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Folarin Balogun Made Me Find God - Ep. 6
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Ari and Noah talk about the USMNT's win over Canada in the Nations League and then chat about the Seattle Sounders FC midweek matchup against LAFC in Los Angeles.
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Transcript
Introduction and Seattle Weather
00:00:12
Speaker
What's going on, everybody? Welcome in to episode six of Lobbing Scorchers. This is Ari Lillianwall. I'm here with producer Noah, producer Noah. Say what's up to the people.
00:00:26
Speaker
It's a rainy day here in Seattle. It's been the last couple days and I kind of like it. It's a nice change of pace after the lethal heat we were dealing with for a bit.
Seattle Sounders' Recent Performance
00:00:36
Speaker
Yeah, I think it's kind of the perfect metaphor for the sounders. They were hot, they've cooled off.
00:00:45
Speaker
Can they turn it around? What's next? LAFC, is it going to be a heat wave? Is it going to be a rainstorm? It's much to talk about. I hadn't really thought about that. And we're going to talk about the Seattle Sounders later in the show and preview that LAFC game, which is coming up tomorrow at BMO Stadium now. I always still want to call it the bank, but it's BMO Stadium now. Big game. So we're going to do a little bit of preview in that later.
US Men's National Team Recap
00:01:12
Speaker
Um, but to start it off, we're going to dive back into some U S men's national team punditry. Oh boy. Yeah. I mean, you know, I gave my takes after the L tree game, uh, which the U S one three zero in, in a crazy game. Uh, and then, uh, they won CONCACAF nations league against Canada.
00:01:32
Speaker
So yeah, I gotta give my takes on that too. I'm really not planning on being a regular USMNT pundit, but these two games were really pretty eye-opening in certain ways from what I saw, and I just feel like I gotta once again give my takes on it. A litmus test? Yeah. Litmus? I don't know. Litmus test. Yeah, something.
00:01:56
Speaker
Yeah, actually, good reminder
Correcting Past Mistakes
00:01:59
Speaker
right there. Before we get started, I do have a couple of corrections from the last episode. You know, listening back through it, I noticed a couple things. The first one was just Christian Pulisic's name. I mispronounced it the entire episode. I called him Pulisic. I always do that. It's because when he was first coming up,
00:02:19
Speaker
Uh, that's how I read it in my head and I would always say it like that Um, and then I realized you know later on if he's it's pool of sick But it's just out of habit and I noticed it on the last episode and I was like, oh god, damn it I did that the whole episode didn't I just mispronounced his name the entire time. So if you notice that I'm aware of that one. Um christian if you're listening christian i'm, sorry come on the pause pool is sick. I got that
00:02:47
Speaker
just seared into my brain now, won't happen again. And then the second one, this one's actually kind of funny. My friend who was listening to it, when I was talking about the dustups in the US-Mexico game, I was calling it a fracas. Apparently that's pronounced fracas.
00:03:06
Speaker
I didn't really. I didn't know that. Yeah. Well, we're not English majors. I actually am an English major, but I was thinking about it and I was like, there's no way that I that I mispronounced that, but like I don't think I've ever actually ever heard that word verbalized. Like I've only ever read it and I always read it in my head as frock us tomato tomato.
00:03:27
Speaker
Well, I'm actually going to double down on that take because I think fracas sounds better. I agree. Yeah. Isn't it like a more fun word? No, I agree. So that one I'm not going to. It's like crick versus creak. Like crick just sounds better. I think, I think fracas is the superior term there. So, uh, I'm going to be continuing to mispronounce that moving forward in this show. If it, if there's ever another fracas, that's how I'm going to say it.
00:03:51
Speaker
but Christian you're vindicated Christian I got I pull a sick is seared in my brain so those were those were the only only two I believe so glad we got that out of the way going to keep trying to limit the correction segment but it's going to happen
00:04:07
Speaker
I keep trying to tell him to just, you know, go with it. But he has his journalistic integrity and we respect it. I got it. I got to have keep maintain my integrity.
