It was a compelling day of Europa and Conference League football, with 3 of the 4 home sides taking goal-advantages in the 1st leg of the semifinals.

Braga strengthened their case as the UEL's team of destiny, delighting their fans with a stoppage-time winner over Freiburg, while Forest edged past Villa 1-0 thanks to Chris Wood penalty.

In the UECL, Rayo Vallecano rode a confident 2nd-half display to take a narrow lead into Strasbourg next Thursday, and Crystal Palace impressed with a brutally efficient 3-1 display over Shakhtar.

We discuss how each victor earned their results, our level of concern for each loser, and what we think will be different in the 2nd legs.

Plus, everyone's favorite – a contentious and bitter takedown of VAR! Hooray!

Cheers Oliver Glasner!

It was another scintillating showcase of Europa and Conference League football Thursday, with more goals abounding.

The headline of the night is of course Braga's wild comeback in Seville, where they shocked Real Betis with four consecutive goals to advance. How has Braga become such a resilient group? And what went wrong for Betis?

Nottingham Forest squeaked through Porto thanks to a very silly red card and a deflected shot. Are they the 2024-25 Tottenham of this year's competition? Meanwhile, Aston Villa and Freiburg took care of business in impressive fashion. Are they our new favorites to meet in next month's final?

Over in the Conference, we witnessed two brilliant comeback attempts, with Strasbourg overwhelming Mainz and AEK Athens falling just short to Rayo Vallecano despite Zine's career night.

We also discuss Crystal Palace managing Fiorentina and Shakhtar extinguishing AZ Alkmaar.

Finally, we close with some brief thoughts on each eliminated team. What does each club need to do to replicate their European journeys and to go a step further?

Cheers to Carlos Vicens (and sub-cheers to Gary O'Neil)!

We're back for the 1st legs of the Europa and Conference League quarterfinals and we got a jam-packed Thursday full of goals!

We tackle all the best action from both competitions, from Forest's improbable draw in Porto to Freiburg's demolition of Celta Vigo, from Fiorentina's humiliation in South London to Shakhtar's shocking late rout of AZ Alkmaar.

Plus we answer all of your most pressing questions: How has Urs Fischer turns Mainz around so dramatically, and how did he out-maneuver Gary O'Neil's injury-riddled Strasbourg? What went wrong for Bologna after a promising opening against Villa, and is Jonathan Rowe an emerging star? Could Braga actually upset Betis in Sevilla, and why is Max always so mean to them?

All that, a lookahead to the 2nd legs, and of course, a pitstop at David's Coefficient Corner.

Cheers to Urs Fischer!

We're back to talk Europa and Conference League quarterfinals!

In honor of 8 terrific ties kicking off this week, we're breaking down keys to victory for each side heading into Thursday.

What does Nottingham Forest need to combat Porto's stellar defensive record and get on the scoresheet? How will Bologna manage Unai Emergy's tactical mastery of the UEL? Can Strasbourg overcome their injury crisis while taking on the suddenly-red-hot Mainz? Can Crystal Palace and Fiorentina get out of their own way as they prepare to face off?

All these questions and more answered for you on this week's episode.

Cheers to Brad Underwood and Sergej Barbarez!

We are BACK! A DR vacation is nice, but it's nothing compared to Europa and Conference League 2nd legs.

That's right, we're here to talk all of Thursday's best action beginning with Bologna's surprise triumph in Roma in extra time and Nottingham Forest's comeback quest in Midtjylland (including some unfortunate penalties). We also have lots of praise for the UEL's Spanish offerings in Betis and Celta Vigo, who are hitting their European strides at the right time, and elevate Porto to a top tier contender after a mightily impressive dismissal of Stuttgart.

Meanwhile, in the UECL, Palace fails to beat AEK Larnaca in 90 minutes for the THIRD time this season, but both they and Fiorentina do what they do (and squeak through). We discuss how on earth they manage this and what we can expect when these two very movable forces meet each other in the next round. Additionally, we have lots of praise for AZ and AEK Athens, who look like confident sleepers to make a run.

We also do an impromptu title power rankings in each competition as we look ahead to the exciting Quarterfinals matchups, assessing which clubs have our confidence and what's changed in the past month.

Cheers to Francesco Farioli!

The Playoff Knockout Round is behind us, and we're here to break it all down.

It was a day in which favorites prevailed, though not without strife. Fiorentina did a Fiorentina and survived by the skin of their teeth, while Nottingham Forest performed a decent impression for 50 minutes. Elsewhere, Celta Vigo and Stuttgart stake their claim as major players in deciding the Europa League crown, Lille turns things around in Belgrade, Panathinaikos prevails on penalties, VAR drama, and Crystal Palace muddles through.

We also take a moment to look ahead to the Round of 16 draw, featuring some stellar matchups in both divisions.

All that and much more on today's show!

Cheers to Claudio Giráldez!

We got our first taste of Europa and Conference League knockouts in 2026 and we're here to break down all the action.

Nottingham Forest won the day with a dominant display in Istanbul in Vitor Pereira's first match in charge, re-staking their claim as a tournament favorite. Stuttgart, Celta, and Bologna also came through with big road wins to take control of their ties, and we take stock of each's chances moving forward. Meanwhile, Lille put themselves in a major hole against Red Star to cap off a disastrous run in the new year – why can't they score?

Next, we turn to the Conference League, where Fiorentina put in an excellent 2nd half performance in Bialystok to boost confidence. Is this finally the start of a turnaround for the relegation-threatened Viola? We also address Crystal Palace's strife after a putrid draw in Bosnia & Herzegovina, wonder at AZ's ugly road form in the competition, and marvel at Celje's striker factory.

Finally, we give an update on the Women's Europa Cup , that saw Frankfurt, Häcken, Hammarby, and Sparta qualify for the tournament's inaugural semifinals.

Cheers to Igor Štimac!

An extra special day on the pod – our friend Jacob Hill returns for a new episode of our special edition series, Any Given Redraft!

And we've got a doozy this time: the 2023 NBA Draft, inarguably one of the worst in league history.

It's the year Anthony Bennet went number one, the year only one All Star was picked in the lottery, the year the Bucks drafted one of the greatest players of all time just after, and the year that the Podfather, Bill Simmons, went undefeated on ESPN's broadcast.

We begin by breaking down how the night unfolded at Barclays Center, with David Stern going full heel and riling up the Brooklyn crowd. Naturally, we discuss Bill Simmons' big night, including his iconic reaction to Cleveland's selection of Anthony Bennett, Victor Oladipo's case for the number one pick, Giannis' upside, CJ McCollum's Patriot League representation, just to name a few.

We also hit on the numerous lottery disappointments, from Nerlens Noel to MCW to Shabazz Muhammad.

Finally, we get to our redraft, where we each draft teams of 8 players. Along the way, we marvel at Giannis' accomplishments to date, debate the selection of McCollum vs. the Stifle Tower, wonder at Oladipo's ceiling if health hadn't failed him, and slog through some abominable bench selections towards the back end.

This one's for the sickos. Enjoy.

Cheers to Bill Simmons and David Stern!