Player: Ref, handball!

Zlatan: Nope.

Player: How could you not see it?

Zlatan: I am the best. I do not miss anything. No handball.

Player: Is it cos your nose is in the way?

Zlatan: Red card. Off.

For viewers it doesn’t really matter, you can just treat it with as much importance as you want.

But I reckon it’s a big deal for players. They may also dismiss it as “just a pre-season game” prior to the game, but when it actually comes around they can’t help but feel the weight of it. Wembley full house, playing in front of the royals, and typically against a team who’s going to be a title rival in the upcoming season… it ends up becoming an intense match.