had control of the ball, more the technical side, and England was just… every game was a different battle. In Spain, 30 years ago when you had a good team with talent then you would win because you were better – but here being better doesn’t mean you’re going to win games. You need a lot of winners in the team, and you need stability; two bad games and you can’t win titles like that.”

Jordi Cruyff on why he left Barcelona…

“I already knew it was time to go. They wanted to give me the first-team contract and my father said no – he’s going to keep a second-team contract. I was angry: why is this? And he said, ‘I’m protecting you because one day they will want to use it and they cannot use it.’ The advantage was my buyout clause was then less than half. He probably already understood that if he was going to have a fight, they’re not going to hurt him. He’s going to decide his own future.”

Jordi Cruyff on his dad’s issues with club officials…

“He didn’t like board members to give any opinion about football. He used to say, ‘If I have a legal issue I go to a lawyer, if I have a medical issue I go to a doctor – you’re not a football person so don’t give an opinion about football.’ He used to have a lot of media fights with presidents of the club to keep them away from all the football side. That was his character, and he could do it because he had the strength and the power to do it.”

Jordi Cruyff on how he remembers his dad…

“You would see people getting excited when they saw him – all ages, it was something crazy almost. He was always strict with us: if you do bad in school, he would take you off football for a month. He was very demanding about having a plan B in your life; just because you want to be a football player doesn’t mean you’re going to be one. He pushed me to go to university when I was already in the first team at Barcelona. What I most admire about him is he never brought football home. He lost the final against Milan 4–0, came home and you didn’t notice anything – you heard the key, he came inside smiling, how are you, how was school? He never brought any football emotion home, never the negative ones. I’ve never seen that with anyone.”

Jordi Cruyff on the best advice he received from his dad…

“He always said treat people how you want to be treated and live and let live. He never really gave clear advice – he was always a free mind. Even my football decisions, he never told me you should do this or that. Whatever you see or you hear, you don’t know. He never wanted to know anything from a dressing room that I could have heard. He always said separate – I don’t bring football home.”

Jordi Cruyff on his dad’s early career and upbringing…

“A little kid, 16 or 17, already telling 30-year-olds what to do on the pitch. Even when he was a player, he was a coach on the pitch – he had a strong personality, character, so he would just go for it. His mother had to clean the dressing rooms and the toilets in Ajax to make a living, and that really motivated him. The moment he signed the contract the first thing he said was, ‘Mom, you’re out of here, I’m going to take care of you now.’ The difficulties after the Second World War really affected his mindset – he had to succeed to help his family.”

Jordi Cruyff on his dad as an innovator…

“Some people will say he’s an idol, but others will say he was a tough, difficult character. He did some crazy things until he was considered a genius – the line between being a genius and being crazy is very thin, and the moment you win you become a genius. Coaches like Pep Guardiola still mention him every time. I remember my father being one of the first to play with a false number 9, to play with a goalkeeper as if he was a defender, and for him the build-up was more important than actually stopping the ball.”

Jordi Cruyff on the moment everything changed…

“You hear your daughter has cancer… that’s the moment of shock. That’s when my life changes.”

Jordi Cruyff on football suddenly feeling irrelevant…

“Football is a passion, but our kids – that’s what we really have. For me it was a clear decision: football, I’m just out of it. Now it’s this battle. This is the most important one.”

Jordi Cruyff on the doctor who became “the angel”…

“How lucky that the doctor missed his flight, he came back to the hospital, he saw her.”

“Normally any other doctor would say, ‘When you’re back in two months, we’ll have an MRI scan.’ But he said no.”

“For us, he’s the angel. He really saved us.”

Jordi Cruyff on support from Luis Enrique…

“My daughter had the same kind of cancer as Luis Enrique’s daughter, and his strength – the way he talks about it, the way he tries to live on with it – I admire that so much.”

“I flew to London just to sit with him for half an hour and to thank him for everything he’s done for me, even if he didn’t know – for the power he gave.”