USMNT CONCACAF Nations League Victory
00:04:15
Speaker
That's why you're here. But let's talk about the USMNT. Let's talk about it. I'm going to rip a little monologue here to start it off on this CONCACAF Nations League title that they won. And they won it easily. Won it easily. 2-0 over Canada in the final. And I just got to talk about this performance because
00:04:36
Speaker
It was really a fantastic performance. It was an actual soccer game, which was nice after what we saw in the Mexico game. And I have to say, over these last two games against Mexico and Canada,
00:04:50
Speaker
What I saw was pretty shockingly good. We'll have to see this team maintain this type of level going towards Copo America in 2026. That'll be the test. But they demonstrated a level over these two games that
00:05:10
Speaker
something might be happening something might actually be happening like we might be really onto something and this team might actually be becoming the type of team that we've all been dreaming about based on the level of talent and the upside that this player pool has been touted as possessing um but let's just talk about this game because this performance was truly fantastic usually when i'm doing a game review
00:05:34
Speaker
I'm going to give you two sides of it. Most times there's going to be at least something to nitpick that didn't go as planned or wasn't executed correctly or whatever it may be. There's really nothing to nitpick here with this performance. I got nothing but rave reviews from front to back. And that's usually not something I'm used to saying about the USMNT.
00:05:58
Speaker
But to my eye, this was pretty much flawless from the game plan, lineup, execution, game management, the attack, everything was lights out. It was lights out. So I'm excited to talk about it. So what I'm going to do is I'm literally just going to go through and shout out everyone in the starting lineup.
00:06:19
Speaker
And this is where I think you actually got to give B.J. Callahan a little bit of credit for the job he's done on this interim stint. On the last show, I was a little bit flippant when I mentioned Anthony Hudson and B.J. Callahan. I was joking around because Anthony Hudson, he gave that funny quote when he was coaching the Rapids bottom group of players. That's always going to be funny. And B.J. Callahan, I literally didn't know who he was. But honestly, like I would say that both of them did a great job in these circumstances as the interim coaches.
00:06:47
Speaker
I think they deserve their share of the credit. I don't know about the takes that B.J. Callahan should have been given the full-time job based on these performances in these two games. People act like they know what we saw, like the increased level that everyone noticed was all due to B.J. Callahan being the greatest coach of all time.
00:07:07
Speaker
I'm not ready to say that based off two games. I think you would need an actual sample to be able to know that one way or the other. But he did a good job and give him his credit. But I want to talk about the players and I'll just start from the back.
00:07:23
Speaker
The back line was phenomenal in this game and I got to give every single one their flowers. We'll start with with the CB's Chris Richards I'm pretty sold on him as one of the first choice guys at this point. I think he and Miles Robinson I feel great about that as the first choice pairing with Walker Zimmerman Zimmerman is the third guy
00:07:44
Speaker
Chris Richards was a monster on defense in this game. He was he was dominant at times. He scored the first goal. He had another header off the post where he just beasted Kyle Laron in the box off the woodwork, but almost had almost had two goals. Fantastic.
00:08:02
Speaker
feel great about him as one of the starters. And Walker Zimmerman, he was just starting because Miles Robinson got injured in the Mexico game, but he was fantastic. Didn't put a single foot wrong that I remember. He had one huge play in particular where Canada was trying to slip a ball through and if it had made it, it would have been a really dangerous opportunity. And Walker just stretches his foot all the way out, last ditch interception.
00:08:30
Speaker
The defense was under pressure at times in this game, and that's going to happen. Canada's got a squad, but every single time they were in those moments defensively, they dealt with it perfectly every time. Walker Zimmerman's valuable part of this team. I know that people hate him because he plays an MLS and he gave up one penalty at the World Cup.
00:08:54
Speaker
I mean, that was always a dumb take. Our defense at the World Cup was pretty much solid. And Walker's ever been played a lot of minutes and was a big part of that. He gave up the one penalty, but that happens in soccer, okay? If you still hold that against him, then you can grow up.
00:09:10
Speaker
We had a really good defense at the World Cup. He was a big part of it. Penalty kick concessions are going to happen. It's part of the game. And as long as it's not a recurring issue, then you shouldn't judge a player off one bad play, especially if they're playing well outside of that, which he was. So shout out to both the CBs in this game. Great stuff.
00:09:31
Speaker
Jedi Robinson at left back. Fantastic. One of the best games I've seen him play. He's known as an attacking fullback and I think that's the thing that makes him such a unique and valuable weapon. He was awesome on defense in this game. His positioning when Canada was an attack was flawless every time.
00:09:51
Speaker
There was multiple plays that I remember where Canada was putting the ball in and Jedi was right there, making clearances. His 1v1 defending was on point. Great shift from Jedi.
