Hello and welcome to the TIFO football podcast. I'm Joe Devine. And today I was joined by Alex Stewart. Who's here now?

Hello.

Hello. Alex talked to me all about Tiki-Tacker, which is a topic that we released a video all about on the TIFO football YouTube channel. You don't need

to have watched the video to listen to this podcast, but it may inform your knowledge about

Tiki Taka, and it may enhance your enjoyment of the episode. Not necessary, but a choice. What do

they call that? A preference. That's what I'm trying to say. It's up to your preference.

Anyway, we talked all about the history of Tiki-Taka. We talked all about the sort of modern proponents of it.

We talked about the evolution of football tactics since that time and also about how fundamental it was and what a sort of a cultural impact and a footballing impact it had. Big deal. Big deal. Anyway, that sounded like I was saying it wasn't a big deal. No, no, it was a big deal. Was that clear, Alex? It was very clear to me. Good, good, good to know. Did you know, Alex, that this episode is supported by The Athletic? Yes, I was aware of that. Oh, that's good. Did you know that if you go to Theathletic.com.com. At UK forward slash Tifo, you can get a seven-day free trial and you can get 50% off an annual subscription that works out to be about £2.50 per month. I was conscious of that also. And do you know what you get when you do that? So much good stuff. So much good stuff and access to the best football writing on the internet. That's theathletic.com.com.com. Tifo. Do it now. Anyway, no more of me. Well, I mean, there is more of me. You're going to hear me again in a moment. But no, you know, a pause of me,

well, some music plays, and then more of me and then a lot more of Alex.

Alex, where did the term Tiki Tacker come from? Well, there is a little bit of dispute around this.

It's generally ascribed to a guy called Javier Clementi, who Michael Cox describes him in,

I think in the mixer as like the Tony Pulas of Spanish football.

Oh, wow.

So he was managing athletic club to Bill Bow at the time.

And that's a Basque club.

And the phrase Tiki Tacker itself is a apparently a Basque phrase that kind of means little tiptoe quick steps. So he was sort of talking about this,

I suppose, if you want to channel the Puleas idea, he was this kind of robust old football guy

saying, you know, all of this intricate passing and keeping possession and

everything is not really how we should play. And of course, Athletic are a club that are renowned

for being in some ways the most English of Spanish teams. So athletic are, they're very direct. They often have a big

target man. They actually have links with English football, quite strong links with Southampton,

for example, which Adam Crafton wrote about in a really good book. But so it's coming out of

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