Jordi Cruyff on the unfairness of a child getting cancer…

“With my father, I’m at peace – that’s the normal order. But with a daughter… I was very angry with the world: ‘This is not fair. This shouldn’t go like this. It has to go to me, not to her.’”

Jordi Cruyff on trying to stay strong…

“24/7 you have to be strong because your daughter needs to see you’re strong. You cannot show weakness.”

“When she would go with her mum for a weekend, that’s when I would be sick. That’s when everything would come out of me… that’s the moment you can let go.”

Jordi Cruyff on sleeping on the floor…

“She was also in a titanium wheelchair so she couldn’t sleep in her room [on the top floor], so she stayed in my room. She had to vomit every 15 minutes, so I slept on the floor. I just put a mattress there and I slept.”

Stick to Football is brought to you by Arne Clothing – to watch the full podcast episode with Jordi Cruyff, Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane, Ian Wright, and Jill Scott please visit: https://youtu.be/eu0gk4CR_EY

12th December 2025 0 comment

Football

STICK TO FOOTBALL – Episode 104

written by Hugh

Ashley Cole lifts the lid on his rise from Arsenal prospect to all-time great, Wayne and Ash discuss the coaching bug, and the panel relive the highs, lows, and controversies of a blockbuster career. Plus, the truth behind his Arsenal–Chelsea move, reflections on England’s golden generation, and big questions about where Cole’s managerial future lies.

00:00 – Intro

05:49 – Early Football Memories

08:43 – Transition to Fullback

22:12 – Coaching Ambitions

36:26 – Breaking into the Arsenal Team

44:00 – Influential Figures in the Dressing Room

52:02 – Leaving Arsenal for Chelsea

1:05:46 – Toughest Opponents

1:07:45 – Battling Against Racism and Backlash

1:13:20 – Media Agenda & Criticism

1:17:19 – England

1:21:18 – Tuchel’s Midfield Dilemma

Ashley Cole on the Arsenal contract saga, reneging on promises and his move to Chelsea…

“In my head, I’m going, ‘You took it away. They were my love. That was my club.’ And I did feel a little bit devalued and underappreciated a little bit. So that was where my head and heart was at. I was like, ‘Nah, you’ve took my love away.’”

“I’ve never, ever asked from the age of seventeen. I’ve never said, ‘I want big money, I want big money.’ I want the same as it was. Give me the contract, I’ll sign it. This is my club. This is everything I’ve known.”

“The aim and the conversation about going abroad was (from what I was told and heard) that I was going Real Madrid. I was going to have conversations with another agent who I could sign for teams abroad. So it was Madrid, kind of Barcelona. And again, I don’t know how deep it was. I’m looking to sign a deal here to go abroad. Things changed. Got married. Didn’t actually want to leave the country in the end. And maybe a year and a half later… it’s Chelsea.”

‘‘There was no hidden meeting. I walked into the hotel to have pre-talks. It could’ve been Madrid. So then newspapers are saying, ‘He’s going Chelsea,’ because a waiter said there was a contract on the table for Chelsea. The papers ran with that. I had to deal with all of that.”

Ashley Cole on The Invincibles vs Mourinho’s Chelsea team…

“I loved playing in both teams, but what I will say is… we couldn’t beat that Chelsea team. It was tougher physically. When Jose came to the Premier League, we struggled with it. We couldn’t break them down. I think they won the league two years in a row. Whether it was tactics or just the way they were set up, we just couldn’t beat them.”

Ashley Cole on his toughest opponent and chanting in Spain…

“Joaquin. Spain, away. You get him running at you, and he’s doing the stepovers, and he was physically strong. He was nutmegging me. And of course it was the racial stuff as well. So mentally I wasn’t there. But he taught me a lesson.”

“When you’re seeing Nan’s and Grandad’s, doing the monkey chant in the crowd, it’s like, whoa! Wow. But I had it before. Valencia. Away. I had it as well with Arsenal. One of my first Champions League games. It was similar. And it’s like, how do you react? In real life, you’d probably be fighting. On a pitch, you’re the one that’s going to get in trouble.”