Midfield and Defensive Analysis
00:10:02
Speaker
If he can play like that on defense combined with how good he can be an attack, this guy can be a force with this team. Joe Scali at Right Back.
00:10:14
Speaker
Joe Scali wasn't supposed to start this game. He got the start because Sergino Dest was suspended for the red card in the Mexico game. And that was one of the big question marks people were talking about. Would there be a drop off from Dest to Scali? I was worried that there might be. I thought Joe Scali was on point in this game.
00:10:34
Speaker
I haven't been on the Joe Scali train as much as some people, just because I just felt like we hadn't seen enough from him at the international level to really know if he was as good as people were saying that he is. And the small runs that he did get, I didn't see anything crazy. But I can see it. I saw it in this game. I'm with it now. I'm on that train. He was on point.
00:11:02
Speaker
Joe Scali had the toughest defensive assignment in this game going up against Alfonso Davies who on the last show Noah you called him the best player in CONCACAF I did I might have to send that take well I I agreed with the take at the time and I think it's at least a defensible take Fonzie Davies is a superstar he's a go he's a superstar
00:11:22
Speaker
Joe Scali pretty much handled him, and I thought Brendan Aronson helped a lot with that. So that has to be noted. And Fonzie, he had his moments, but overall he didn't have a good game. He didn't look like his normal self. True, yes. But you got to give Joe Scali credit for a lot of credit for why that was.
00:11:42
Speaker
And it wasn't just that he made a bunch of plays on defense that flat-out stopped dangerous looking moments from the Canadians and Got us back going up the other way and on top of that his service from out wide is really good You can see that he put in a couple of really good balls. So honestly huge shout out to Joe Scali. I see it with Joe Scali If he's that good and keeps developing having both him and desk at that position test is so good dance
00:12:11
Speaker
that's stacked. That's a stacked right back pairing right there. Matt Turner and goal good stuff. He didn't have to make any super crazy saves. But in those moments where Canada was threatening and they did have their looks Matt Turner was on point distribution was good. Clear cut number one goalkeeper and
00:12:31
Speaker
I don't really see why we should have to care whether he's playing at Arsenal or not, frankly. It would be nice if he was. I agree with that. Like, I would rather have him getting those minutes than be in the backup. But so far, I've really seen nothing to suggest that his lack of playing time at the club level has hurt his level when he's back with the US. Matt Turner is always on point.
00:12:55
Speaker
So I understand why people might still be worried about that. And I would rather have him plan for sure. But I'm not worried about Matt Turner whenever he's back there. Not worried about Matt Turner.
00:13:07
Speaker
One of the big questions when this 11 came out was the decision to start Brendan Aronson over Luca De La Torre. And I actually agreed with that critique at the time. That's how I would have lined it up. I would have had Musa and De La Torre as the center mids. But Aronson got the start and worked out fine.
00:13:27
Speaker
I didn't think Brendan Aronson had as much of a standout individual effort as some other guys. But if you look at how the team ended up playing, you definitely can't say he hurt anything. And like I said, I think a lot of the reason that Fonzie Davies wasn't able to get going is that Brendan Aronson was supporting Scali and making sure he was contained to whatever degree is possible with Fonzie Davies. And they kept a clean sheet. Fonzie Davies didn't really do much.
00:13:55
Speaker
So I really got nothing bad to say about that move from BJ Callahan to start him. The end result was a positive. The team played really well. And Brendan Aronson, you can always rely on him to bring some juice, bring that energy. And he did nothing in this game to suggest it was the wrong call to start him. It's valuable to have a guy with his type of motor to be able to slot in all over the midfield. He's got some impressive versatility about him. So shout out Brendan Aronson.
00:14:26
Speaker
Eunice Musa.
00:14:28
Speaker
I don't think there's really much more that I can even say about this guy. He's so valuable to this team. Loved how he looked at the number six. He's fantastic in this game. Both these last two games were like some quintessential Unismuza games and perfect illustrations of why he's so valuable. And he's only going to get better too. That's so what's so exciting is that so many of these players are only scratching the surface of their ultimate potential. And he's one of them.
00:14:56
Speaker
So the fact that we didn't have Tyler Adams or Weston McKinney in this game and still dominated in midfield, that's a great sign for where our depth is at there. Great sign. Christian Pulisic and Tim Waya.
