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Kickoff: Ryan Kent is a footballing Demigod
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The Seattle Sounders are flying high coming off a 4-1 rout of St. Louis CITY SC in Matchday 11, as Danny Musovski continued his red-hot form and Ryan Kent put in an electric shift at Lumen Field. With a challenging stretch of road games looming, can the injury-riddled Rave Green keep it going?
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Lobbing Scorchers is a Seattle Sounders and MLS focused show brought to you by Sounder at Heart. Hosted by Major League Soccer's Ari Liljenwall and Producer Noah Riffe. Join us as we lob our scorching takes on the American soccer landscape, Seattle Sounders, Major League Soccer, USMNT and more.
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Transcript
Introduction and Viewing Options
00:00:00
Speaker
This episode of Lobbing Scorchers was previously recorded and streamed live on YouTube.com slash at Lobbing Scorchers. If you want to listen or catch these episodes live, see the video, and see all the rest of our content, go to YouTube.com slash at Lobbing Scorchers or LobbingScorchers.com slash YouTube.
00:00:22
Speaker
Well sir, we got a scorcher today. Gonna be real scorcher today. Why the scorcher today? Well it's gonna be a scorcher.
Seattle Sounders' Dominant Win Against St. Louis
00:00:43
Speaker
Good morning, everybody. Welcome in to another episode of Lobbing Scorchers Kickoff. I'm Ari. That's Nico with a new background. We've got a great show for you all here this morning.
00:00:54
Speaker
The Seattle Sounders are one of the hottest teams in Major League Soccer. Danny Musavsky is the second hottest, number nine in Major League Soccer, behind the incomparable Brian White.
00:01:07
Speaker
And Ryan Kent might just be the greatest player alive for one over St. Louis city SC in match day 11. And I don't even think that encapsulates how dominant a performance that was from the Seattle Sounders.
00:01:19
Speaker
That was about as dominant as I've seen them look in the last, I don't know, couple years. ah So a lot of encouraging things to take away from this game as they enter a ah road heavy stretch of the season here.
00:01:32
Speaker
The squad is flying high. Nico, I'm dying to hear your thoughts on this one. ah So we're going to get into ah Ryan Kent and in the fine points of it. But to to kick us off here, why don't you just give your thoughts on what you saw in this in this dominant victory over St. Louis at Llewyn Field?
00:01:51
Speaker
Yeah, for starters, I just think that it was without a doubt the Sounders best performance from start to finish of 2025. I thought that even in the first half, although they weren't able to get more goals and there was a lot of half chances that were,
00:02:09
Speaker
at times may be either caused by a bad pass or a wrong decision or maybe rushing things a little bit. The fluidity of the game, the patterns of the passing, the triangles, ah the tight space movements.
00:02:27
Speaker
I just thought that it was only a matter of time before the Sounders were going to eventually get there and score the goals. And that's what happened in the second half.
00:02:39
Speaker
I thought that both Christian Roldan and Obed were fantastic. Obed was my man of the match, but that doesn't happen if he doesn't have a guy like Christian Roldan right next to him, doing all the dirty work, making sure that he has the liberty to get forward, cutting up space when he had to.
00:02:56
Speaker
I thought that they did a great job at minimizing hard-old, minimizing toy shirt. um I thought that as we had mentioned going into this game, although.
00:03:09
Speaker
San Luis city is a good team and they're a defensive team ah that had a very good defense. And and that that was the whole point of this game is that it was going to be difficult. They were going to deep. They were going to have to set They're to have to break them down.
00:03:24
Speaker
i thought that they did it perfectly. And on the defensive side, I thought that whatever St. Louis could do kind of played to Seattle's strengths. And that was just out there.
00:03:35
Speaker
I think the 4-2-3-1 back and is here to stay. i thought that the build-out was better. i thought that, and I think Brian concurred with what I said and what I have been saying all along, is that in the 4-2-3-1 situation,
00:03:51
Speaker
there's a lot more simple decisions. The the game is simplified a little bit. And you saw that in this one. I thought that in transition, even when they weren't able to get a full on chance, it was just quicker.
00:04:04
Speaker
ah it seemed to just go and be a better setup for a guy like Paul Rothrock that in this one was able to just stay higher upfield. And I thought Paul Rothrock was, you know, a nightmare all first half, right?
00:04:17
Speaker
ah I think Alex Rodin coming back in his first game was very good. So when we're talking about competition, I think competition has heightened the level that each player, once they come in,
00:04:28
Speaker
They feel like they have to earn those minutes. They have to play at their best. And that's kind of what you saw. So all in all, without talking about the players that we are eventually going to talk about, like Ryan Kent, Danny Mussovsky, four consecutive goals.
00:04:44
Speaker
still the same limited player, still a guy that, you know, at times ah in the first half, he misses a ah very clear opportunity, but he continues to get forward. He is so committed to get into those spaces that eventually
Sounders' Tactical Analysis
00:05:01
Speaker
pays off. And he kind of, and he actually puts away the more difficult opportunity ah in a very good assist by Nuhu, who was also a highlight in this one.
00:05:10
Speaker
All in all, I just think that every single player for the Seattle Sounders was very good. And although san Louis City is not the most offensive team, you still got a credit what the Sounders did in order to be able to put four on a very good defensive squad.
00:05:31
Speaker
That's not an easy team to break down like that and slice and dice like that for whatever limitations they've had offensively this year. ah They came into this match, I think, having conceded the fewest goals in the Western Conference, maybe even in the league.
00:05:45
Speaker
It was something like they had scored seven goals and given up. eight So I think that was another encouraging sign that Seattle was playing a team like that, that was going to set up like that at home and ah they diced them up.
00:05:59
Speaker
So they're going to need to do that at home. They haven't done that as effectively at home, I would say, honestly, in the last couple of years. So that was great to see. um Before we get to the star of the show, which was Ryan Kent, let's let's talk. Let's talk about the second star of the show, which was new who. Um,
00:06:14
Speaker
ah um I think this might have been the most complete new who game of his career. When you're talking about two way impact. I know for a fact, he's never gotten on the stat sheet twice in one game.
00:06:25
Speaker
ah He really could have had two assists. Nico, what's, what's gotten into him. Has he finally, after all these years developed a consistent attacking facet of his game? Is he going to be getting on this? Was this an outlier or is new who actually developing here at age 27 in like his,
00:06:46
Speaker
ninth year in MLS? I think he is developing. I think that his decision-making and his service on the ball in this one were particularly good. There is that little chip pass that he puts into Mussovsky that usually knew who would just hit it hard and try to you know maybe...
00:07:07
Speaker
Put so much strength in it that he might just ricochet into the goal, or maybe he just shanks it or he just overpasses it. But you could tell that he slows it down. He hits it perfectly and he he puts a great ball in. So I have seen progress even at at the Nashville game.
00:07:26
Speaker
where he wasn't as sharp, but you could tell that when he's selectively getting forward, he's a lot more mindful of what he's going to do with the ball. um He's still the physical specimen that's going to get through guys by his speed and his strength, but I feel like there is a different...