“Mentally it probably did affect me. But going through my career, I’ve probably had a lot on my shoulders. I’ve had to go through a lot, and I’ve always kept quiet. I never want to blame anyone else. I never want to put my stresses onto other people. That’s just how I am. But now, having grown up, I understand that’s probably not the right thing to do.”

“I just brushed it off as if, ‘Oh, I have to deal with this. I have to be strong. I don’t need to speak to anyone.’ I’m not saying I had mental health, but what I went through was hard.”

Ashley Cole on his negative media portrayal…

“They definitely had an agenda against me. One million percent. One million percent. And I think it came from… well, partly me, but also the way the media wanted to frame me.”

“I gave an Audi TT to David Rocastle’s charity auction. I didn’t want publicity. I just wanted to support my idol. But the media spun it as if I was doing it for publicity. That’s when I said, ‘I am done.’”

“Every time a story came out, it was on my shoulders. I just took it. This day and age, I’d go on Instagram or Twitter to back myself up, but back then, you had to deal with it in silence. I was a sitting duck.”

Ashley Cole on the Golden Generation…

“Paul Scholes cannot be the top Paul Scholes with Steven Gerrard in the team because Stevie G cannot be the Stevie G in the team with Paul Scholes. Lampard cannot be the Frank Lampard for Chelsea with those two in the team. So tactically, we set up to win, but were the players open enough to sacrifice a little bit of themselves? People have to be a little bit more selfless, and I don’t think we were.”

“Even if I’m just making overlaps to give someone else space, there was no one else in that pocket. When Waza comes in the pocket… who we got running behind? There’s no support because our midfielders might want to get the ball from the defenders. It just didn’t work.”

“You leave out a top player, of course you’re going to be criticised and asked questions. That’s football. But you have to live and die by decisions that you make. Leaving people out will burn you if you don’t win, but if you win, you’re going to look like a genius in the end.”

Ashley Cole on Jude Bellingham’s England’s selection…

“Moments… you can’t pay enough money for that. Big moments in games when you need someone to deliver, he will deliver. In my opinion, that would be my selection.”

Ashley Cole on the fluid style of The Invincibles…

“It was never coached. Of course, when Thierry first came, I think he played on the left. But yeah, that adjustment just worked. I liked to bomb up and down. Of course, Robert, right-footed, likes to come inside and open the pitch, and he liked to open his body and finish from his right and open the goal. So yeah, it just flowed and just worked. It was nothing. It was like organic. It wasn’t planned.”

Ashley Cole on his relationship with Arsene Wenger…

“At the start, respectfully, there wasn’t kind of a relationship. He showed his trust in me by playing me. I don’t know his relationship with the older players, the senior players, because I was just there. You know, you’re in the dream. You’re in the bubble. But I just turned up for training, trained, and I’m starting. Wow. They didn’t really say a word to me. And I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. It was a good thing – he let me play my game.”

Ashley Cole on his early influences and idol…

“David Rocastle. Yes, so probably now at the age of eleven, twelve, I was on Arsenal’s books, and had a little bit of growing pains in my knee. I had the opportunity to go to Highbury and see Gary Lewin – who had to come to look at my knee.

“David Rocastle was on the bed, and he was, like, the first one that spoke to me. Took time. I didn’t really get to meet the first-team players. They were secure and over the other side. But to see David Rocastle… I was a left winger at the time and a striker, so to get the opportunity to meet him and be around him.. You know, you have these people that influence you just by the words – just by saying, ‘Hello’ and ‘How are you?’ ‘Oh, what position do you play?’ And then ever since that, you know, we looked a little bit alike. I had, like, that long face, that, you know, the kind of little flat top. And yeah, I just wanted to emulate him and play like him. So growing up, he was my idol.”

Ashley Cole on his transition from striker to left back…

“I was a striker. Yeah, I would do all right with the goals. To be fair, I would score maybe thirty, forty, sometimes fifty this season. This is school football though, club football. I played for a team called Puma. Bunch of friends from my school. The dad decided to start a team and we were half decent. We would compete with Senrab, who were a top team at the time. And yeah, I was a striker there and I was really skinny, as I am now. I was slight, you know, I didn’t want contact, I’d just run behind. And at that age group, you know, if you’re quicker than people, you’re one-on-one with the goalie all the time.

