EPL Talk

Arsenal's six year drought without silverware persists while a 48-year dry spell ends for Birmingham City on what announcers called the biggest day in the club's history. On Sunday, Brum got an 89th minute goal from Obafemi Martins en route to a 2-1 win over the Gunners and the Carling Cup. Arsenal, on the other hand, saw their defending fail them at a crucial time, something that is sure to give new life to the criticisms heard countless times by this squad.

On this edition of the EPL Talk Podcast, myself and co-hosts Kartik Krishnaiyer and Laurence McKenna pay tribute to the Blues' achievement while asking where the loss leaves Arsenal. We also talk about a weekend's worth of action that saw strong results for who relegation battlers while Manchester United restored their four point lead.

Then, we look forward to Tuesday, when Chelsea and United will meet for the first time this season. Along the way, we get to your feedback on this, the weekend review show.

Which side of a nil-nil would you rather be on? It's a serious question, because in Champions League, after one leg, it matters. Taking a 0-0 on the road has entirely different implications than coming back home with one. Yet there's still debate as to which situation is preferred. José Mourinho has said that he doesn't mind the 0-0 at home to open a tie. Alex Ferguson clearly doesn't mind returning to Old Trafford with the same.

On this episode of the podcast, in the wake of Manchester United's 0-0 in Marseille, we talk about the strategies behind playing for the second leg. We also talk about Chelsea's performance, a 2-0 win in Copenhagen. Should the first win since Fernando Torres was bought be considered a step forward?

We also reflect back on mid-week Premier League action, look forward to this weekend's fixtures, and then shift our focus to Sunday's League Cup final, where Birmingham City has a chance to earn a spot in next year's Europa League. Should the Carling Cup grant entry into Europe? And how important is it that Arsenal's kids finally claim some silverware.

All that on this, the mid-week edition of the show.

One of the virtues of being a league-focused show is being able to use the FA Cup weekends as a time to reset, take inventory of what's happening around the league, and focus on topics we normally don't have time to address. On this weekend's edition of the show, Kartik Krishnaiyer and myself talk about this weekend's action, results that saw the holders leave the FA Cup, before shifting to looking at the league. We talk time to talk about the clubs jockeying for Europa League spots and ask which of the league's top teams will be the fifth of five, before taking a detailed look at the run-ins for Manchester United and Arsenal, seemingly the two remaining contenders in this season's league.

A programming note: The second segment of this show - on in which Kartik and I focused on Champions League - had to be cut from the show for technical reasons. For those looking for the take homes: we both patted ourselves on the back regardin Spurs but also noted the continued slide of Serie A; we both admitted we undersold Arsenal while noting they seemed too self-congratulatory for taking a lead out of the first half; we both feel Chelsea's match with Copenhagen will be an important confidence-boosting opportunity, and neither of us expect Manchester United to deviate from their typical, Champions League, opening leg approach: play conservatively and take the tie back to Old Trafford.

A spectacular Wayne Rooney goal capped a 2-1 Manchester United victory Saturday, but did the loss shove the Citizens out of the title race? On this edition of the EPL Talk Podcast, myself, Kartik Krishnaiyer and Laurence McKenna talk about Saturday's big match, one that keeps United five pionts clear at the top of the league.

But although we spend some time talking about this weekend's derby, we take time on this week's show to look at the bottom of the table - a relegation battle that few clubs have been able to escape. Where six of the seven bottom teams got points this weekend, today seemed a good day to catch-up on what's going on at the bottom of the table.

Finally, we look at the week's upcoming matches. Chelsea goes to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham on Monday, needing three points to keep pace with Tottenham, no in fourth place. Then, Champions League forces its way back onto the agenda. On Tuesday, Spurs are in Milan while Wednesday brings the Emirates a visit from Arsenal.

The weekend preview edition starts with Olympic Stadium news and the potential return of Chris Hughton, which I discuss with a special guest. Making his first appearance on the show is Kevin McCauley (manager of CartilageFreeCaptain.com, managing editor of WorldSoccerReader.com, and contributor at SBNation.com), filling in for Kartik Kishnaiyer and Laurence McKenna.

Kevin and I talk about Spurs staying in North London, the parallels between Hughton and Roberto di Matteo, as well as the coming weekend's fixtures, a slate highlighted by the seasons' second Manchester derby. We break down the sides and give our prognoses, predictions that foresee a very similar match to what we saw at Eastlands.

On a historic weekend of football in the English Premier League - one that saw a record number of Saturday goals, Manchester United's first loss of the season, and a memorable capitulation from Arsenal - the story was Kenny Dalglish; or, the story was Carlo Ancelotti, depending on how you want to look at Sunday's match at Stamford Bridge, a 1-0 win by Liverpool in Fernando Torres's Blues debut. Rarely has their been a case where the difference between the managers mattered so much, but as Ancelotti failed to respond to Dalglish's three central defender set-up, Liverpool was registering what may be a season defining victory.

On this edition of the EPL Talk Podcast, myself, Laurence McKenna and Kartik Krishnaiyer talk about that, other stumbles by the league's title aspirants, and West Brom parting with Roberto di Matteo. We also get to you feedback, addressing the questions posed on the site before the show.

Only one of the league's top five stumbled mid-week, with Manchester City being drawn at St. Andrew's, though Tuesday and Wednesday's matches were overshadowed slightly by Wednesday's news, when the best right back in Premier League history announced his retirement. Because the sometimes controversial way Gary Neville went about his business, many will overlook him being a maintain for England and the standard on the right during the young history of the Premier League. On this edition of the EPL Talk Podcast, Kartik Krishnaiyer and myself start with reminiscences of United's former captain.

After talking about the midweek results, we turn our attention to Monday, where Fernando Torres and Andy Carroll were the vertices of a historic transfer triangle, one which saw a record-setting move to London, an equally eye-bulging price for his replacement,, and £35 million end up in Newcastle United's pocket. And for all the pounds being thrown around in seemingly crazed last minute buying sprees, club spending may have been sane compared to some of the unimaginative and inaccurate descriptions cast at the latest chapter of "Moneyball."

Finally, we turn to the weekend, overlooking the fixture list save Sunday's final kick-off: Liverpool, having prepared for Chelsea midweek by trying a 3-5-2, facing their former talisman at Stamford Bridge.