00:07:47
Speaker
way that he's approaching the game and he has put a lot of time into being a more technical player. I mean, we we've seen him in the training field even trying free kicks and I'm talking about really practicing free kicks. Like he sets it up, he hits, you know, 10, 12 shots.
00:08:07
Speaker
I mean, he is clearly trying to, uh, diversify what he does as an attacker and ah how he impacts the game. And you got to applaud that. And I thought that Brian Smetzer was so on point on the game and after the game, because in the press conference, I thought that he said all the right things.
00:08:31
Speaker
And one thing that I have to agree with him is that and knew who's in the point of his career that he needs to have this sort of performance consistently because he has the attributes. He has the physical presence. He has the experience. He's been doing this for a very long time.
00:08:50
Speaker
And this is the type of new performance that I think is expected from him and that he should be having at this point of his career. and I think that's what's going to happen. That's why i don't think as an outlier, I think that is something that new has been working on and it's starting to cement itself and I expect it to continue for the rest of the year.
00:09:11
Speaker
I mean, that would be huge for this team, honestly. I don't think I had even considered ah a reality where
Player Development: Nuhu and Ryan Kent
00:09:19
Speaker
2025 became the season where Nuhu actually took a pronounced step forward with that aspect of his game. The whole storyline with Nuhu throughout his career is early ah early on in his career, you had this kid who was an excellent 1v1 defender, super fast, super athletic, can keep up with any other attacker in the league, but had not yet developed that... ah that part of his game that two way part of his game and ah there was a lot of transfer buzz around him that was coming from a place of if he actually develops that part of his game this could this could be like a 10 million dollar plus player that other teams are calling the seattle sounders about all the time and it just the two-way facet never really developed he's been
00:10:00
Speaker
week-in, week-out starter because of his defensive attributes. ah If we're seeing him actually consistently become the type of player that we saw in this game, that could unlock even more ah even more ah multifaceted aspects of this attack.
00:10:15
Speaker
And the new-who goal in this game was just a great moment. The crowd went absolutely and insane. and ah And he was he was celebrating it. the team The team and the bench, everyone was going crazy. So that was fun.
00:10:26
Speaker
Yeah, he brought... He definitely broke the internet. He definitely lifted that atmosphere that was already pretty good throughout the whole game, but he just hit a whole other decibel when he scored.
00:10:40
Speaker
i will say that additionally from what he did on the wide areas where we typically would see him, I've seen him get even better in the underlaps.
00:10:55
Speaker
ah that There was one... ah option that they had in the first half where usually Nuhu, when he gets the ball on the top of the 18, he's going to just put a crazy shot up and try to, you know, shoot from there. And you and I both know that when Nuhu gets the ball in those areas, you're like, no, don't do it.
00:11:15
Speaker
And he actually, in this one, he kind of fakes that he's going to shoot. He puts a ball to Albert Rusnak. Albert makes a quick pass and he creates an opportunity. and This is all parts of what you just mentioned, that if Nuhu continues to grow as an offensive option, the 4-2-3-1 will be that much more effective.
00:11:37
Speaker
Because if you can rely on Nuhu to be selective and be careful, of course, on when he does those over and those underlaps, There's no longer a need for you to play with that three-man back line and have an all-on wing back because NUHU will be able to facilitate some of those. And your wingers can provide all your width.
00:11:57
Speaker
They can focus on just being offensive threats on the flanks, ah be more ah ready and positioned in terms of transition play. So, man, NUHU could really unlock a lot of things for Seattle if he can continue to be this good consistently moving forward.
00:12:14
Speaker
Do you think he meant to hit that shot ah top ends like that? Or was that was that destined to go double B and he got lucky? That might be a little much, but I just think that he wanted to put pace on it and...
00:12:28
Speaker
He hit it there. I don't think he said, going to put a top corner, but I definitely do think that he said, look, he's either placement or power in this one. I'm going to go power. And you got to give him credit for putting it on frame because it was a shot that it was not going to get stopped.
00:12:42
Speaker
But I definitely don't think he meant to put a top corner. It was a class finish. Fox in the box. I mean, this guy put this guy at number nine. and ah Nico, let's talk about the assist provider on that new who goal.
00:12:54
Speaker
Ryan Kent. I mean, Wow, that was absolutely electric. ah Pretty much from the second he stepped on the field, ah stuff was happening.
00:13:06
Speaker
It was like he had he had an assist and one of the silkiest, smoothest jukes I've ever seen. I've i've talked about it like four times already. But that ah that one at midfield where he lets it slide past the guy and just leaves him in the dust.
00:13:20
Speaker
that was That was so good. And really, it just felt like, doesn't it feel like every time he's on the ball? Every time he's on the ball, something is happening. The St. Louis City defenders had nothing on him. They couldn't stay in front of him.
00:13:32
Speaker
ah Every time he was going against one, 1v1, it was already over with. He gets on the stat sheet twice. And I think, for me, the most encouraging thing was... the degree to which he seemed to be a force multiplier for every other player on the field.
00:13:49
Speaker
Nuhu looked incredible combining with him. He and Obed already have really good chemistry. Rusnak looked a lot more effective with ah with a player that's that dynamic out wide playing next to him.
00:14:00
Speaker
And really the whole second half, the whole time he was on the field, it was as good an attacking performance as I've seen from the Seattle Sounders the in a couple years, like I, they, uh, even, even when they've been at their best, they haven't looked like a, a buzzsaw like that. It looks like one of those LAFC teams that we've seen in recent years where it's like every time they get on the ball, a dangerous chance is happening, going the other way. It looked like, uh, when inner Miami is at their top level, that's, that's the type of stuff that they can do to teams where they just really overwhelm you. Uh, and St. Louis could not, uh,
00:14:38
Speaker
withstand that pressure and i think Ryan Kent was the biggest catalyst for why they were able to play like that I mean everyone everyone's talking about this guy right now because of I mean his first couple appearances looked good that was incredible what if you've been watching him in training every day what did you make of just how much it elevated the team when he got when he got in this game Look, he was a spark plug of the bench and he was a necessary one ah because although the team was creating opportunities, he gave them efficiency.
00:15:17
Speaker
ah What you mentioned in terms of the little dummy play he does at midfield. The fluidity of the of the move, and it's not an unnecessary flare.
00:15:28
Speaker
It's just field awareness. The ball is coming in with a certain pace. I have, he checked his hip, obviously. He knows that there's a defender coming. Instead of stopping play, cutting around, he lets the ball get right through him.
00:15:41
Speaker
He knows the momentum of the defender is going to put him right past him. And he's behind the player immediately. And he picks up his head. He's looking where he's going next. It's just what we have been talking about ever since we saw him at training the very first time.
00:15:56
Speaker
He is purposeful with every single move of the ball. He mentioned after the game that he's just starting to feel like he's getting the legs from under him, that there were times that he feels like he was...
00:16:11
Speaker
Tripping on the ball. I've never saw it, by the way, but, you know, he said it. I mean, I like the humbleness by Ryan Kent to admit that he'd been out of the game for a while in terms of at least competitive play, year and a half. There's no easy see amount of time for you to kind of get back to things.
