Our newest Hale End superstar Bukayo Saka gave a very frank interview last week, where Arsenal’s young striker admitted that his biggest regret was never getting to meet Arsene Wenger, our legendary manager.

Well this week they are both in Qatar, and in an interview with L’Equipe Wenger was flattered by Saka saying that, and replied: “That’s very nice of him. We’ll end up meeting each other one day, of course,” he said.

“I’m happy about his development and the fact he’s still playing at Arsenal. I was told about him when I was still at the club, he was one of two or three guys who were coming through. I heard some very good things about him, I’m told he has a very good mentality.

“That’s reassuring because these days, players are glorified so quickly that it’s important for them to have good foundations.”

Of course, as FIFA’s Director of Development, Arsène Wenger will be helping at the Al-Bayt Stadium this evening as Bukayo Saka’s England take on the holders France in the Quarter Final of the World Cup, and despite Gareth Southgate having Saka and Ramsdale in the squad, Le Prof still believes that France are the better side, and has even predicted them to win the trophy.

Marcus, Lars and Jim convene at Ramble HQ After one final portion of the World Cup group stage banquet.

We discuss an incredible night for South Korea and Cristiano Ronaldo’s great generosity – plus the happiest man to ever be sent off in a World Cup, a very teary Luis Suárez and a very punchy Edison Cavani.

We also find out how FIFA are well-prepared to make sure the group stage format is never this good again.

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A taste of some of our favourite moments from the World Cup so far!

We've got daily episodes coming at ya throughout the knockout stages right up to the final! Hit that subscribe button to make sure you never miss a thing.

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Jules, Pete and Andy chat about a truly epic night of football! Not for Japanese policemen, mind.

Japan top the Group of Death™ against all odds while Kai Havertz at least wins the real quiz sponsored by Budweiser. Plus, a Mexican fan stabs his telly and Harry Maguire finally makes an appearance in Ghana’s parliament.

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Journey with Andy and Jules to the Lusail Stadium for Portugal’s second group stage game against Uruguay at the 2022 World Cup.

They discuss the strangeness of this tournament, the atmosphere in the country amongst the fans, and encounter an alarming number of grown men doing Cristiano Ronaldo’s trademark celebration! Plus, hidden hot dogs and Bud Zeroes all round…

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Dotun and Andy are joined by French football expert Jonathan Johnson after a dramatic day for World Cup giants and unfancied hopefuls alike!

Amidst a baffling night for Poland, we discuss why Argentina and Lionel Messi are fitting together at just the right time. Plus, why France could be knocked off their stride by defeat to Tunisia and Andy curse ANOTHER dark horse…

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Definitive proof last night: it’s always good to have a Marcus in there!

Marcus, Jim and David discuss England’s 3-0 victory over Wales and just how responsible Chesney Hawkes was for that second half storm. We also deliberate who Southgate should go with in the knockouts after Marcus Rashford and Phil Foden impress. And it isn’t over for Gareth Bale in a Wales shirt, but should it be?

Meanwhile, USA and their swashbuckling midfield progress – how far can they go? Plus, Senegal prepare to batter the England band with some brilliant drums and Dick Advocaat rides again!

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Whew, what a day of World Cup football! Marcus, Lars and Pete bounce into the studio after Vincent Aboubakar and Serbia’s mad defensive line make a very entertaining combination and Jordan Ayew whips down the South Koreans.

Elsewhere, we take a trip to Richarlison’s island which may or may not be owned by Sven, Cristiano Ronaldo and Piers Morgan call upon the Hair of God, and Marcus gets very confused by the Far Cry video game franchise.

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Dotun and Andy are joined by Miguel Delaney to recap more Qatar clashes, as Spain and Germany both rope-a-doped their way to honours even in last night’s main event.

Elsewhere, Belgium’s ageing generation looked all out of ideas against Morocco while Croatia keep their fountain of youth flowing. And, with a clash tonight against serial shithousers Uruguay, can Portugal finally sort themselves out?

Pete’s Film Club is back! Sign up for weekly episodes throughout the World Cup and much more here: patreon.com/footballramble.

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Marcus, Andy and Pete are here to answer this World Cup's definitive question: after last night's heroics, have Robert Lewandowski and Lionel Messi secured a move to Fulham?

Elsewhere the Aussies' great win over Tunisia gives them hope, Andy's going to have a fight with Graeme Souness and Wayne Rooney's bizarre (little) man management skills have been exposed. 

Pete’s Film Club is back today! Luke and Pete watched the FIFA-funded 'United Passions', which is nearly the worst thing they've ever done. Sign up for weekly episodes throughout the World Cup and much more here: patreon.com/footballramble.

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What happens when Sepp Blatter and FIFA make a film? Today, Pete and Luke find out...

We’re releasing bonus weekly editions of Pete's Film Club on our Patreon throughout the World Cup. Here’s a taste of our first episode out today, where Pete and Luke review FIFA's self-funded film about its own history. It's United Passions! Oh God.

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We all know that the January transfer window is still a month away, but there are still hundreds of Arsenal transfer rumours popping up in the media as usual.

Despite the volume, the two targets that are continually mentioned are the Brazilian midfielder Danilo, who looks like an absolute bargain at around 25million, and of course the Ukranian sensation Mykhalo Mudryk, who seems to have set his heart on a move to the Emirates, but there have been some outlandish figures mentioned to prise him away from Shakhtar Donetsk.

The biggest plus with these two transfers is that, not only are they both young and extremely talented, they are both going to be available in January.

Shakhtar Donetsk have made it clear that they are going to be listening to offers in January, and with the Brazilian season over, Danilo is ready to move on and has stated that he is “ready to play in any competition”.