00:15:12
Speaker
I didn't think they were cooking as much as they were against Mexico, at least on the stat sheet, but I thought they were both still cooking. And this game turned out to be more about Gio and Balgan cooking more than them. But that's fun. That's how it should work. You got to be multifaceted enough to where if a team is hyper focused or game planning to stop you in one way, you got to be able to hurt them another way.
00:15:35
Speaker
And that's what seemed like to me happened in the first half. So Pulisic and Waya might not have gotten on the stat sheet, but they were still focal points in attack. I got nothing but high marks for both of them. We all know what Pulisic can do. And Tim Waya, it's clear at this point that he's a pretty invaluable piece of everything we do. Supremely talented, still getting better. But all right, I got to
Gio Reyna's Impact
00:16:02
Speaker
talk about these last two guys now.
00:16:04
Speaker
Because out of all the exciting stuff we saw in this game, in these last two games, this is the most exciting stuff to me. This is the most exciting stuff. Gio Reina. Oh my god. He only played the first half in this game. He had to sub off at half, which was unfortunate. But that first half... Good lord, man.
00:16:35
Speaker
wasn't just the two assists, both of which were fantastic. G.O. was on one.
00:16:44
Speaker
He is so good at dribbling and ball retention and escaping pressure. He had this one play. He watched the game. You saw it. You'll know what I'm talking about. It was right before our second goal, where he got the ball in his own end. He had two defenders on him. He was just dancing and weaving. They had no chance at getting the ball off him. He slips right out of it, gets us going the other way.
00:17:11
Speaker
So fun to watch. He's just better. He's just better. It looks like he's playing a different sport sometimes. He's one of those players. It looks like he's playing a different game. And I think that play, as much as anything, to me, that's the type of stuff that happens when there's just a very apparent gulf in talent and quality between two teams. He was on one for that entire half. So good.
00:17:42
Speaker
The assist on the first goal. Gio should be taking the set pieces for this team when he's on the field. It was so cathartic to watch a score off a corner kick. It's perfect delivery, puts it right on Chris Richards. Our set pieces were on point in general in this game.
00:17:59
Speaker
We could have had a couple more goals off of them. There's the one training ground play where Tim Way I almost scored, and the one Richards hit off the post was another one. So that was just great to see. Our set pieces in World Cup qualifying and at the World Cup weren't good enough. We needed to be more dangerous on those. We have a set piece coach. We hadn't been dangerous on those. So it was great to see that, and it was great to see Gio taking him. It was unfortunate that Gio took a knock.
00:18:27
Speaker
Um, but another moment that I thought was cool was the shots that they had on the broadcast of him basically coaching from the sideline and, uh, like running point from the bench. Uh, you know, after everything that has gone on with Gio, uh, it was good to see, it looked like he was comfortable with his place in the team. Uh, you know, he, it seems, it seems like all the guys really like having him around and the chemistry and the vibes just seemed really good.
00:18:55
Speaker
So that was great to see too. And then his assist on Balagan's goal. That's actually such a hard pass to wait like that. He put it right in the exact spot where Balagan could run onto it behind the defender and set the shot up, but in the spot where the goalkeeper couldn't get to it. That's a world-class assist.
00:19:17
Speaker
So Gio, he made a statement in this game. And I think that statement was that he really is that dude. He's like that. He's a special talent. His ceiling is crazy. Should he reach it? It's through the roof. I fully believe in all that. He just does stuff out there that other players just can't do. He was phenomenal in this game, phenomenal.
Balogun's Goal and Striker Situation
00:19:47
Speaker
Fuller and balligan bro are like more like flow flow this might be the most significant development of them all of them all even more than Gio one of the most frustrating parts about being a fan of this team over the last four or so years
00:20:11
Speaker
is that there have been a lot of times where it's felt like we've performed beneath the sum of our parts. There's been all this talk about a golden generation, how much talent we have compared to previous generations. And there were times specifically, I'm thinking of the road matches in World Cup qualifying, where we didn't play to the level that we should have based on the ever expanding talent that we have in the player pool.
00:20:38
Speaker
And I get why people felt like that. Like I felt like that too. And in my mind, the biggest reason for that is that we haven't had a number nine that can reliably finish their chances at the international level. It's basically become a meme how many sitters we fucking miss. And it was so frustrating to watch sometimes because there would be games where both in qualifying and at the World Cup itself, where the footy was actually really good.