00:16:27
Speaker
So if there was some rust, man, this game just showed me that it's off. And he agreed that he's finally feeling like he's going to be ready to go. So, The IQ is there, the technical a ability is there, the talent is there, but the fact that now the physical component is with it, man, I mean, sky's the limit for what he could provide on that left side for the Seattle Sounders. You talked about the way he connected with Nuhu, the way he connected with Ovid.
00:16:55
Speaker
I thought that him and Albert were looking always at each other. ah i think that Ryan Kent, is going to be an X factor. He's a game changer. He just showed you he was a game changer.
00:17:07
Speaker
mean, it is no coincidence that as soon as he comes in, the three goals that, you know, kind of put the game, they definitely put the game away and showed a certain amount of dominance come after he gets on the ball.
00:17:19
Speaker
ah He should have had another assist as well. That was a missed opportunity. Ovid Vargas hits one on the post that, you know, maybe typically he puts away. So he just provides so much,
00:17:32
Speaker
this balance and he's not just willing to go one-on-one just because right so i love the fact that he's willing to just take players on but that's not always his first choice he's not afraid to drop it back he's not afraid to switch the ball i talked about this uh with guys in in the uh in the press room it seems like he's not bothered or he has no need to feel pressure.
00:18:01
Speaker
Usually a player in his position with all of the stigma and all of the you know negativity that he kind of lived through for the last year and the necessity to revive his career could present in ah but a circumstance where you're gonna be pressured, where you feel like you have to do extra things and you have to try to put the game on your back.
00:18:24
Speaker
but but But he doesn't. He is so comfortable in just the way he handles the game that I think that's the that that's the most impressive thing. that that I've never seen Ryan Kent come into a game where he's not confident and he doesn't radiate that confidence to the group and that he ever feels like he needs to do more than just play the game and and and be a contributor to whatever point in the game he's in. He said it yesterday, look, they asked him if, you know, he felt like he needed to be a starter or, you know, how he handled the competition.
00:19:01
Speaker
He said, look, that sounds like something that you might want to ask the manager. All I can do is just be me, contribute and continue to play well, take advantage of the minutes. Man, you got to applaud just the way he approaches the game, the professionalism, the confidence,
00:19:16
Speaker
that is just as good as the talent on the field because intangibles are a huge way to stay on as a sounder for a very long time. Absolutely. And I mean, like you said, the ah the technical ability, the soccer IQ, the field awareness is off the charts.
00:19:35
Speaker
I can't wait to see this guy play more. I mean, if that was a preview of the type that of impact that he can make week in, week out, I don't think many people are going to be wanting to play the Seattle Sounders. It was just very evident how much better he was than the players he was going against.
00:19:53
Speaker
James makes a good point here. I think Kent actually works for him out wide instead of pinching into the number 10 spot, unlike Jesus Ferreira or De La Vega, which I think is true. But ah he also, ah there were times where he was kind of drifting centrally but like it was at times where it made sense and then if uh if there was overlapping going on he would move you know and not try and play that position so just uh everything everything about it was uh was excellent uh nico any anything else you want to do hit on with ryan kent before we keep the pushing here
00:20:32
Speaker
ah Well, just to the comment, I mean, look, there are times where, yes, you're going to want your winger to be the widest guy and give you that width. And he does that and he understands the game. But just like you mentioned, and and I don't know if it's fair to criticize De La Vega when he plays the wing and he turns inside because it's part of the concepts that you play in with either one of the setups, either the 4-2-3-1,
00:21:01
Speaker
or the 3-5-2 or the 3-4, you know, whatever it is that that that the team is working, there's always a fluidity and a change of when you need a guy to come inside and you allow that wing back or you allow that full back to do those overlaps.
00:21:17
Speaker
But I understand what you're saying. I think that his IQ and his purposefulness on the field is – beyond what we've seen out of ferrera perhaps and and maybe even president of the venga who in this one i thought it was a little bit rushed at times i think that he took a couple of those mid-range shots when maybe he could have passed it he could have created and opportunity to do that extra pass and and perhaps create a better opportunity um so i understand just to praise ryan kent in general
00:21:49
Speaker
When I asked him about MLS in general, um because you know he's had a couple of games now, and I wanted to know you know in terms of adapting and and in terms of what he's seen of the game, he talked about it being more of a side to side or or you know you have to do a lot of running basically, paraphrasing here, of course.
00:22:09
Speaker
And he said, that's where I shine. So I'm interested of seeing. how he performs when he does have to do a little bit more defending when you are playing an LAFC, which is coming up, uh, when you are playing at Timbers, which is coming up.
00:22:25
Speaker
Uh, so those are, uh, other milestones that I will continue checkpoints. They're going to be checkpoints where I'm going to be looking at, okay, how did he do playing against X or playing against Y?
00:22:39
Speaker
Because yes, I absolutely love what he does offensively. ah But if he's telling me that he shines and he thrives when it comes to being a two-way player, I mean, I believe him. And I think under the 4-2-3-1 situation,
00:22:53
Speaker
he'll be able to do so consistently without having a track back so far. So I'm just excited to see beyond what he's already showed us. Everything we talked about is fantastic, but there are still some other aspects of the game that we still need to see, including...
00:23:10
Speaker
The physicality component and and where he's at, you know, he is ready for 90? He's ready for 80? You know, all those things as they come along, we'll be able to just judge him a little bit more on that.
00:23:24
Speaker
Carlos says Kent looked like he was enjoying playing and that fun was contagious to the rest of the team. Exactly. Exactly. It wasn't just, ah it wasn't just what he was doing on the field. It was like the, it was the energy and the, ah the vibes that he was bringing. It was contagious. And that's, uh,
00:23:41
Speaker
that's part of what I'm talking about when, uh, when I'm saying forest multiplier, like it's, it's everything that, uh, that looked better and, uh, they scored a bunch of goals with it.
00:23:52
Speaker
So that was great to see. Uh, good question from Tom L here in the chat. Nico, I'll kick this one to you. Do you think Ryan Kent will be a sounder for more than this season? I feel like he wants back to Europe.
00:24:03
Speaker
Hopefully he'll fall in love with the city like so many else and not mind a DP max Tam deal in MLS. I'll just say, I think that that's, uh, That's the biggest thing to be determined going forward. You know, is this a rental or can they actually keep this guy around?
00:24:18
Speaker
I do know that ah they would have to do some roster maneuvering to make that happen because the only the way they were able to get him was due to ah the Paul Areola being placed on the season ending injury list. Right. Which takes him off the books.
00:24:32
Speaker
And then that's what opened up the ability to go get Ryan Kent with Areola coming back. I think they would need to sell a player. in order to ah free up the space to keep both Paul Areola and Ryan Kent, which ah they can do that, but it's not like a situation where they would just be able to keep him with ah the roster as it's currently constructed because of the salary cap. Nico, how do you see this one?
00:25:00
Speaker
I think it's too early to tell, but I'll tell you what I know. is that it's going to be ah about whether the Sounders want him back or not. So what you just mentioned in terms of there will be some maneuvering to do when it comes to the roster build, the salary cap, that's all accurate.