It’s no secret that Arteta has stated we are short of players to challenge for every trophy, and it is also a fact that we need a midfielder desperately, and an extra winger to give competition to Saka and Martinelli, and these two stars are looking the most likely to arrive in January.

Arsenal will look to bolster their squad in the January transfer window to keep it competitive.

The Gunners are having one of their best seasons as a football club and hope to end it with at least one trophy.

Mikel Arteta’s side is overachieving now and will need reinforcements to stay in form.

The Spaniard has now identified two areas in the team that need to be strengthened.

A report on Football London reveals the ex-PL star wants a central midfielder and a winger.

Arsenal defender & Lioness captain Leah Williamson says there’s ‘light at the end of the tunnel’ on her injury recovery by Michelle

Arsenal’s Leah Williamson, also captain for the Women’s England team, the Lionesses, has not been available for team selection by Jonas Eidevall since sustaining a foot injury in early October.  Leah also had to withdraw from international duties.

Jonas Eidevall confirmed that Leah was now back in training with her Arsenal teammates, but is not yet match fit.

The Lionesses Captain last played for her club in a 1-0 win over Ajax that ensured Arsenal qualified for the group stage of the UEFA Women’s Champions League. During the same match, fellow defender and Women’s Brazil Captain Rafaelle Souza suffered a metatarsal bone injury, whilst Leah picked up her similar injury in training the following week.  Leah has missed the subsequent two international breaks with England since then.

Williamson, speaking to Skysports ahead of an unveiling of artwork celebrating Helen Hardy, the founder of Manchester Laces football club, said that after a tough time away from the pitch she was closing in on a recovery.

Do you remember the days when Arsenal used to play a game every Saturday? In fact every single game in all divisions kicked off at 3 pm on a Saturday, and we got the results at around 5.30 and we watched the highlights on Match of the day, before the TV started mucking about with the fixtures so that we could watch live games.

There were League games on a Saturday, and Cup games or European games (which only involved the Champions and the Cup Wnners and were straight knockout games) on the occasional Wednesday. Maybe players weren’t as fit in those days or paid as much, but we certainly didn’t need such big squads. My memory may be wrong but I think Liverpool won the League and European Cup in 1977, and got to the Final of the FA Cup by only using about 18 players in the whole season. The game was much more physical and the pitches were much more ridiculous and there were only a couple of subs in each game. Also International games were few and far between and usually in the close season.

Then the TV companies got involved and we started playing early kick-offs, Sunday games, and then they brought in Monday Night Football, then Fridays, and now we have live games every day of the week and three at least on every Saturday and Sunday.

Since we played catchup after Covid the games have been nearly every three days as we caught up, then there was straight into the Euros, then the new compacted season because the World Cup is in mid-season, plus international breaks, plus European Group games, and you could be playing at any time on any day.

Nowadays there are 8 English teams playing in Europe every season, and with Group games and knockouts. If you get to the Final of the Europa League it means playing 16 extra games to get there…

Arsenal is now expected to make another bid for Palmeiras star Danilo.

The midfielder has been on their radar for many weeks now and they wanted to buy him in the summer.

However, with the Brazilian league in progress, his present employers refused to sell him at the time.

The midfielder is now set to leave them as he is prepared for a new challenge, which has alerted the Gunners again.

A move for him means the Brazilians have sorted out signing a player for a key position on their team.

Bukayo Saka and Yunus Musa were two promising players at the Arsenal academy when they were teammates there.

Musah left the club in 2019 to join Valencia after the Spanish side promised him a faster route to first-team football.

Although he spent a huge part of his upbringing in England, he now plays for the USA.

Both nations faced each other in the World Cup last night as the US held their English counterparts to a goalless draw.

It was a tense game, with England struggling to get a goal against the Americans.

Bukayo Saka has been Arsenal’s poster boy for the last couple of years, winning our Player Of The Year for two seasons in a row, and winning the hearts of England fans too as he helped his side to the Final of the Euros last year.

Now he has started the World Cup in scintillating fashion, scoring twice in Englands opening game against Iran, until stopped from scoring last night by Arsenal’s very own Matt Turner in the USA goal.

But he has speaking about the love and energy he gets from the fans, and is proud that he can be the inspiration for the next generation of young footballers.

He told Arsenal.com: “The love I’ve had from the England fans has been special and it means everything to me. When you hear your name being sung by the crowd and them cheering you on, it makes you want to give more for them and to do even better for them.

“It’s nice to think that kids are now looking up to me. I hope I can continue to inspire them, be a good role model for them and make them proud and happy. I always try to conduct myself in the best way possible because I know there are children who look up to me and are watching everything that I do.

Arsenal could be one of the busiest clubs in the January transfer window, as they intend to remain at the top of the league table till the end of the campaign.

The Gunners have become one of the in-form clubs in Europe and lead the EPL table by five points.

Manchester City is behind them and Mikel Arteta’s team is doing well despite the pressure from the champions.

In the January transfer window, they expect to add new men to their squad and Express Sports have named four players who could join them.

The report says they are working on deals for Danilo (Palmeiras), Mykhaylo Mudryk (Shakhtar Donetsk), Yeremy Pino (Villarreal) and Evan Ndicka (Eintracht Frankfurt).

Takehiro Tomiyasu has struggled with injuries in the last few seasons, and that is one reason he has not played many games for Arsenal.

A setback he suffered at the beginning of the campaign forced Mikel Arteta to make Ben White his first-choice right-back and the Japanese star has been struggling to start since then.

His country selected him in their squad for the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup and fielded him off the bench against Germany in their first game.

The defender did well, but it has now been revealed he suffered another injury setback after the game.

A report on Sport Bible reveals the defender missed his country’s training on Thursday because of a thigh problem.