"By the ashtray lay a single sheet of paper and an unopened bottle of Scotch. Joao Rocha turning to his interlocutor without as much as a smile, said 'I'm afraid it's one or the other, Malcolm'.  His time leading Portugal's famous green and white hoops, brief and glamourously successful, was over in one simple, dramatic Dartford Gunslinger moment."

In episode Thirty Three we look back to 'The Whisky Option' by Simon Curtis from Issue Seventeen, which details the often unmentioned Portuguese successes of the larger-than-life boss Malcolm Allison. 

His brief and successful stay at Sporting, and subsequent mixed spells at Vitoria de Setubal and Farense mirrors the domestic career of one of football's great coaching innovators, and his legacy lasts to this day thanks to the impact he made on the son of Vitoria's goalkeeping coach. 

Simon Curtis is a freelance football writer based in Lisbon. He contributes regularly to ESPN and Champions, and has written for FourFourTwo, Reuters, Worldsoccer.com, Portugoal.net and a variety of official Uefa publications. He is currently co-writing a book on the history and influence of Portuguese football. Twitter: @Bifana_bifana

If you have any feedback comments or suggestions email podcast@theblizzard.co.uk or find us on Twitter @blzzrd.

Issue Seventeen, like all issues of The Blizzard, is available on a pay-what-you-like basis from www.theblizzard.co.uk. Digital downloads cost as little as 1p each (RRP £3), while print versions are available from £6 + postage (RRP £12). You can also find us on the Kindle and Google Play stores.

The Whisky Option

The Blizzard is a quarterly football publication put together by a cooperative of journalists and authors. These podcasts feature some of the best articles from our back catalogue, and recordings of live Q&A events we hold with our writers around the UK. 

Our main aim is to provide a platform for top-class writers from across the globe to enjoy the space and the freedom to write what they like about the football stories that matter to them.

For more details – www.theblizzard.co.uk