00:25:18
Speaker
ah Obviously, that the club has an option on him that they can exercise.
Sounders' Roster Evaluation and Future Prospects
00:25:23
Speaker
And I mean, so far, so good. I would think that they will exercise it. exercise but Exercise that one. Yeah.
00:25:29
Speaker
But the reason why I'm saying he's still early is because once again, i think it's been, we've had cameos of him and they've been great. And he seems like he's a guy that's gonna be all out an X factor, but let's wait and see as well. I mean, let let's not rush into, I mean, I'm excited as anybody. And believe me, since saw him in the training field, I've been super hyped on him.
00:25:54
Speaker
But at the same time, I know that this is a long season yeah and that there's a lot of games to be played and there's tougher competition that going to have to face. So if all those things go well, I said, exercise it, keep him here for forever.
00:26:07
Speaker
But in terms of what the comments said, I've talked to him off the mics. There is nothing that he's said to me that made me believe that he wants back in Europe immediately.
00:26:18
Speaker
He just wants to enjoy the game. He wants to change the scenery. He just got stuck in a Turkish team because of a decision that he made in regards to moving forward and playing under ah you know a different league. And I don't want to call it money-driven, but obviously that is a step up from where he was at.
00:26:37
Speaker
And it didn't go his way. And even though he was with Jose Mourinho, a guy that everybody would want to be under, he was unable to play. So I feel like when I talk to him, he still has a bad experience and a bad experience.
00:26:53
Speaker
concept of what Europe gave him. So I have no doubt that he would not mind being with the Sounders for a couple of years, if not longer. ah He loves the city.
00:27:04
Speaker
He talked about it as well, that London and Seattle or the the area of England where he's from is kind of like Seattle when it comes to the climate, when it comes to everything. He talked about how great the people were.
00:27:16
Speaker
ah He talked about the atmosphere and how it is not as... negative or I forget the word he used when it comes to people just being, hackling them, you know, or hackling people.
00:27:28
Speaker
ah So all of the things he said to me tell me that he wants to remain in MLS and I believe him. I think if the vibes stay this good and he's playing like that and the team is playing like that, ah you know, yeah it's hard to say, but I think there's definitely a possibility that he could decide, like, I'm i'm having a blast.
00:27:47
Speaker
I like living here. I like being on this team. I like playing with these guys. Like, Why not stay here? So they, they, I think that's a doubly important reason to sustain what they've got going on right now, because, uh, I think you got, ah I mean, we'll see how it goes, but I think you got to do whatever you got to do to keep this guy on the team. He looks incredible. Uh, Nico, uh, I did want to, uh,
00:28:10
Speaker
ah get your take on this handball, non handball, non handball call. It was a big talk. It was such a bad call that it was a big talking point, even though the team ended up winning four to one.
00:28:23
Speaker
ah And like, you know, it didn't end up mattering, but just for the novelty of how bad it was, i so I think it's worth talking about. I talked about it on the post game live. I want to talk about it with you right now.
00:28:34
Speaker
Um, this I think it was the worst call I've ever seen. i have no idea how that happens. That's like a very clear breakdown in the process. And ah really, i think it's a it's worth hitting on the two PK calls in the first half because those were big talking points too.
00:28:52
Speaker
But for me, i don't know about you, but i didn't have as much an issue with those because he did call it both ways. I think they were both arguably soft, but my thing when I saw the St. Louis one get called was like, all right, standard has been set.
00:29:08
Speaker
You need to adhere to that for the rest of this game for both teams. If there's another kind of 50, 50 questionable PK call on the Seattle end, you've got to call it like that's it.
00:29:19
Speaker
And, uh, he did that like five minutes later. So I don't know. I thought the, uh, First call on Yaimar was a little bit soft, but I thought Schmetzer hit it on the head after the game when he said, look, it's a 50-50 call, but Yaimar takes a bad angle. I'm not going to let him off the hook for that.
00:29:35
Speaker
I agree. I think it's a anytime you make that play as a CB, you're you're opening yourself up to the ref making that decision. So that one, i I guess I can live with that.
00:29:47
Speaker
What I can't live with is this handball call where ah he misses it on the field. The guy's arm is in an unnatural position. They take way too long to stop play, first of all.
00:30:01
Speaker
Uh, he takes way too long to look at it. Second of all. And then third, he, he still misses the call. I hadn't, when we did the post game live, I hadn't seen the, uh, pool reporter explanation.
00:30:13
Speaker
He, uh, and the explanation was, he said that it hit the guy's thigh before hitting the hand. No, it didn't. No, it didn't. You, let you, uh, even if you think that it might've, you definitely could not clearly and obviously see that, uh,
00:30:30
Speaker
on the replay, the replay very clearly showed the arm in an unnatural position with the handball blocking a shot that was going to go on target, by the way. So, I mean, like I said, doesn't matter.
00:30:41
Speaker
Doesn't matter. Water under the bridge. I just don't get how that happens. Like, what are we talking about? Yeah. ah Look, there's no two ways but about it sort or around it.
00:30:54
Speaker
the referee was god-awful. And if anything, he was consistently bad for both sides. So I agree with what you said. I think that Yamar is without a doubt, he's got culpability over that that PK.
00:31:11
Speaker
I think that if you look over the play, he gets, um he feels like Christian Roldan is going to get the ball back because Christian Roldan is actually doing a great job at chasing down, i don't know if it's Tozier who's who has it no No, it's not him.
00:31:27
Speaker
It might have been Hurdle. But whoever is the the ball carrier is getting basically intercepted by Christian. And I think that Yamar makes an assumption that Christian will get the ball and he kind of slows down. And then when that pass comes through, he reacts late.
00:31:43
Speaker
So he reacts late. He takes a bad angle. But when it comes to the foul, I thought that there was no foul because of the way it happened. He puts hands on the shoulder, but he lets go.
00:31:54
Speaker
and the the ball carrier still has control and is still moving forward. Then he pokes the ball. And once he sees that the ball is out, he dies. So when you look at that in a VAR, I have a really hard time believing that you're not gonna be able to overturn it.
00:32:11
Speaker
But like you said, no big deal. You made judgment call. You took it the other way. Paul Rothrock's foul was also kind of soft. You know, there's hands to the back. There's some contact and in and the lower area of the foot. Sure, that's fine. So two soft fouls.
00:32:28
Speaker
You're fine. But when it comes to the handball, we looked at it over and over again up in the press box. You were there, Jeremiah and I, we were looking at that thing intensely. I said it five times.
00:32:40
Speaker
They have to be looking if it ricocheted off the body because that's the only way, the only reason why they would overturn this or not overturn this, right? ah If it was not going to be a handball.
00:32:52
Speaker
and We looked at it. that There's never a change of direction on the ball. You could tell. You could see it hits the body, it's going to go ah ah total other way.