“I started to transition a little bit deeper and back in that back line around maybe fourteen when I went to Arsenal. And then fast forward another two years and then it’s first day of pre-season. I think it’s David Livermore does his cruciate. They [the u18’s Arsenal manager] call me over. And now I’m a left back. And that was it. I was an attacking left back.

“Don Howe was the under-eighteens manager, and we had Don Givens. Don Givens – loved him. They must have just seen something in me. I liked to attack and try to put my foot in. I had to find a way to compete against these bigger players, so it was tackle hard and fast. I could get you from our goal to the opposition’s goal quite quick. So they saw that attribute in me and allowed me to bomb up and down and play on the left side alone.”

Ashley Cole on his early career coaches…

“He [Dow Howe] was very influential, and as I said, not just for me but the group. He set the tone from day one of pre-season, and we knew the discipline was a big, big importance for the club. He wanted you to play free, of course, but the details he used to coach were amazing as a defender. Don Howe would have been certainly one in taking pride in actual defending – you know, one v ones, move your feet, show people down the line. Whatever my strength was, was speed, so I’m going, ‘Okay, Don, how do I defend one v one? How do I defend an overlap?’ And he was very specific in the details he gave.”

Ashley Cole on the importance of going on loan…

“That was massive for my career. I felt I went from playing reserve football to going to Palace, fighting relegation, going from playing in front of a man and his dog to now crazy Palace fans that are fighting for their lives. You’re fighting for people’s jobs. I think they were in administration. It was tough. But I’d come from Arsenal. And then it hit me, like, ‘Yeah, I’m fighting for something different here. Now I’ve gained that experience of what it means to really play for three points and be a group that’s fighting for something. And yeah, you go back to Arsenal and play with top, top players who I would just give the ball.”

Ashley Cole on learning from Tony Adams and Martin Keown…

“Going forward in my career, then of course people like Tony Adams, Martin Keown. In the youth team I could attack – if we concede, we concede. We’re winning ten-one, yeah. But when people’s jobs are on the line, managers, kind of older, experienced players… Tony Adams would not allow me to let a cross come in the box.”

“I was certainly coached the defensive principles. But, you know, when you’re going into senior football and you’re playing against top wingers, I made mistakes. My aggression… I tried to jump in and lunge in, and better players was just taking it around me. So I had to learn on the job and with the experienced players. As I mentioned, people like Tony and Martin, they gave me the character building of going, ‘That cannot happen again. You know, I want you to be right next to me.’ And then I learned on the job: I need to be close to Tony Adams. So it’s a sprint, it’s not a jog. It’s a sprint. Do I show him inside? No, because I know Tony’s not going to be there. So I need to show him the line now. I need to work my feet. I need to get my distance right. I need to understand the strength of whatever winger I’m up against.”

Ashley Cole on coaching with England…

“With England, we get them now, we’ve got ten days to work. We do have to cram a lot of stuff in, but we take pride in going, we need to hit this. We need to work on, you know, how you jump and head off one foot. So we take pride in doing that, the extras, and trying to help these players be better, because we understand at the club sometimes, they don’t have enough time. Because there will come a moment, whether it’s in a big tournament where – I don’t know – you’ve not had to deal with crosses in the box, so we might work on crosses in the box. We try to work on every aspect of how we defend, you know, from how we defend the eighteen-yard box to then how we want to build out, but then the second balls, smoothing it out.”

Ashley Cole on his coaching style…

“I look at the fullback who I was coaching [at Chelsea]. He’s a fourteen, fifteen-year-old. He doesn’t have the same profile as me. He doesn’t have my mentality. I’m not going to tell him how to defend like me. I’ll just give him scenarios. If you’re six foot five as a fullback, you can’t move like me. I’m not going to tell you how I would defend. I would just tell you, ‘Look, this is where the danger can come from.’ Body shape and body position might be a little bit more open because you need to see more of the pitch.”

