Can Villa do a Villa against Arsenal?

**James Richardson** (0:00)
Totally Football Show, Thursday edition. The one at our other studio, around the back of the Premier Inn.
Some Premier rubbish, some top bins, and some unwanted takeaways. Kind of sums up our week one experience. It's more of the same on the way in week two.
Week two sees Arsenal down memory lane, or Emery Lane, as they visit Villa. Mark Gay does a Prince Harry and goes back to the Palace. Will Ryan Cherokee be Megan? And as Michael Carrick's United face another of the new sides, Ipswich, the question is, promoted too soon? And what about Ipswich? All that and more in this Totally Football Show. So, let's say 27th of August is Totally Football Show. Duncan Alexander's here. Hello. Tom Williams is here. Hello. And also speaking to me, literally, because he's the...

**Liam Twomey** (0:53)
No one has made that joke before.
Hello, James. I also get Chuckle Brothers to me to use.

**Duncan Alexander** (0:59)
Ah, yeah, yeah.

**James Richardson** (1:01)
That I can see. Liam Twomey, anyway, lovely to see you, Liam.

**Liam Twomey** (1:04)
Lovely to be back.

**James Richardson** (1:05)
It's funny because a week ago, maybe eight days, the same, self-same four of us were here in the studio.

**Tom Williams** (1:11)
And correctly predicted pretty much everything.

**James Richardson** (1:15)
We got a lot wrong. Good to get the gang back together.

**Liam Twomey** (1:17)
Let's not check.

**James Richardson** (1:18)
So much has changed since then, a lot of our predictions for a start. Also, I came in this morning to hear the extraordinary news about Bradley Barcola.
Bobby, as I like to call him. And he's a hundred and how many million?

**Tom Williams** (1:31)
Something.

**Duncan Alexander** (1:33)
A hundred and twenty- With achievable 20 million on top.

**James Richardson** (1:37)
A hundred and twenty million for Bradley Barcola.

**Tom Williams** (1:40)
Got to put down a hundred million just to get a place at the table these days. In the Premier League.

**James Richardson** (1:46)
Is it unfair to say what would he be worth if he could finish?

**Tom Williams** (1:50)
I mean, that is one of the reservations about him as a player. Like a legitimate reservation. He's one of these players who you feel like the more time he has to think about what he's going to do when he attempts to finish, the less likely he is to score. But like a wonderful player, like a real kind of throwback dribbler, very kind of sinewy, kind of spins past people with ease, really direct, super quick, very consistent, very durable, like doesn't get injured very much.
So, yeah, I think he'd be a welcome addition to the Premier League. And I think at a time when the Barca, yeah, a bit of Barca-lies, if you like.

**Liam Twomey** (2:31)
A Barca-lies man.

**Duncan Alexander** (2:33)
How do you think he will fit in with Iraola's approach?

**James Richardson** (2:36)
Whose place is he going to take the team, Tom?

**Tom Williams** (2:37)
Yeah, well, I mean, when he first burst onto the scene at Lyon, he played on the right wing and basically just would run to the byline and cross it for Alexandre Lacazette. And that was the formula.
He's invariably played off the left at PSG where most nippy right footed attacking players tend to play. He's more comfortable on the right than most players of his generation, I would say. But yeah, I guess he's going to be competing with Cody Gacquepo, Ryo Iungamoa to be that left side attacking player. I mean, Liverpool are still very short of right-sided attacking players. So perhaps you could see him there, I think you get the best out of him on the left.

**James Richardson** (3:21)
Excellent. Lots of things since our last show, not only the week one results, also Michael Cox writing a lovely piece about how everyone gets things wrong when they react to week one results. And classic example was a year ago, everyone, Noel Gallagher in particular, raving about Tijani Reindeers.
However, that's spelt Tom and his impressive debut for Man City. Where is he now? He's in Saudi Arabia. Also to flag up, if you're hungry for something to read, John McKenzie, who's breaking down the numbers on week one, he points out eight of the nine winning teams from round one, and it was very nearly nine out of 10 if Newcastle hadn't conceded that late goal, had significantly less possession than their opponent. I want to say significantly less than 42% possession. What does that represent? What's that herald, Duncan?

**Duncan Alexander** (4:15)
Well, I think we've moved past an era where dominating the ball is the sort of key to success. I mean, if you go back in time to your uncle at a barbecue in around 2012 when he was like, boss, trying to keep the ball, who cares? It's like now, well, now it isn't important to keep the ball.