Episodes
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Stuttgart lift the cup as Werder drop Werner, ten Haag arrives in Leverkusen
Nik and Jasmine are back to discuss the DFB Pokal final, the relegation play offs and the insanely fast spinning coaching carousel. Nik’s Werder Bremen has sacked its coaching staff, Sandro Wagner makes a surprise return to the Bundesliga and Erik ten Haag is making some of the same mistakes he...
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Reflecting on the Bundesliga’s relegation rumbles and the season that was
The final day of the Bundesliga season has come and gone - Dortmund and Frankfurt fans will be happy, the Freiburgers less so. There’s still a bit to look forward to, what with relegation playoffs in store to determine the makeup of the first and second division as well as the DFB Pokal final as...
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Untangling the five-way fight over Europe, Leverkusen prepare for a clear-out, and Hamburg are back!
The Bundesliga's final day looks like a potential doozy, what with five teams set to scramble for four places in Europe, a Heim vs. Heim battle to beat the drop, and a thicket of permutations in the 2. Bundesliga, where another five clubs still hold out hope of promotion. Matt, Nik and Terry talk...
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Bayern (re)claim the title but just about everything else is still up for grabs
After keeping their challengers at arm's length for weeks, FC Bayern München have done it - the Rekordmeister added another league title to their robust tally. Matt is back in the TF house and was ready for a good chat with Nik about Bayern, the logjams in the race for Europe, the fluid situation...
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Snooker in Sheffield, a Strawberry in Stockholm, and modest side of Fußball
It's been a while. Enough time, in fact, for Nik and Terry to have criss-crossed Europe enriching their lives in all kinds of ways. But what about the Fußball, huh? It turns out that the boys' clubs - Werder Bremen and Borussia Dortmund - have been on a bit of a heater since last they podded…
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Mainz(!) look destined for the Champions League
This Bundesliga season has been a resumption of regular service - Bayern are back on top and, Leverkusen aside, the rest of the 'top teams' have struggled for consistency. That's let an unlikely challenger in FSV Mainz 05 rise all the way to THIRD. In this episode Matt (in his own funk over…
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RB Leipzig lose their wings under Marco Rose
If there's been one certainty since Rasenballsport Leipzig entered Germany's top tier, it's that the club will do everything it can to compete for a top-four place. This season, all that looks under threat. With just one win in their last six, the Red Bulls are in danger of tumbling out of the…
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Nico Kovac is The Famous Grouse
What with BVB hiring a familiar face and Werder Bremen getting the short end of the refereeing stick, Nik and Terry had plenty to talk about. Not that they leave it there, either - Bayern's coming date with Leverkusen comes under their lens, as does the recent play of Davie Selke(!)
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Never a dull moment at Borussia Dortmund
With Terry's BVB taking on Nik's Werder Bremen this past weekend, it's fitting that those two take the reins for the week. The fellas discuss where Dortmund stand in their interim coach phase, what lessons we can draw from the latest wrangle over TV money, and how some Bundesliga refs will adjust...
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Sometimes you put the English on the week, sometimes the week puts the English on you
Each englische Woche, the Bundesliga's term of endearment for the 10-day run of three match days in rapid succession, we get a chance to take stock of each team's form. A few teams pass their test with flying colors and come out with new confidence; an English week without points can be enough to...
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Dortmund's latest loss puts the club in another fine mess
You didn't think we could go more than a few episodes without fretting over Borussia Dortmund, did you? Well after first going down at the Westfalen to a Leverkusen side that's been rounding into form, BVB followed it up with a loss in Kiel in which they trailed 3-0 before halftime...so we pretty...
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New faces in the new year - a look at Bundesliga transfers and rumors
With the Winterpause in its waning days, Matt and Nik take stock in modest moves made by the likes of FC St. Pauli, FC Heidenheim and Werder Bremen, as well as consider the rather more blockbuster potential comings and goings between Germany and England. They also consider what it might mean that...
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Bayern crash in Mainz, and have decisions to make about the future
It's always a story when FC Bayern München lose in the Bundesliga, especially when it's to a team outside the league's blue bloods. The Rekordmeister's defeat in Mainz opened the door to Bayer Leverkusen to get back into the title chase, and next week's date with RB Leipzig could do the same for...