Ashley Cole on his aspirations to become a manager…

“I definitely want to give it a go. I am different, you know. I don’t speak as well as certain managers. I have to find my way in the game. I have to find my own personality, be authentic. But, going back to the start of my journey as a coach, I found a way to lead and push people and bring people on a journey with me. We’re just trying to tell stories and make these players believe what I’m saying.”

Stick to Football is brought to you by Arne Clothing – to watch the full podcast episode with Ashley Cole, Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane, Wayne Rooney, and Ian Wright please visit: https://youtu.be/DQVwWeJ3Bsk

27th November 2025 0 comment

Football

STICK TO FOOTBALL – Episode 103

written by Hugh

Wrighty’s Message to Jude, Player Portrayals in the Media, Scotland & Ireland Reaction, Liverpool’s Dip in Form and More with Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane, Ian Wright, and Wayne Rooney.

Scotland celebrate a dramatic World Cup qualification, Ireland keep their hopes alive, and England’s evolving identity under Thomas Tuchel comes under the spotlight. Plus, Wrighty’s powerful words on media responsibility, a huge Premier League weekend ahead, Gary’s contract deep-dive, and the fallout from Jake Paul vs Anthony Joshua.

00:00 – Intro

05:15 – Promo

06:15 – Liverpool’s poor start

11:39 – Scotland & Ireland

18:02 – England’s World Cup Chances

32:37 – Ian Wright on Jude Bellingham

47:45 – Modern Punditry

55:59 – Super 6

1:05:58 – Gary’s United Contracts revealed

1:25:27 – Anthony Joshua vs Jake Paul

Ian Wright, Jamie Carragher, Gary Neville on the Jude Bellingham media controversy and the treatment of players in the media…

Ian Wright said, “His parents have kept him away from the Premier League [kept him away from the journalists]. They can’t get to him through his club. They cannot get to this guy. And this is somebody who is very much an achiever. He goes out, he’s a winner. He wants to do it. He wins. What they said about Jude not celebrating, that was complete fabrication – a lie.

‘‘So what they’re trying to do, they’re trying to build something because England have qualified so, so easy. They’ve not conceded any goals. They’ve won all the games easy. So they need to have something else to pile on top of the narrative. I’m worried for Jude simply because he’s somebody that they can’t control. You can’t control him. Obviously, coming off of the World Cup and what he’s done, he’s showing people that, you know, I’m here, I’m Black, I’m proud, I’m ready to go. All that vibe is something that certain man can’t deal with.’’

‘‘I don’t think, as Englishmen – I’m an Englishman – I don’t think they’re ready for a Black superstar like that who can move like Jude’s moving. They can’t touch him. If you get Pogba or a Bellingham and you get that kind of energy, that does not sit well with certain people. For some reason he frightens these people because of his capability and the inspiration he can give. It’s something that you’re taught as a Black man, you just want to try and do the best you can and keep your head down and be, for want of a better [word], a humble fucking slave. This is dragging up from that kind of energy. Because if you are outspoken, Black, and playing to that kind of level and not caring – that frightens certain people.’’

‘‘As soon as I sent a message to Jude saying, listen my friend, be ready… he said, ready for what? And I said, listen, it’s coming, and I’m here. I’m going to be here. I’m going to make sure I’m on this side.”

Jamie Carragher continued, “When I read reports about Bellingham – sort of how he’s perceived or how he’s supposed to be around the camp – he is completely different when I see him face to face. He speaks to me, he asked me about my son, how he was doing, he knows where he’s playing, how he’s doing. He’d have a laugh, a joke, and he looks genuinely interested in speaking to you. So you read things [in the media], and that probably does influence people, doesn’t it? We know how powerful the press is and we’re part of the media as well, we shouldn’t forget that. But he is completely different to what I read about him – one hundred percent. He is an absolute diamond.”