00:33:02
Speaker
It never happens. The speed of the ball, the pace of the ball, and the direction of it, the trajectory, never changes. That is, without a doubt, a shot onto the hand that should have been a foul call. We looked at all kinds of angles, the back angle, the side angle, the the top angle, and in no way – did we ever see the ball change direction so i'm not sure what uh jeremy jeremy lorenzo hernandez lorenzo hernandez lorenzo hernandez don't know what he was looking at uh jeremiah said that he was one of the referees that kind of came through the pandemic if i'm not mistaken so he he
00:33:42
Speaker
He just wasn't there. he after To me, he needs a lot more games, and he just made some bad judgment calls. I thought that he tried to be a protagonist throughout the whole game, was giving everybody yellow cards. You get a yellow card. You get a yellow card.
00:33:55
Speaker
Was arguing with the with the coaches. I mean, I just thought that there was some poor refereeing, and credit to the Sounders that they did not allow that to affect the result of the game, and they did enough to
Refereeing Concerns in MLS
00:34:08
Speaker
not have a bad refereeing and a bad referee take away points and they did what they had to do to move forward.
00:34:19
Speaker
but But it is not an excuse of us being okay with a referee of in this level of of MLS play to have a horrendous game and not have some sort of repercussion I really hope that there is something that gets done because he was god-awful.
00:34:38
Speaker
he He should be taken off MLS games for a couple weeks at least. To me, in my opinion, that's the best recourse. Like, I don't yeah i don't think you fire someone for missed call, but that that whole sequence was botched so horrifically badly.
00:34:54
Speaker
That can't happen. That can't happen. That is an easy call. It's an easy call. ah Everything about it from how long it took to the final outcome ah is just the explanation.
00:35:06
Speaker
I mean, if he was so sure that it hit the body, then say it with your chest, baby. Say it with your chest. the the ball hit off the body and there's no handball, but he just took the easy ride. No handball. Let's go. Let's forget about it. Turn the page.
00:35:21
Speaker
No, no, no, sir. Not in here. ah man. Uh, I mean, like, like you said, luckily it didn't end up mattering. And, uh, I thought the team responded well.
00:35:32
Speaker
Uh, you know, I, the kind of comp I was making was like, uh, when you win for one, you can take the high road more than like a Greg Vanny who, uh, After L.A.' 's game last week, he was talking he was doing the whole thing of, like, the refs should have to have press conferences ah like the coaches. Anytime you hear a coach do the refs should have press conferences, that you can probably look at how their team is doing, and it's probably not that good.
00:35:57
Speaker
You win 4-1, Brian Schmetzer can get up there and say, ah you know, the refs have a hard job. They're not going to get every call right. Proud of the guys for – for you know, not letting it get to them and closing out the game anyway. But it was mostly just the the novelty of how bad a call that was. was it was It was mystifying, Nico. It was mystifying.
00:36:17
Speaker
ah Before we talk about this upcoming stretch of road game Seattle's got, anything else that you wanted to shout from this St. Louis game? I mean, we hit Nuhu. We obviously hit Ryan Kent. Moose, four straight games with a goal.
00:36:33
Speaker
Second hottest number nine in Major League Soccer at the moment. ah I mean, yeah, no, I mean, I do want to add a couple of things. One, ah I want to congratulate Brian Smetzer on being 10th in all time regular season and wins.
00:36:52
Speaker
yeah That's a huge accolade and well-deserved. Stefan Fry 400. Absolutely. He he was on point when he had to be.
00:37:04
Speaker
Alex Roldan for me needs to be praised because look, Kalani had done enough to push in one way or another, make you really uncomfortable that he was going to, if I'm Alex Roldan, that he was going to take the starting spot.
00:37:20
Speaker
And I feel like Alex played like he wanted his starting position back. I thought that he was great on the ball. Uh, His passing was outstanding. He created a couple of opportunities that were missed.
00:37:32
Speaker
He hits Musavsky with a through ball and puts him in front of goal. And unfortunately, the angle's not there for Musavsky, and it ends up being safe. But the goalkeeper, there's a couple of ah changes of ah switching the point of attack is something that he does better and more consistently than Kalani because he has more vision.
00:37:53
Speaker
So when we talk about two guys that both are fantastic, I love the competition. And right now you could put either guy and they each have their own strengths, but I was very pleased to see Alex Rodan come out there and say, Hey, don't forget about me.
00:38:09
Speaker
Because if he goes out here and has a poor game or has a decent game, and it's not as influential as he was, you're kind of thinking maybe, maybe Kalani should be the guy, but right now is still anybody's position.
00:38:21
Speaker
In my opinion, they both have shown a lot of great components to their game. so I just have to praise him. Albert Rusnak, too, I feel like he gets a lot of heat. I thought that he was so good at finding the right spots and the quick passing.
00:38:36
Speaker
When I talked to Freddy Juarez on Exclusive that you could find on Poules to Sports right now about this game, and we talked tactics, we talked about Kent and Ferreira and Osase,
00:38:46
Speaker
um ah So go ahead and check that out as well. He talked about the necessity to play short passing and quickly with those triangles that they built and have the third runner ah be aggressive.
00:39:00
Speaker
All of that was done because you have a guy like Albert Rusnak. And I thought that he was on point but the entire game, maybe not as... easy to see as a Ryan Kent or, you know, as a Moose getting in front of the goal or whatever. But if you go back and you look at that game, you see how important it was for just the buildup of the game.
00:39:19
Speaker
And finally, that goal by Moose is not just the assist by Nuhu and the fact that Moose... kind of stretches his leg out to corral that pass, turn around, have the awareness to put it where he put it.
00:39:34
Speaker
But that's a 16-pass sequence of the Sounders getting the ball back, taking it all the way to the back, him and Yehmar.
00:39:45
Speaker
Then you put it through ah Christian Roldan. I mean, the entirety of it was... such a great goal that I feel like it needed to be highlighted. 16 passes sequence before that goal.
00:39:58
Speaker
You just got to apply what the team did overall. It's nice to see the depth ah of this team coming through in the way that we all hoped it would before this season started. ah We all, a lot of pundits, not just us, i highlighted this roster as potentially the deepest in MLS.
00:40:18
Speaker
It didn't look like that in CCC in the first few weeks of the regular season. i think this is... what it was supposed to be like, you know, do you you don't have Jordan Morris or Jesus Ferreira going into this game.
00:40:34
Speaker
ah Most um MLS clubs, when you're looking at absences like that of two carry the load, highly paid star players, you're usually going to see some sort of drop-off offensively in this case with these both being attacking players.
00:40:48
Speaker
And not only was there no drop-off, they put in the most dominant performance of the season. And of like that might have been the most dominant attacking performance that an MLS team has had. this year in terms of just output, underlying numbers, eye test, everything about it.
00:41:04
Speaker
ah i think that's I think that's all ah all I have. We hit Obed. we hit Christian was fantastic in this game. ah the dirt The dirty work he was doing, tracking back, he's in really good form right now. The double pivot looks really, really good.
00:41:19
Speaker
i Kim Keehee continues to deputize quite effectively for Jackson Reagan. So again, it's a demonstration of the type of death depth that we hope we we're going to see this season. They got to sustain it. They got to keep playing like this. And ah that's what will make it actually mean something if this is ah foreshadowing what we're going to see for the rest of the season.