00:21:06
Speaker
But in international soccer, when you're playing increasingly high level opposition with better defenses and better goalkeeping, you can really only expect to have so many chances in a given game. So if you don't have strikers that can take those chances when you get them,
00:21:25
Speaker
You went that's how you end up playing beneath your potential and I think that's you know There's probably other factors involved too, but I felt like watching this team that was the biggest one um I've watched USMNT strikers just miss countless sitters after the ends of great attacking sequences And our striker situation has basically been a meme because of that it really has I've contributed a lot to that meme so with that in mind
00:21:55
Speaker
I really cannot describe what it meant to me to watch balligan finish that goal in the way that he finished that goal. It was cathartic to watch. Gio sets him up with the perfect ball and that is a textbook strikers goal. Go back and watch the highlight.
00:22:13
Speaker
Go back and watch the highlight. Look at the way he uses his movement and his body to put himself in position, slipping behind that defender and being in the perfect spot to line that shot up. Fantastic. Thank you for listening to the sound art podcast network, which now includes no sunny at this lobbing scorchers and the cooler guild.
00:22:43
Speaker
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00:23:08
Speaker
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00:23:36
Speaker
You had to go there, didn't you? You had to Wando catching a stray. Shout out to Wando. Shout out Wando. I love Wando. It's a good fit, though. It is. We have to figure it out. Wando walked so that Balagan could score it. That's a better take. That's my take. Look at the shot itself on the Balagan goal, where he just kicks the shit out of the ball on target. No chance for the goalkeeper.
00:24:05
Speaker
Oh, so satisfying to watch. Smashes it in the net. Smoked. Know what? I saw that and I believed in a higher power. I'm not a religious person. That goal made me find religion. I believe in God after seeing that goal. I ascended to a higher plane of existence, not previously known to mankind. That's how much that goal meant to me, man.
00:24:28
Speaker
You're not the first US Men's National Team fan to find God while watching a game. Because you need it. You need it to watch this team sometimes. I ascended. I ascended to a higher plane. I don't really know how else to say it other than that. This is the type of player that this is exactly what this team needed, a guy who can do that. We haven't had that. So to see him score that goal, if he's able to do that consistently, I don't think anyone in CONCACAF is fucking with us.
00:24:55
Speaker
I really don't. If you give us a number nine that can score goals like that, watch out, because that's going to take this team to heights that we don't even know yet.
Future Prospects of USMNT
00:25:04
Speaker
And it wasn't just the goal. I was so encouraged by the runs he was making all game, his movement in the final third and in the box. He's a great finisher. He's showing that at the club level, but he's a smart forward, too. And he's just the full package of exactly what we need. He's exactly what we need. So that's just so exciting.
00:25:24
Speaker
The U.S. made a statement over these two games. I think it's fair to say. And that's that we're the top dogs in CONCACAF. Mexico isn't even in the discussion. We talked about that extensively. And Canada, you know, I respect Canada.
00:25:40
Speaker
I like Tim Hortons. I think it's by all accounts a reputable establishment. And every time I go to Vancouver for a Whitecaps game, I go, I think the coffee is average, but the donuts are good. And you know, maple syrup and Canadian bacon are both things that I that I support. Hockey. I've never been into it before, but when the cracking were in the playoffs, I was watching and I was getting into it. So I like Canada. I respect Canada.
00:26:06
Speaker
And I do honestly respect their team. They finished first in the octagonal. Their player pool is as good as it's ever been. They're fun to watch. Fonzie Davies is a superstar. They're definitely a factor and they're an opponent worthy of respect. But I'll tell you the difference between us and Canada. And a lot of their media and journalists were actually kind of making this exact point in their takes after the game. Canada seems like they're pretty much close or already at their ceiling with what they currently have.
00:26:36
Speaker
which is solid, but I think the question they have to ask themselves is how much upside is there? Is there enough here to take a meaningful leap from where they already are? That's an open question in my mind. They rely too much on Fonzie Davies, they had him playing like five different positions in this game, and basically with their team, if you neutralize Fonzie Davies, you can mess with them in any game. I think this showed that.