Gary Neville commented, “A personal experience – and I’ve spoken about this – in 2016, Raheem Sterling came to see me in the tournament and said that he felt as though he was being persecuted, that it was unfair, and it was basically not relating to football. I remember at the time giving him a completely and utterly inadequate answer. I said, look, Raheem, it’s because of your quality and who you are and what you are that they’re criticising you. I remember they did this with Wayne Rooney; they did this with David Beckham, they did this with Paul Gascoigne – the best players, the biggest names. But actually what I didn’t read at the time, and what he was crying out and asking me for help for, was around the fact that this wasn’t relating to his football performances. It was more around the colour of his skin, and this persecution around how if he had a car that was this, and another player who was white had a car that was this, there was a difference in reporting of it. He was really low; he had nowhere to go. And I’ve not got the ability, the education, or the understanding to be able to give him the answers he needed. It only hit me a year later when I saw articles side by side, articles about Raheem with a car, house, jewellery, a watch, and then articles about a white player, and the difference. You could see this complete and utter bias. Right now, I get what he means. And that’s something I can see at the moment it’s happening with Jude Bellingham.”

Jamie Carragher on Liverpool’s poor start…

‘‘There’s probably so many things. Was Salah ever going to have the same season? Konate’s fell off a cliff. MacAllister’s never been 100% fit. I think there’s lots of little things. But if we’re being totally honest, when you look at the games they’ve lost, they can’t handle the physicality of the Premier League.’’

‘‘When you listen to Slot talk about Liverpool last season, even though they won the league, he always talks after about how every game went down to the wire. They only won by the odd goal. He almost wanted to have more football, more goals, more entertainment. When you hear him speak about Paris Saint-Germain last season, it’s like, oh my God, that’s the football I want. That’s amazing. In the Premier League he’s trying to push Liverpool even more that way, but I think the Premier League is actually probably gone back in terms of physicality. So his team’s probably a little bit weaker. In the Premier League now everyone’s just giant, set pieces, long throws and the team can’t cope.’’

‘‘I don’t think this group of players is equipped to win the league this year. You look at the difference in the Champions League, and they look fine. All of Wirtz’s best games have been in the Champions League. I think they’ll have to recruit more physical players. I’ve just seen the Semenyo link come up, when you look at him as a player lightning quick, big, powerful – Liverpool don’t have a lot of pace when you think of the wide areas, Salah’s not a flying machine, Gakpo’s not really, but I just think maybe more physicality in the team, more pace, more power.’’

Panel’s thoughts on Harry Kane…

Gary Neville said, “He’s fierce, he’s got a massively fierce determination. When he played for England when I was there, he was not the football player that he is now. I mean, the football player he is now, he’s evolved in the last eight or nine years.

Wayne Rooney said, “I think just the goals he’s scored and, as you said then, his performances… he’ll go on and get the caps record as well. I just think how he’s evolved as a player is incredible. He reminds me of Cristiano when he was younger, and sometimes he’s at a hard angle and he’s shooting and you’re like, what are you doing shooting? You might pass it, but he doesn’t. As you said then, it doesn’t bother him. He’ll try it again. He’ll keep going – both right and left foot. And I just think for me, he’s England’s best player.”

Roy Keane on Ireland’s recent win and celebration at full time…

“To get the win in Hungary, last kick of the game, I wouldn’t begrudge them at that moment. These teams have been struggling for so many years to get a bit of a lift for the country, and to get two back-to-back big wins – to beat Portugal was obviously huge, and then to go and beat Hungary and knock them out. If you can’t enjoy them moments… I think the Irish fans and the players and the manager, I wouldn’t begrudge them it, honestly. I honestly was delighted with them. The whole country needed that lift.”

Wayne Rooney on England scrutiny…

“Obviously, a lot of mine was again because I was controversial and with things that were done, probably more off the pitch than on the pitch. And I’ve spoken about it. It was almost like you were getting bullied and there’s not much you can do about it. You think more about your family than you do yourself. Your parents and your family back home. When I was on the pitch that’s where I just felt at ease. Felt safe. That was the easy part, the games were the easy part. But dealing with it and the constant judgment of you, that was tough.”