00:41:41
Speaker
But very encouraging stuff. Very encouraging stuff.
Sounders' Strategy for Upcoming Matches
00:41:44
Speaker
ah Nico, couple road games coming up with a a little bit of fixture congestion that I think it's worth hitting on here before we get to some CONCACAF Champions Cup takes.
00:41:55
Speaker
I mean, you got Houston coming up on Saturday and then turning right around for l afc on Wednesday, what are you hoping to see from the team over these couple of games?
00:42:07
Speaker
And is there anything lineup wise that you feel strongly about that they should do, whether it's mixing and matching or rotating or getting someone more minutes? How do you size this stretch up?
00:42:18
Speaker
You have to rotate. For me, there are two guys that, although things have gone extremely well, need and deserve some time in, and that's JP and Danny Leyva.
00:42:29
Speaker
You got to get them ready for what's coming ahead. I feel like you if you're going to use your depth, you need to use it now. A guy like Georgie Minungu, who He's clearly in a competition there as well to not even just be a starter, but just to get into the 18 right now. That's how much depth we have, or that's how much depth the team has and how much talent.
00:42:52
Speaker
So a guy like Georgie, it'd be nice to see how he does on a game where you start him off and see where he's at right now. I thought there was Sario in this one, although he misses that goal.
00:43:05
Speaker
That's what i was looking for. I would love to see him again. And what I mean by i love to see him is just because moving forward, everything's great right now and things have played out. We're coming from a very good game. So ah the, the sensations are very high, but the reality is this, there's a very good chance that Jordan Morris either misses the start of the club world cup or maybe longer, ah you know,
00:43:35
Speaker
the six to eight weeks just kind of hits in a certain spot where it's difficult to say if he's going to be available, what form he's going to be in. so I hate to sound like a broken record, but although Danny Wasofsky is doing it fantastic and you got to let him have that temporary spot, you got to figure out a plan B. the Rosario either getting signed completely with the team or you hit him on another show alone and try to see how that works out for you.
00:44:05
Speaker
But I feel like there is a need to have a guy like that be rotated in at some point in time. um But rotation for me is going to be the key of this three-game stretch.
00:44:18
Speaker
Houston's a decent team. And I know that Seattle's going to want to get a result. But at Houston, in a short week, I'm okay with putting a very alternative lineup in that one.
00:44:32
Speaker
And then you focus on LAFC and you focus on the Timbers. Yeah, I don't think, and that's not even ah like punting for the LAFC game. I just, I think there there's guys that you need to keep sharp, get minutes, keep fit.
00:44:48
Speaker
I think the JP Danny Lava double pivot is a great shout. And I want to see, i want to see more from De Rosario. Uh, I know he missed the center, which ah was about as wide open as it gets, but I think it was it was good that he got into that spot. You know you yeah shouted out the 16-pass sequence on the Moose goal.
00:45:10
Speaker
The sequence that led up to the De Rosario chance might have been the the best sequence they had all game I mean, that was champagne footy at its finest. And you wanted that one for him for the, like to get his first MLS goal in that moment. That would have been great for the crowd and it would have been a great confidence boost for the kid.
00:45:29
Speaker
ah But I do think despite the miss, it was encouraging to see him get on the end of a, of a sequence like that. And let's see what the, let's see what the kids got. He's got, he's got great genes. He's in great form in and MLS next pro.
00:45:45
Speaker
And ah maybe you maybe you have a ah the plan B that you were talking about in know in this kid. You're you're not going to find out unless you give him a chance to play. And I think, you know, it's hard to say from the brief cameo that he got. But I did like what I saw on that sequence from from him. But really, the whole team.
00:46:06
Speaker
I mean, do you have any De Rosario takes or thoughts? No, it just that alone. I feel like he showed his field awareness. I felt like in that play that he misses, it's very easy for a young player to be off sides.
00:46:21
Speaker
He's completely looking at where he's sitting. He comes back. Obviously, he didn't get on the ball as much as he wanted to, but when he was playing off the ball, I was keeping my eye on him, and his spacing was excellent.
00:46:32
Speaker
ah The de pressing for me is is is big because... ah Everybody knows that it's basketball. Everybody needs to do a little bit of everything. But the way that they press as a unit for me, ah he was always doing it correctly, right? And maybe this ah St. Louis team is not going to challenge you so much when it comes to building out of the bag.
00:46:55
Speaker
But I thought that he was just energetic enough and engaged enough for me to just want to see more. I think that he is an option. Yeah. ah after talking to Freddy Juarez about how good he's been, and he was excellent in practice this week.
00:47:10
Speaker
ah We're able to see it firsthand. I think that he there's a lot of promise there. He's not the fastest guy, not the biggest guy, but he gets into great positions, and he reads the game extremely well, and he is a finisher.
00:47:23
Speaker
And sometimes you need a finisher, a lot of times and you need finisher, so why not? Uh, let's hit a couple of these, uh, takes from chat and then, uh, talk some CONCACAF champions cup, uh, before we start wrapping it up here, Nico Adi says, I've been a bit shocked at how little playing time JP has gotten. He couldn't have fallen off that much, right? He's looked fine from what I've seen know this year. Uh,
00:47:45
Speaker
Yeah, my read on it is that JP's lack of playing time isn't necessarily due to form or like a steep decline with the player. i just think this midfield group is pretty hard to break into right now.
00:47:56
Speaker
I mean, you've got Christian and Obed as the like no question about it. First choice, double pivot. And then what they have done. they've done the JP Danny Leva double pivot when they've had to rotate.
00:48:08
Speaker
And ah i mean I guess there just maybe hasn't been as much of an opportunity ah to deploy that. Although I agree, you know, I haven't really thought about it in a couple weeks, but i i feel like JP when he has gotten on the field this year has looked pretty good. And honestly, i think we're going to see JP and Danny Leva,
00:48:29
Speaker
play a fair amount in this upcoming stretch here because of the fixture congestion. Nico, you got any sort of different read on JP? ah No, i think JP is dying to get in. I feel like he's been really good at practice now that we're finally in for as much as me and Brian's much bigger. I mean, I always take these moments where we see the game the same way.
00:48:53
Speaker
And look, I'm not the guy that's going to like bore you tactically with things, but I see the game and I read the game. very well. And I have no shame in my game to say that I'll two-mile horn all day.
00:49:04
Speaker
The 4-2-3-1 for me, especially without Jackson Reagan in the build-out is so much ah better fit because you do build out with six. the The way and where those ah guys like right now is Christian Rodan that's coming back to be a main outlet to help you from the back.
00:49:22
Speaker
I think JP can do that even better than Christian just in that department. They're the distribution department. So I think that he needs to be and I love Christian Roldan, and I have no doubt that he wants to be in every game, every minute, but he's a like Ozzie, where you got to protect him from himself, where he's like, look, Ozzie, you just had an injury.
00:49:46
Speaker
You can't be back out here already. Christian's the same way. He's not injury prone, but he wants to be in every single game. He has the most minutes of any sounder player right now, 908 minutes.