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Dortmund and Bayern serve up a Klassik as Wolfsburg leave tire tracks on Leipzig
It's always a pleasure when a Borussia Dortmund-FC Bayern München match-up lives up to the hype, so this pod finds Matt, Terry and Nik in a fairly buoyant mood as they talk about what the result might mean. The gang also mull over RB Leipzig and FC Heidenheim's recent stumbles and unpack the...
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Eagles flying high while Hamburg (remember them?) are laid low again
Prior to the season, the names Bayer 04 Leverkusen, RB Leipzig, and Borussia Dortmund were the hottest picks from pundits looking for candidates for answer to the age-old question: WHO'S GONNA CHALLENGE BAYERN THIS YEAR? A few months on, all those tams are in the top five, but it's clear we need...
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Will dumping Matarazzo stem Hoffenheim's decline?
TSG 1899 Hoffenheim were a sensation when they came up to the Bundesliga under Ralf Rangnick a decade and a half ago, and gained renewed relevance under Julian Nagelsmann's reign a few years later. In more recent years, the club's trajectory has one toward irrelevance. Pellegrino Matarazzo saved...
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Frankfurt beat Bochum so bad they turn to Dieter Hecking
It didn't happen overnight, but Dino Toppmöller has Eintracht Frankfurt in blistering form. After they tore VfL Bochum apart 7-2 on Match Day 9, the Bundesliga's bottom side hit the panic button: they hired Dieter Hecking to coach the team. Matt, Nik, and Terry talk about how the vastly…
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Even AI can't help rock-bottom VfL Bochum
Do you need Artificial Intelligence to tell you FC Bayern München are favorites to win the Meisterschale this season? You do not, but Opta's lil' smartbot can't keep its mouth shut, Matt, Nik and Terry were game to talk about it, and one thing led to another... Anyway, the gang also take on VfL...
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Ex-BVB coaches Klopp and Tuchel taking their talents to big jobs...and not everyone is happy about it
First it was Jürgen Klopp taking over as Global Head of Soccer at Red Bull, then Thomas Tuchel saying yes to an offer to coach England. It could hardly have been a more exciting week on Europe's coaching carousel for German football. Matt, Nik and Terry try to figure out whether Tuchel and…
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Bayer play it tight to hold off Bayern, Hoffenheim's meltdown continues
Bayer's visit to Bayern wasn't a goal fest, or even a very open game thanks to Leverkusen's defensive focus, but it was engrossing stuff. Best of all, it keeps things close at the top of the Bundesliga table. Matt and Terry welcome roving reporter Marie Schulte-Bockum back to the pod to talk…
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A closer look at Freiburg and Union's strong starts under new coaches and a downer of a weekend for the Ruhrpott
SC Freiburg and 1. FC Union Berlin are on the upper rungs of the Bundesliga table after four rounds, both guided there by new coaches. As Matt, Nik and Terry discuss, however, that's about all their circumstances have in common. Borussia Dortmund, meanwhile, suffered the first big setback of the...
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We may not know much, but we do know this: Bayern are good, and Kiel are very poor indeed
We do try to avoid jumping to conclusions, but sometimes a blowout result forces the issue. FC Bayern München's 6-1 shellacking of Holstein Kiel has Matt, Nik and Terry on the former's 'Bayern are back' hype train, and left them just as convinced that Kiel have no real shot at staying in the 1....
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Talking Fussball - Weighing up Wusiala at Bayern and England's current class of German managers
The football media went gaga for the Germany attacking duo they dubbed 'Wusiala' after a big win over Hungary this international break. Naturally that means speculation over whether FC Bayern München can afford the W(irtz) to go along with the (M)usiala, so Matt, Nik and Terry threw their hats…
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Talking Fussball - A new era dawns as Leverkusen (gasp) lose a Bundesliga game
After going 462 days without, reigning champs Bayer 04 Leverkusen tasted defeat on Saturday - surrendering a 2-0 lead while doing so. Matt, Nik, and Terry try to work out what it means going forward, as well as if it's a sign that Nik's title prediction has some serious legs. The gang discuss the...
