Welcome back to It Was What It Was.

This week, Jonathan and Rob are joined by Steve Perryman, Tottenham Hotspur’s record appearance holder, to talk about legendary Spurs manager Bill Nicholson. 

From transforming Spurs into serial winners - to hilarious changing room stories - Steve takes us behind the scenes of one of the most successful sides of the 20th century.

Join us on Friday for Part Two!

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Welcome back to It Was What It Was - for Part Two of our look back at The FA Cup’s most memorable Third Round upsets!

Jonathan and Rob return to tell the stories behind five more iconic moments from football's oldest cup competition - before the pair choose their ultimate Third Round shock.

Please go back and listen to Part One if you missed it!

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Welcome back to It Was What It Was - where it's time to talk some of The FA Cup’s most memorable Third Round shocks!

The FA Cup is synonymous with dreams and giant-killings, and nothing captures its essence better than the Third Round proper. Jonathan and Rob bring us their favourite ‘cupsets’ and the stories that have cemented them in FA Cup folklore.

Don't forget to join us for Part Two on Friday!

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Welcome back to It Was What It Was and Happy New Year!

In today’s episode, Rob Draper and Jonathan Wilson delve into the origins of VAR with author Daisy Christodoulou.

Her latest book, I Can’t Stop Talking About VAR, discusses its profound impact on the sport, and whether it was designed to enhance football - or if football is now adapting to fit VAR. The evolution of football has never felt more immediate or impactful.

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New’s Eve Year 1991. Manchester United are on course to win the title for the first time since 1967. It’s Sir Alex Ferguson’s 50th birthday party, but it's a small, understated affair because United play QPR at Old Trafford the next day. A comfortable home win is expected for United to go top again - but it didn't work out that way...

Join one of the stars of that game, Andy Sinton, to discuss what happened next, in perhaps the most famous New Year's Day game in modern English football.

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Christmas Eve, 1914. A cold, crisp, moonlit night in Flanders.

British and German soldiers are dug into opposing trenches in a hellish shelled-out landscape, strewn with rotting corpses. But an unfamiliar sound is heard from the German trenches: “Stille Nacht, Heilige Nacht” is being sung to welcome the birth of Christ.

The British respond with their own carols, seasonal greetings are exchanged across the trenches and troops tentatively move out into No Man’s Land. Gifts are exchanged, friends are made and then, allegedly, a football match ensued!

Is this mythic tale - a staple of primary school history lessons - actually true? Or is it mere legend? Was any football really played? If so, is it perhaps the most significant match of all time? Rob and Jonathan reveal the true story behind what may be football’s finest moment.

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This week on It Was What It Was, it's the tale of Pickles: The most famous dog in football history.

As most football fans know, Pickles saved the day by finding the Jules Rimet trophy - the original World Cup - after it had farcically been stolen from a stamp collection exhibition in the run up to the 1966 World Cup.

But the whole story is even more surprising, more tragic and more comedic. And what came next for Pickles and the thief? Jonathan and Rob reveal all.

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This week on It Was What It Was, Jonathan and Rob introduce us to the team - and the match - that played a huge part in the invention of the European Cup...

“Champions of the World!” was the headline given to Wolverhampton Wanderers, when they beat the mighty Hungarian team Honvéd, led by Ferenc Puskas, in 1954.

Billy Wright was the star of the show for a game that many saw as reestablishing England as top football nation. But was it just gamesmanship that won the day for this great Wolves side? And how did that grandiose headline annoy the French so much it led to the formation of the European Cup (and consequently the Champions League) a year later? 

Wolves 3 Honvéd 2 is one of the most significant matches ever; a great night of European football that paved the way for so many historic moments in years to come. 

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This week on It Was What It Was, we're looking at one of football's most remarkable underdog stories.

Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper take us back to the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, where Nigeria’s “Dream Team” shocked the world and won men's gold - the first African team to win a senior global football tournament.

From Kanu’s heroics, to dramatic comeback victories over Brazil and Argentina, they explore how this historic triumph cemented African football on the global stage - and inspired a new generation of players.

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This week. It Was What It Was asks: What is it with Portuguese football?

With Ruben Amorim arriving at Manchester United, there are now as many Premier League managers from Portugal as from England coaching this season. 

Portugal also has the fourth highest-quota of Premier League players (after England, Brazil and France). For a nation of just over 10 million, it consistently punches above its weight.

Amorim’s rise to one of the biggest jobs in world football is located in the reform of Portuguese football in the 1980s - and specifically in the university faculty that helps turn out some of the world’s best coaches. 

Join Jonathan and Rob as we go back to school with Ruben Amorim, speaking to the mentors who forged him as a coach. It's a journey that takes in Jose Mourinho, Cristiano Ronaldo and super agent Jorge Mendes.

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Welcome to It Was What It Was, and Part Two of our special look back at the remarkable career of Rafa Benitez - with the man himself!

In this second part - Rafa, Jonathan and Rob look back at Rafa's arrival at Anfield, his influence on the Premier League, and then head backstage to explain the moments and decisions behind that iconic Champions League triumph in Istanbul.

Join us as Rafa takes us inside the moments that defined his legacy in England, and cemented his place in Liverpool folklore.

If you’re enjoying the podcast, please hit subscribe to never miss an episode, and consider leaving us a five-star review to help others discover the show. Thank you for listening!

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