00:49:59
Speaker
He started 10 and has played 11. I mean, the dude has got zero rest. So let's not push it. Let's not overcook him. I would love to see him take a game off and and just manage his minutes a little bit because it is a lot for him to take.
00:50:17
Speaker
So, When you have a guy like JP that's experienced, that you're going to be able to rely on, that that's why you brought him back, I don't see a reason why you wouldn't use him more consistently.
00:50:27
Speaker
However, i mean, i understand that when the team is hot, the team is hot. And if your player and the sports science is backing up that he can't be out there, have no problem. I understand it.
00:50:39
Speaker
But I would like to see JP and Leva get more time, simply because I am a shh. consistent believer that you need to have certain players in your bench ready to go at a moment's notice.
00:50:53
Speaker
And you can only really do that through getting them competitive minutes consistently. So I would like to see them, especially this stretch, be used a little bit more. Nico, when you look at these two road games coming up, first at Houston, then short turnaround at LAFC, what are your hopes and expectations and what do you think would be a successful haul from these from these two games specifically before Portland? The way I kind of see this is, you know, there's six points available. If you take four, win one, draw one.
00:51:24
Speaker
I think you take that considering the fixture congestion and the fact that Houston's historically a pretty difficult place for Seattle to play. It's getting hotter. That Texas heat is coming.
00:51:37
Speaker
So that might be a factor in that game. I kind of always look at a ah draw at Houston away as fine because of how difficult it's been historically for Seattle to take results in Texas.
00:51:49
Speaker
ah But if you beat Houston, tie LAFC or tie Houston beat LAFC, take four out of six. That would be a successful little road trip pre-Portland to me.
00:52:00
Speaker
ah What are you hoping to see? I'm hoping to see five out of six. I mean, five out of, what is it? Nine. i think in the port one game Yeah, exactly. far Factoring the Portland game. I think that you have enough to,
00:52:15
Speaker
And you got set the bar higher, um in my opinion, for this team coming up for this game with this momentum. ah Like you mentioned, Houston is a difficult place to play. ah They're not the most dangerous team. I thought that they kind of had things figure out.
00:52:30
Speaker
um But this LAFC game was really disappointing. Watched the whole 90 and in I found it hard to...
00:52:40
Speaker
a fathom a way where the Sounders don't come up with a result because they are so, um, anemic offensively right now. I've thought that with Lingers, uh, acquisition and he's been decent in the first two games that he's had, but in this one, he was poor.
00:52:58
Speaker
Uh, there was no control on the ball. Uh, they lack intensity. They lack tempo. So, For me, Seattle should and needs to get a result, whether it's a win or it's a draw, but they cannot lose this game.
00:53:12
Speaker
When it comes to LAFC, they're so you know on and off. LAFC could look like the best team in the league. They could look like the worst team in the league. um So for me, a draw there would be okay as well.
00:53:23
Speaker
ah You know, can can you put them under heels? You know, can you affect the game in a way where you control it? Because they're going to give you possession. They're going to play against the run of play.
00:53:34
Speaker
And, you know, maybe that benefits Seattle. And then the Timbers game, man, that's a huge one. That's the one that you need to win, not just because of the standings, but because of everything that we know that comes together with this rivalry.
00:53:49
Speaker
ah i maybe more than most put a lot of stock on momentum and a loss to Portland would heavily hurt and hinder the momentum of this team.
00:54:02
Speaker
So for me, that's a huge game for Seattle. So all in all, man, give me five and I'm a happy camper, but more than the results and this might get me in trouble, but just the the way that you do them for me right now, I want to see a team that just like Brian's measure has talked about the standard of new, I'm going put the standard of the Sounders.
00:54:24
Speaker
And I want to see consistency in the way they play and the performances that they put together in this three-game stretch. So aside from the result, I want to see a good performance in a team that's cohesive and knows where they're going.
00:54:38
Speaker
what do you make of ah the Portland Timbs right now? You know, they ah they had been in some of the best form in the league for the last, I don't know, month or so, scoring boatloads of goals, looking really dynamic on offense, really basically looking pretty much like the Portland Timbs when they've been at their best.
00:54:58
Speaker
forever. They're always the exact same type of team, you know can score with anyone really good on the counter, not always solid on defense. ah But to their, to be fair, they had been playing some good all around ball the last few weeks.
00:55:09
Speaker
And then they go out there this last weekend and, get absolutely demolished by the San Jose earthquakes four to one San Jose, ah has been a good attacking team this year. They have some of the most goals. They have 24 goals this season. Uh, but still with how the Timbs had been playing, I think you would expect them to not be non-competitive against the San Jose earthquakes.
00:55:36
Speaker
Uh, they're playing Tacoma defiance at star fire in the open cup tomorrow. And then, uh, Game at Providence Park in a couple weeks. ah what do you What do you make of what Phil Neville and company have going on? Are they closer to the team that was balling out for the last three, four weeks? Or was the San Jose result a sign that they should be on some fraud watch?
00:56:01
Speaker
who That's a tough one because... I don't know if they're a fraud. I think that they know their strengths and they are not careful with their weaknesses. So they are going to go out there and they're going to try to outscore you every single game because they know that their defense is pretty weak.
00:56:16
Speaker
The Achilles heel for this team right now is one that they haven't had in a long time because they have been blessed by Diego Chará. But the midfield is like... cutting butter with a knife. I mean, you could just play through the midfield and Ayala just hasn't been able to do it.
00:56:33
Speaker
They've tried different pairings with Ortiz and they've moved things around. but they haven't found consistency. And that makes a disbalance of that team. Now getting forward is no issue.
00:56:46
Speaker
Anthony's a baller. um Acosta is a baller. I think that regardless of who's up top, ah they always have a good score, whether it's Jonathan, whether it's Mora, Santiago Moreno. So they just have a lot of,
00:57:01
Speaker
offensive power, but when it comes to defense, when it comes especially their fullbacks, man, they just leave so much space. Mosquera is a guy that's fantastic going forward, but defending, man, you and I can probably get a couple of shots on him.
00:57:17
Speaker
So but that's the difficult part of this Timbers team that I wouldn't call him a fraud, but I think that they're a team that has a very easy-to-see Achilles heel, and you cannot go every game just willing to duke it out and hope that you can outscore the other team.
00:57:33
Speaker
Because when you can get on the ball and do not be ineffective and you're then you're going to get trampled over. And that's what happened with San Jose. ah The one Jones just brought in by Bruce Arena, who's just trying to rebuild a whole new New England Revolution here in the West Coast.
00:57:47
Speaker
ah But he was fantastic. and i And he's a guy that they needed. he freed Christian Espinosa. He freed Arango. ah He was able to connect. ah They were playing with...
00:58:00
Speaker
Espinosa as a wing back and he it was working in some sense, but there's a lot of things that you were kind of limiting Espinosa on and he is by far the most influential player in this team.
00:58:13
Speaker
So in this one, he kind of came together for him, but i don't think it's an indictment on Timbers. I think it's more of a San Jose team that's starting to really put it together.