00:27:02
Speaker
And that's not the case with the USMNT. USMNT is nothing but upside right now. You know, with how players like Tim Wea, Gio, Musa, Chris Richards, Joe Scali, I mean, I could go down the list with how all these guys are developing. And now with Balligan in there, there's every reason to believe that this team hasn't even scratched the surface of what's possible.
00:27:29
Speaker
Gio is only going to get better. Tim Wea is only going to get better. There's so many guys that I could name that are only going to get better. Balghan, the more he plays with the team, he's only going to get better. So that's just so exciting. And everyone should be excited about that. It's probably the most exciting time since I've been a fan of this team, which has been a long time now.
00:27:53
Speaker
They played so good in these Nations League games. So good. And I think it's just a glimpse of what you can see. Now, potential is just that.
00:28:05
Speaker
Potential. It's all theoretical. No guarantees in this game. But I'm not going to let that stop me from getting excited because these performances were fantastic. The results were one thing, but it was it was the performances that got me going. Just just how well we played. Everything about these two games was lights out. The goals we scored. The game managed the game management in the second half of this game. The Canada game was perfect. The way we played that second half.
00:28:34
Speaker
was beautiful masterclass in how you play with the lead. Everything I was talking about like with the Seattle Charlotte game on that episode and how Seattle wasn't able able to keep a handle on the game when they were ahead. The US played it perfectly between maintaining control of the game and managing it when they needed to.
00:28:54
Speaker
but also remaining on the front foot. We could have easily padded that lead in the second half and got pretty unlucky not to. So just all around great stuff. Exciting times, man. This is really the most pumps I've been on this team since I've been around the sport. And it just it feels great to say that, you know, there's been so much negativity, so much drama, so much kind of self loathing with the with the USMNT. So
00:29:24
Speaker
it was just really great to watch us play like that it was it was cathartic and i loved every moment of it and i'm just really uh i'm so like i'm like locked back in on the team like there was i've been kind of you know apathetic i would say for a while about this team where i just don't really expect that much i expect us to be
00:29:54
Speaker
relatively middle of the pack and average on the on the international stage. And this is probably this is one of the first times where I look at it and I'm like I can see a real path to us competing with the big dogs. Like I felt like that because if you look at how much talent we have in our starting lineup and the depth we're starting to stack. I mean I mean I don't know.
00:30:22
Speaker
I'm pumped up. I'm pumped up. Those two games were really fun to watch. The Mexico game was chaos, but I still had fun watching it. And it was awesome that we smashed on them as well. And then the Canada game, we were clinical. We were lights out. There's nothing bad I can say about either performance. And I'm excited to see where it goes. I'm excited to see
Upcoming Competitions for USMNT
00:30:49
Speaker
where it goes. Noah, you got anything on that?
00:30:51
Speaker
It's all going down. It's all burning down because we've signed the worst coach in US men's national team history and it's all over now. I think, um, I think shadow BJ he's wrote, he's, he's done a great job getting these guys through this little trial of a game. We'll see how the gold cup goes. That starts on Saturday. Um, God knows what'll happen there. I mean,
00:31:16
Speaker
It's an entirely different squad, you know, like I kind of I kind of judge it as like this nation's league team That's pretty much the a squad the gold cup is more the B squad But that's valuable that like I'm gonna be watching it for sure Because that's like you you get a good idea of guys that can help contribute to the a squad in those games So it's thought it still has value. Yeah, I'm gonna tune in
00:31:40
Speaker
Yeah, but I mean not many notes. I think they looked good. There's some great individual players there. I'm glad that clearly they're clicking and making stuff happen and their goal scoring woes and from the World Cup are not coming back to them here and goals. That's kind of dominant on set pieces. Yeah, what's going on man? What's going on?
00:32:02
Speaker
They looked like a team possessed so we'll see what happens and like you said Copa America is coming up here Yeah, let's get a let's get it let's get a Copa America win Let's let's win the whole damn thing messy. Who's that? Why not?