Panellists on modern day punditry…

Roy Keane said,“I think as pundits, if we do cross the line and you do think you’re affecting a player and you’ve gone overboard, then you do apologise to a player. On a matchday you get emotional, sometimes you do get carried away and frustrated with the player. I might be frustrated with Maguire, but it doesn’t mean I don’t think he’s a bloody good lad or a decent kid. And if you do get a chance, then you apologise. I got it wrong.”

Ian Wright continued,“I don’t think we need to go for the individual. You should be able to be critiqued about your play, but it should never ever go personal or go behind the scenes into people’s lives. Never, ever as a pundit. I just feel that with social media… it’s all about criticising the players, what they’ve done wrong, and how bad they’ve been, and they garner so much attention through the negative.”

Wayne Rooney on the recent Anthony Joshua vs Jake Paul fight announcement…

‘‘If it’s not fixed, then it’s ridiculous. I don’t know how it’s been passed. He shouldn’t be in there with him. It’s crazy. Everything about the fight is just wrong. Listen, I don’t blame Anthony Joshua, I think come get your money. There’s different levels to boxing. To go and fight Anthony Joshua, it’s dangerous. I felt if something happens to Jake Paul, there’s going to be serious questions. Boxing would be in a bad place.”

Stick to Football is brought to you by Arne Clothing – to watch the full podcast episode with Gary Neville, Jamie Carragher, Roy Keane, Wayne Rooney, and Ian Wright please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4MopdT8fmg

20th November 2025 0 comment

Football

STICK TO FOOTBALL – Episode 102 – Ole Gunnar Solskjær

written by Hugh

In this week’s episode, the panel welcomes Ole Gunnar Solskjær, who reflects on his early coaching influences and the extra practice that shaped players like Erling Haaland. He opens up about his time in Turkey, his experiences managing Manchester United, and shares honest thoughts on Scott McTominay, Harry Maguire, Marcus Rashford, and Jadon Sancho. Ole also discusses his preferred playing style, the lessons he’s carried through management, and his children’s own football aspirations.

00:00 – Intro

05:20 – Lewis’ Hidden Talent

12:27 – Goals & Missed Chances For Strikers

22:21 – Managerial Experience

31:40 – Returning to Management

38:38 – Man United Reflections

41:12 – Scott McTominay’s Role and Performance

45:38 – Harry Maguire’s Journey at United

49:22 – Rashford & Sancho, What Went Wrong?

56:00 – How Did Ole Become a Striker?

01:01:51 – Ole’s Mythbusters & Quiz

Full interview is now live at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZvbV7HZtVA

CREDIT – “This week’s Stick to Football podcast is available now on YouTube and all leading podcast platforms”

KEY QUOTES:

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on Erling Haaland and the value of extra practice…
“You look at the best one now – he trains and practices all the time. That’s Erling, Erling Haaland. He’s fabulous. We just spoke about him – never misses it. Never.”

“That’s his lifestyle and how he looks after himself because it’s about energy. Coming into the games with energy – that’s what it’s about.”

“He was always, every day, asking for extra headers and extra finishing, absolutely every day. And then he’d finish with a few penalties after that.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on his time in Turkey…
“Rollercoaster – brilliant, absolutely fantastic. People are so passionate, both good and bad. Living in Istanbul, the people there were fantastic. I’m more of a calm, relaxed person, but they are very high when they win, very low when they lose. I was hoping to gradually move them over to my kind of thinking, but it was so passionate – lose a game, dead. Win a game, party. But it was brilliant. It’s a great club, great people. I absolutely loved it. The atmosphere in the stadium is incredible. When the going was good – like we beat Galatasaray and Fenerbahce – it was unbelievable. Then you lose… and that was my doing.”

