Hello and welcome to the game football podcast from the Times.

Four English clubs crash out of Europe in the space of 24 hours, leaving Arsenal and Liverpool

to carry the torch for the Premier League in the Champions League quarter finals.

Chelsea escaped with a fine for making illicit payments to players, staff and agents under their former owner, Roman Abramovich.

Senegal are stripped of their African Cup of Nations title two months after that hugely controversial final in Rabat.

We'll be picking the bones out of all of that and looking ahead to the Carabao Cup final and much, much more.

I'm Gregor Robertson and joining me in the studio today,

we have the Chief Correspondent for the Times and Sunday Times, Martin Samuel, and the Times London Football Reporter with a particular focus on Chelsea, Peter Rutler. Guys, good to have you. Pete, great timing. Great timing. Big week for Chelsea. Not much talk about, though. I don't know what got me on. Yeah, not much Chelsea to talk about today.

I think we've got to start at Stanford Bridge, haven't we?

Should we start with the football as well?

Yeah. Great timing. Big week for Chelsea. Not much to talk about, though. I don't know what it got me on. Yeah, not much Chelsea to talk about today.

I think we've got to start at Stanford Bridge, haven't we?

So we start with the football as well?

Yeah, let's start with the football first. Let's start with the football. Pete, you were there harrowing night against Parasanger Man on many levels. Tell us what the, tell us first of all what the atmosphere was like, because it, watching along at home, it certainly looked like the fans were very quick to turn and did not enjoy it in the slightest. No, it was interesting because given the first leg and the deficit that Chelsea were trying to overcome, there was, I think, before kickoff, there was certainly a build-up, there was a lot of optimism. You know, it felt like a proper Champions League night. It felt like, you know, the fans fully brought into the idea that they could do it. There was none of the surrounding noise that's been associated with Chelsea for the last 18 months when things are going slightly wrong, whether that be chance for Robert Bramwich, which we did later here, or chance against Clear Lake and the Blue

Coat Consortium.

But before kickoff, you know, there was a real sense that they might pull it off.

That was bubble burst after six minutes.

And I think once that goal went in, you just felt all of the emphasis, just the wind blown

completely out of their sails.

And from that point on, the mood changed a little bit you had sort of moved through different phases because Chelsea weren't terrible on the night you know it wasn't like they rolled over it was just they never had control in this game I mean Paris and German were toying with them they did absolutely this game was completely in their hands Chelsea were putying with them. They did, absolutely. This game was completely in their hands.

Chelsea were putty to them.

It was pretty ruthless, incredibly clinical.

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