LAFC Performance Analysis
00:32:20
Speaker
Seattle plays LFC at BMO Stadium tomorrow Wednesday and all right I guess I'll just you know break down where things stand with LFC first all right where are they at all right so you know when you go out to the bars with your friends and yeah you're not planning on getting that lit but yet
00:32:40
Speaker
you toss a couple back you start feeling it and you're like I can toss back a few more and someone buys around a shot someone gets around a shots maybe they're feeling it so they get tequila toss back a couple more before you know it you open your eyes and you're just in your bed and yeah searing pain through every pore of your body and you're like wow yeah I hope I don't have anything to do for the next twenty four hours because whatever it is it's not getting done
00:33:04
Speaker
That sounds like my Saturday. Yeah. Well, only if you aren't quite that hungover, at least I don't know if we can say that yet. But they're they're nursing a little hangover. Yeah, they're nursing a little hangover. And they've hit that point where it's like you can finally eat again, but you're still feeling it. Well, and I think it's, you know,
00:33:28
Speaker
there's still the potential that their hangover could get worse. I'll say this first. They're coming off a good win.
00:33:35
Speaker
They're coming off a good win. They won their last match at sporting Casey who's been playing very well You can't like downplay it like oh, it's just sporting Casey sporting Casey's been playing well. They were hot So you got to give him credit for that? They came back from one zero down. They didn't have Denny Spewonga Carlos Vela came off the bench scored the winner so they actually got some of their vibes back going But but before that
00:34:00
Speaker
There was evidence of a hangover. There was. Their first game back from CCO. They played Atlanta United at home and I didn't watch that game but I was paying attention to that result closely because I wanted to see if they were hungover. And I saw the score after the fact and they tied Atlanta United 0-0 at home.
00:34:18
Speaker
So at first I saw that and I was like okay they might actually be hungover 00 against Atlanta United who's not good on the road at home like this we might have this starting makings of a hangover here yeah but then I looked at how that game actually went and they actually pretty much looked like normal LAFC is why underlying numbers are important Noah
00:34:39
Speaker
They racked up like 2.7 XG in that game to Atlanta United zero point whatever or something less than one. So I saw that and I was like, oh, all right. I know what type of game this was. They were just running riot on Atlanta all night and just got unlucky and didn't finish. And then sure enough, I've looked at Atlanta United Twitter and they were all talking about how Bragg's and basically had the best game a goalkeeper ever had. And they were hanging on for dear life and they had no idea how they escaped that game at zero zero.
00:35:07
Speaker
And I was like, OK, that really can't be tabbed as evidence of a hangover. It's a bad result, but they play. It sounds like they played pretty much like they normally do. And Brad Gazzan just had a crazy game. But then they lost two straight games to the Houston Dynamo.
00:35:22
Speaker
And that's something that I think probably only really happens if you're hungover, if you're LAFC. And the sport in Kansas City game, they won it, and they get credit for that. But it's not like they played like normal LAFC in that game. They showed a lot of character, they gutted it out, and they got the win. But it was not the overwhelming, dominant version of LAFC that we've been accustomed to. Yeah.
00:35:52
Speaker
So the point is this is a vulnerable team and a result is attainable in this game.
Seattle Sounders Lineup Challenges
00:35:59
Speaker
A draw is attainable and I think would be an acceptable result, but a win's not impossible and it's possible without the guys the sounders are going to be missing. Noah, you got the list of absences or can you rattle them off off the top of your head?
00:36:13
Speaker
Well, I know we're missing Alex rolled on Christian rolled on Javier. Yaga picked up a knock. So even with the rotation, he'll be out Jordan Jordan. So yeah, Jordan and Christian are both at the gold cup. Alex rolled ons with El Salvador. He actually he scored a really sick goal for El Salvador today. Did you see that? Yeah, I did. That was happy. It was like a diving header, but he he whipped it like far post really good goal. So we love to see him succeed. Congrats to Alex rolled on for sure. It's pretty
00:36:43
Speaker
this gold cup thing is so obnoxious honestly yeah especially with well honestly for both Christian and Jordan because Christian just got back from injury and played against Charlotte and the team looked amazing on offense and now it's like he's immediately gone again for the gold cup which is starting like
00:37:05
Speaker
six days after Nations League or something. Can we get a fucking break like God? Yeah, not how many soccer games do you need? I mean I don't mind it because I know you're starting to sound like Steve Toronto low a little bit Ari. I mean in all seriousness though like
00:37:24
Speaker
This is not good for Seattle to lose Christian rolled on for that right now. After having just missed him for as many weeks as they had with concussion protocol. So that's just bad timing. And allegedly, allegedly, apparently allegedly, there was not a conversation between BJ and Schmetzer beforehand. Schmetz team tilted about it. I mean, yeah, I don't think he was, I think he kind of clarified and corrected that
00:37:50
Speaker
He's glad that they're getting their call ups, but hey BJ bang my line before you steal my guys who just got back from injury. Yeah, because that is kind of a I think even without those absences.