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Talking Fussball - Kicking off a new season with a new focus and new enthusiasm
Matt, Nik and Terry are back and ready to Talk the Fussball for a 13th season! Episodes will be hitting you at midweek this year and the pod will be widening its focus past the borders of the 1. Bundesliga from time to time. This week it's all about setting the table after the opening games of…
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - The gang signs off on another 2. Bundesliga and lower league season
After a rollicking 2. Bundesliga season, there was lots of heartbreak for Germany's second tier sides in the relegation/promotion playoffs. Fortuna Düsseldorf blew a big lead to fail to go up to the top flight and at the other end Wehen Wiesbaden couldn't hold off Jahn Regensburg, who'll take…
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - St. Pauli return, Kiel set for debut, and Düsseldorf wait on results from the top flight to know what's ahead in the playoff
With just one more match day to go, a lot has become clear in the various races for promotion and relegation in Germany's lower leagues - but not everything. Nik, Jasmine and Maik take you through all the celebrations, permutations and more as the 2. Bundesliga, 3. Liga and more head into the…
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Talking Fussball - Dortmund book their tickets to London as Bayern keep swiping right but fail to match
A new Bundesliga champion? Check. A German side in the UEFA Champions League final? Check. It's been a magical season for fans of German football...as long as you're not a fan of FC Bayern München. Matt, Nik and Terry recorded too early to chronicle the Rekordmeister's frustrating exit from the...
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - St. Pauli hoping for a big payoff from the derby at HSV
Just three games left in the 2. Bundesliga season and precisely nothing has been decided thus far. FC St. Pauli have the inside track on promotion, but would be glad to seal their not-yet-assured promotion with a win away to their old rivals HSV. Nik and the gang (both Jasmine and Maik this time)...
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Talking Fussball - The Bundesliga's best make it big in Europe
It is just us or can you feel a fresh wind blowing through the Bundesliga? Leverkusen's title win last week was restorative on the home front; this week FC Bayern München and Borussia Dortmund helped the league show out across Europe. Matt and Nik revel in the good vibes, as well as check in on…
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - Kiel feeling themselves after leapfrogging St. Pauli for top spot
Unlike the top flight, where Bayer 04 Leverkusen ran away with the title (congrats, Werkself fans!), the race at the top of the 2. Bundesliga has taken a turn for the thrilling in recent weeks. Serial league leaders FC St. Pauli have had a wobble, and Holstein Kiel (and increasingly Fortuna...
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Talking Fussball - Leverkusen all but crowned champions after another Bayern blackout
We were trying to play it cool for a while, but that no longer seems necessary. Bayer 04 Leverkusen are going to win the league, and after FC Bayern München lost in Heidenheim(!), they might well do it next week. Matt and Nik let that reality sink in over the course of the podcast, discussing how...
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - The case of the missing St. Pauli ultra banner and the perils of peer pressure
The world of football, like other walks of life, harbors its share of idiots - our latest episode puts the spotlight on a few. Nik and Maik turn their attention to some childish behavior surrounding a banner, some regrettable chants in Austria that's had consequences for the players who shouted...
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Talking Fussball - Rhine derby brings lots of thrills but little reward for Cologne and Gladbach
Foals fans at the Borussia-Park may have feasted on a see-saw six-goal thriller, but their team's return - just one point -had to sting. Their opponents 1. FC Köln will have cherished an away draw in the Rheinderby, but time is running short on the billygoats' bid to stay out of relegation…
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - Does anybody want to win the 2. Bundesliga?
There's never a dull moment in Germany's second tier. Just when you think you've sussed out who's good and who's not so good, you get a week like round 24 - one in which every team in the top eight failed to record a win. The full Aufstieg gang of Nik, Jasmine and Maik get together to try and…
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Talking Fussball - Bayern say they'll be Tuchel-free come summer - what's that mean for Alonso's future?
After a weekend in which FC Bayern München made up no ground in the title race, they still managed to test Bayer 04 Leverkusen's balance. Thomas Tuchel will vacate his job on Säbener Straße at the end of the season, and Xabi Alonso is the hot favorite to take over. Matt and Terry talk through how...
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - Fans across the 2. Bundesliga keep the pressure up on the DFL
If you thought there was an end in sight to Germany's fan protests, think again - they're just getting started. Nik, Maik and the returning Jasmine weigh in on the wave of game-stopping events that swept across the 2. Bundesliga, Steffen Baumgart's arrival at HSV, the latest indignity perpetrated...
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Talking Fussball - Leverkusen leave no doubt who's the title favorite in comprehensive win over Bayern
We can say it matter-of-factly now: Bayer 04 Leverkusen are on an inside track to win the league. Their 3-0 win against FC Bayern München opened up a five point gap at the top - and since this year's Leverkusen side aren't in the business of losing games, ever, that cushion may well be enough to...