“I think when you take a job, you put your honour and pride into helping that club. I’m not working for myself. I could easily retire, but if they trust you, you try to help. Most of the time you regret what you’re not doing, and I don’t regret this one bit.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on his next career step…
“I’m looking. I’m open. It’s not like I’m desperate to be back in. But yes, in England, I love living here as well. Is it Norway, is it Sweden, is it wherever, it’s about working with people. I love just trying to make the most of them, or make them be the best version of themselves, and help the club.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on the Norway job…

“We’ve got a good coach still; we’re on the way to the World Cup. But if he [Stale Solbakken] one day doesn’t sign a new deal? Of course, who wouldn’t want to work with Erling Haaland again?”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on his time managing Manchester United…

“Of course it does [hurt], because that Man United one, I’d been there for eighteen and a half years. That was a kick, I thought we had something going but I’ve now moved on. It takes time, of course.”

“I’ve always thought about the club before myself, long term, who needs games, and that’s my approach.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on Scott McTominay…
“I feel that you want a core of local lads who know the club, who get the club and Scott did.’’

‘‘He’s top, and a great character you want in and around the place, sets the standards and he’d survive when we played one hundred percent [referencing his old Manchester United squad].’’

‘‘He was voted Serie A player of the year last year. So I think Scott is one of them that you, you only know when you’ve got him in your squad, how good he is and how important he can be for a squad.’’

‘‘Scotty probably wasn’t allowed to play in his best position enough because of Bruno and maybe the lack of physicality we had in midfield and legs we had in midfield.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on Harry Maguire…
“He’s shown great character, the type of person he is, and I think he’s shown the quality as well. Strength and mental strength to still perform when he’s had his critics. He’s had a few bad games, made mistakes, but then got back in.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on Marcus Rashford…
“I’ve not spoken to Marcus since, since I left. Uh, been texting a little bit. I don’t know what’s happened in Marcus’s life, but you can see he’s enjoying himself now and in Barcelona. It looked like he didn’t enjoy himself here [Manchester United] at the end. ”

“You just want him to do well because he’s an incredible player when he’s in form, when he’s happy, and when he’s got energy.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on Jadon Sancho…
“Jadon, in and around the box, with skill, link-up play, and little passes – he gives us [Manchester United] something different. He was unlucky when he first arrived because he had an ear infection and struggled to train for the first ten days.’’

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on his preferred playing style…

“Play the ball forward. You can control the game by defending really well. Get them wherever you want them and then play through the pitch on the floor – one, two touches, go forward. It’s not just about launching it to a striker.

We [Manchester United] pressed high against Newcastle because Shearer and Duncan Ferguson weren’t the quickest, but if they were in the box, it’s different. I think that’s the way to score goals – to catch the opposition off balance. Nowadays, everyone’s so organised defensively that it’s hard to beat teams with 80 passes sometimes.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on playing formations…

“I’ve used three-four-three, three-box-three, whatever you call it. It’s horrible to play against when it’s done well. The first team I remember doing it in our era was Basel against Liverpool in the Champions League – you saw, wow, how can Liverpool press this? You’ve got to go man-to-man, follow the runs. When it works, it works – but you need teams to press you to make it effective as well. You see at United now, they seem to win games more often with less than 50 percent possession rather than 60-65 percent. When I used that system, it went well because I had three good centre-backs. We also used it in Norway when I played.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on his children potentially becoming footballers…

“I think it’s just the environment they’re in. They’re in and around football all the time, and probably have decent DNA. I try not to put pressure on them, but I’ve ended up coaching their teams when I’ve been between jobs. They all play in Norway. When they were 15 or 16, I coached all three. As long as they enjoy football, I don’t put any pressure on them.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær on his ideal striker…

“I’d pick Erling Haaland to suit my style of football. I’d like him in my team.”

Ole Gunnar Solskjær reflects on lessons learned during his time at Cardiff…

“Oh, loads of things. I chopped and changed too many systems and team when I came in. The squad was about 20 odd players, and we were in a Premier League relegation fight. The players were very close in quality. I’d never been in that situation before because we used to rotate a lot. When you won, it was fine, but when you lost.”

Stick to Football is brought to you by Arne Clothing – to watch the full podcast episode with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Gary Neville, Paul Scholes, Roy Keane, Jill Scott, and Ian Wright please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZvbV7HZtVA

14th November 2025 0 comment