00:38:05
Speaker
The result is still attainable in this game. Guys are going to need to step up. Last time the Sounders were without the Broldons. They ran Cody Baker at right back, RBW at right mid. I think you can do that in this game and compete and get a result. I think Dylan Tevez at right mid. I'm good with that too. You've got enough guys. You're missing some key ones.
00:38:26
Speaker
But you got enough. Nico Ledero should be back. He was training today. I saw a tweet that he looked like he was in full. So it seems like he's on track to play. So I think the way you line it up, I know you can tell me what you think of this. I think you go new who Jackson Reagan, Yaymar, Cody Baker in the back.
00:38:47
Speaker
You put JP and Rusnak back at the center mids. You rock either RBW or Dylantevas at right mid. Leo Chu on the other side, Flank and Nico, Raul up top and let them cook. Let the chips fall where they may.
Sounders Strategy for LAFC Game
00:39:01
Speaker
I don't know how else you'd play it, so yeah, I can- I can- I can get- The only debate really- The only debate really is right mid, I think. I mean, you could put Rus up there, but- Well, okay, I've- I've thought of that in the past, but apparently, like, he- he can't- he's like an only- a central player. Yeah, interesting.
00:39:19
Speaker
Yeah. Like I, I don't know. I, when I, when he first signed, like I was thinking that he, I'm, or maybe he can play left mid, but I think that's actually what I'm thinking of. And then Seattle just really doesn't play him out wide.
00:39:33
Speaker
I don't think it's a bad lineup either. I mean, it's you've got Raoul. He's out there. Niko's out there. JP is going to be out there. Backline is like I consider a back line with Cody Baker like pretty much fine. I don't really see like a huge off there. I think like Alex rolled on is obviously like the first choice starter. But I feel fine about Cody Baker back there. So yeah.
00:40:09
Speaker
They've been going through it. They've been going through it. They've played like four games in the last six days. They got to be feeling that they've been rotating. Um, they haven't looked full strength since CCO ended. Steve Toronto even said that he literally said it's physically impossible for them to get out of this stretch unscathed because of all the games that they're playing and the line of rotation. They had the absences, injuries, whatever it is.
00:40:27
Speaker
I think you, as far as how you play it tactically, I think you come at these guys.
00:40:33
Speaker
so I mean that to me kind of suggests that it's like in their head a little bit too like right we're expected to struggle right now you know I also think that the sounders and LA FC
00:40:49
Speaker
are in a similar position. They feel safe in where they are in the table, but they're also aware of how vulnerable that they could be and they need to win and they need to play and they need to come to play. I think regardless of the result, I think it's going to be a really entertaining and like hard fought game between these two teams. It usually is with LAFC. It always is. There's been some outliers in there that have been not that competitive.
00:41:19
Speaker
Seattle worked in pretty good in the playoffs a couple years ago, and AFC has taken a couple pretty one-sided home results there, but it's usually a dogfight when these two teams get together, so I'm looking forward to it. No more injuries, please. No more injuries. I've been tracking this LAFC thing closely because
00:41:42
Speaker
You know there's so much talk about how immune they were to CCL so I'm tracking this hangover storyline and this will be another data point for that. You know I just wish that after seeing the team roughly back at full strength in Charlotte.
Listener Engagement Encouragement
00:42:01
Speaker
We could have had a second game in a row like that. So that's the only unfortunate thing, but such is life in MLS. That's how it goes. You got to be able to deal with that. You got to be able to take results in spite of that. And, um, yeah. Uh, is there anything else with LFC that we need to hit on? I think, I think that pretty much sized it up. Yeah.
00:42:22
Speaker
Just I just got to say thank you to everyone for tuning in we're we're averaging pretty much I averaged it Noah It's like been like 120 downloads per episode amazing really appreciate all the support Like subscribe rate five stars write me an Apple podcast review The best Apple podcast review if it's funny enough, maybe it'll get read
00:42:46
Speaker
on the pod maybe we'll do it oh yeah that's actually a good shout i uh i read it myself but um yeah write a good one and i'll read it on the pod share with your friends share with your friends share with your parents uh spread the word your dog walker and uh until next time yeah peace