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - This podcast is only slightly longer than the delay in one of the matches in the 2. Bundesliga on MD 20
A wave of protests over outside investors lashed the shores of Germany's second division this past week. If you know the Aufstieg pod's Nik and Maik, you'll not be surprised to hear it captured their attention. The duo talk over FC Schalke 04's struggles, some slight turbulence for FC St. Pauli,...
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Talking Fussball - Bayern edge closer to Leverkusen, who caught flak from Klopp's bombshell announcement
The gap at the top of the Bundesliga is back to a slim two points! Results on Match Day 19 led us there, as did FC Bayern München's win over 1. FC Union Berlin - three points the Bavarians had to wait about two months to pick up. Speaking of two months, that's going to seem like the blink of an…
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - Remembering Hertha's Kay Bernstein and untangling St. Pauli's clash with overseas fans
It's not often that news about a boardroom-level figure takes over the football conversation in Germany, but Hertha BSC President Kay Bernstein's untimely death hit the game hard. Nik invites TF's resident Hertha-head Matt on to talk about what legacy the ultra turned head man might leave behind....
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Talking Fussball - Sancho and Kalajdzic return (along with the Bundesliga), while Der Kaiser makes his final exit
The Winterpause is a thing of the past - Germany's top flight sides got back to business this past weekend, and more than a few clubs gave debuts to newcomers who came in through the open transfer window. Nik and Terry run through all the most interesting moves, as well as take a moment to…
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - Taking stock of the 2. Bundesliga at the winter break
The season is only half done in the 2. Liga, but it's already been a wild ride. After weeks and weeks on top, FC St. Pauli surrendered the Herbstmeisterschaft to Holstein Kiel, and multiple teams have seen their fotunes change drastically in the space of a couple of months. Nik sits down with...
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Talking Fussball - Fans push back against Bundesliga investor deal, a closer look at Augsburg's turnaround
When Germany's most engaged football fans speak in near-unison, as they did on MD15, it's time to listen up. Matt and Nik look to unpack ultras' concerns about the DFL's decision to seek a strategic investor to help them keep pace with the Premier League's skyrocketing media rights valuations....
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - Hertha on the rise as HSV begin to crumble, Lok Leipzig fans rack up a big bill
Coming off a 2. Bundesliga-tastic round in the DFB Pokal, it feels appropriate to zoom in on Hertha Berlin and Hamburger Sport-Verein, two teams that squared off in an instant classic. Winners in that match, Hertha are beginning to look like a side that could scale a few rungs higher in the…
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Talking Fussball - Dortmund show their steely side and take a point in Leverkusen...but Bayern can't profit
The end of the Hinrunde is drawing nearer and it's looking ever more likely that Bayer 04 Leverkusen will stay on top of the league for the winter. That's mostly down to them still not having lost a single game, but at least this weekend they can thank the weather too. With Munich buried in snow,...
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - St. Pauli win Rostock grudge match ahead of big showdown with HSV
With their win away to Hansa Rostock on match day 14, FC St. Pauli are sitting pretty on top of the 2. Bundesliga for a seventh straight week. That suits our Maik just fine, of course, but he, Nik and Jasmine know that the stakes of Friday's big Hamburg city derby against HSV are still massive.…
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Talking Fussball - Union Berlin entering the unknown after Urs Fischer's exit
Over the past five years, sometimes it's felt like 1. FC Union Berlin could only go up. The Köpenickers' rise from little-club-that-could to European contender has been among the best in world football over that span, but now it's come to an end after Urs Fischer, the coach who took them from the...
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Talking Fussball Aufstieg - Newly promoted sides Wiesbaden and Elversberg are on the march...but St. Pauli are still on top
FC St. Pauli continued to set the pace in the 2. Bundesliga on MD13, even as they slumped to a 0-0 draw at home to the rising Hannover 96. But enough about the result, the real story at the Millerntor was the Polizeieinsatz, which felt to many like an overreaction. Nik and Maik talk that incident...
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Talking Fussball - Bayern boss another Klassiker, Mainz off to a strong start in the post-Svensson era
As you might have heard, FC Bayern München went to Dortmund and took their hosts BVB apart...but that's the way the Klassiker seems to go in recent years. Nik and Terry dig into that and other stories, including a tempestuous week for Mainz 05 that ended with a win, Cologne's persisting troubles,...