00:58:25
Speaker
Nico, let's talk about ah some CONCACAF Champions Cup before we start the wrap-up process here on this episode of Lobbing Scorchers Kickoff. ah Everyone in chat, if you haven't yet, please like the video.
00:58:39
Speaker
And if you're watching and you haven't subbed to the channel, Sub to the channel. ah We are on the road to 2K subscribers here on our channel, which would be a great milestone for us. we're We're pretty close. We're not that close, but we're getting there. So sub to the channel, like the video. ah Nico.
00:58:58
Speaker
Last time that we spoke, the Vancouver Whitecaps were ahead 2-0 on aggregate in their CONCACAF Champions Cup semifinal series versus Inter-Miami.
Vancouver Whitecaps in CCC Final
00:59:06
Speaker
I think we both predicted that they were going to finish the job, ah but they finished the job even more emphatically than we predicted. You were saying, like, I think they're going to get, like, the draw done. They're going to get, like, the ah classic road result that's not necessarily the greatest result on its own, but it's going to be enough to get the series. I mean, they destroyed Inter-Miami again.
00:59:28
Speaker
Again, yeah in their in their own building, 3-1, 5-1 on aggregate, wasn't even a series. Messi and the Barca boys had nothing on the Vancouver Whitecaps, who don't even have Scottish Messi right now.
00:59:40
Speaker
ah So the Whitecaps are now going to play Cruz Azul in the CCC final. They went out there in ah in their next league game, won again, beat Real Salt Lake 2-1.
00:59:52
Speaker
So apparently... They can't be stopped at all ah right now. But what did you make of just how they closed out that Inter-Miami series? Like, not just finishing the job, but punking them in their own building.
01:00:07
Speaker
And really, ah even more than the first leg, I would say, It looked like, ah I mean, it looked like what the the second half of the Sounders against St. Louis. Like, they were just a step ahead of Inter-Miami every step of the way.
01:00:22
Speaker
And Miami got the first goal, but from there, it was all Vancouver. What do you, what did you make of how that series ended up going? I think Jasper Sorensen did a fantastic job at getting the team ready mentally.
01:00:36
Speaker
The psychology of soccer is something that not a lot of people put a lot of stock on, but it's a real thing, especially when you're going against a team with so many big name players as in Miami.
01:00:47
Speaker
He completely humanized the way that they were going to go into this game. He told his squad, look, it's about what we do better. And we're going to make them run. We're more athletic.
01:00:58
Speaker
we're We're quicker. We're going to get them going. And that's exactly what he did. This Vancouver team has so much speed in so many places, whether it's Ocampo, whether it's Nelson.
01:01:09
Speaker
ah They do all the little things right. that The dual play by a guy like Pedro Vite, who I don't need to shout out anymore, and Kubas was fantastic. I mean, they completely...
01:01:23
Speaker
took Busquets out of the game. ah They frustrated the ah very little opportunities that the team in Miami had when it came to transition.
01:01:34
Speaker
They exposed the flanks so much. It's something that we have been talking about all season long when he came to Indiana, Miami, whether it's Chelo on one side or Jordy in the other, there's a bunch of space to play behind him consistently.
01:01:48
Speaker
And Jasper Scherz just put that belief in them and they came out, they were protagonists. They took the game to them. And even when they, when they were down early in this one, they were down early in that game.
01:02:01
Speaker
They had the composure and belief to say, we're going to continue to play our game. and They did it. I thought it was almost hard to believe that Jasper Sores went after the game and said, look, I thought we played better today than we did and in in Vancouver.
01:02:18
Speaker
we We were just not rushed. We held the ball we needed to. we We never lost composure. Man, I just think that there is a perfect storm happening in Vancouver of a team that collectively is at an all-time high,
01:02:35
Speaker
a coach that knows what he wants out of his team, knows how to get it out of his team, and has provided a level of confidence that they've never had.
01:02:46
Speaker
They're soaring high because it's a collective, man. And Brian White seems unstoppable, and they seem to have all the right ideas,
01:02:59
Speaker
You side right now against RSL. That game should have been three one And this is a team that has not lost a beat. They have the the most amount of points in 11 games in MLS history, if I'm not mistaken now.
01:03:13
Speaker
And that's no ah coincidence. that That is team that is consistently good. And that's why, for me, they will beat Cruz Azul. And they will take it to Cruz Azul.
01:03:24
Speaker
And they will win CCC this year. I think so too. I think so too. I think what they're doing right now is honestly, ah it's one of the most impressive runs from an MLS club, regardless of what happens in the final, honestly, just the run they've been on is one of the more impressive runs I've ever seen from an MLS club.
01:03:44
Speaker
When you take into account that it's not like they made, they had like a ton of roster turnover and brought in a bunch of new signings. It's, uh, roughly the so a similar team that they had last year. They're bringing in a new coach who usually in your first year, there's an adaptation period.
01:04:02
Speaker
And then when you throw in ah how well that they've balanced CCC with their league season, where they're playing at like a 2.3 or 4 points per game pace so in the league while dominating in CCC and then absolutely obliterating Messi and the Barca boys.
01:04:18
Speaker
ah If they see it out, it will be arguably the most impressive run an MLS club has ever had. ah Jesper Sorensen, I think he's just him.
01:04:30
Speaker
ah think he's him. Like, that's the only way I can explain it. but ah I'm a fan. I'm a fan. I mean, I really am. i i didn't think that I could like him because I was such a Dini guy, a 13 guy, that I was like, man, you know, whatever. But this dude, man, he he just...
01:04:49
Speaker
he he He means what he says and says what he means. And I just love me He's straight up forward up there. you know And again, the way he humanized this game to me was fantastic. And he just said, look, my son has a poster of Lionel Messi.
01:05:03
Speaker
And I told the guys, I was like, look, I understand that it's Messi and it's Busquets, it's Alba, but we need to worry about us. we need This is the way we're going to approach this game, man. And they just put it on Inter-Miami and they ex exposed him.
01:05:16
Speaker
They made him look old. They made him look slow. Oh man, it's just, it's, it's a beauty to see, man. I honestly enjoy a team that can put itself together and overcome star studded teams yeah and what you're seeing out of Vancouver, man.
01:05:35
Speaker
Exactly. That's why going into it, I was saying like, you know, I know people have different schools of thought on if you should like be praising or rooting for a rival. I mean, as far as praising them, like, yeah they're What they're doing on the field is you can't really have any other takeaway from it.
01:05:51
Speaker
And I don't think for me it's like I'm actively rooting for them. ah But i did there was a big part of me that was like, just beat Inter-Miami. Like you said, I'll take a i'll take a team like that over...
01:06:07
Speaker
but A team that's just like a bunch of stars bought You know Which I mean you under my me like i I would do the same thing if I was in their situation But they found out what happens When ah when you go against a real team I'm rooting for them I'm rooting for them I really am I'm rooting for magazine in miami um'm go to roof them against against Cruz Azul There's nothing better than ah club that A fan base that's been so loyal that it has been scared of their minds because there's a potential that they get sold and all these things that they have to deal with.
01:06:40
Speaker
And now they got this core group of guys that are just out there, just living it all on the field. And they're giving this fan base this huge moment. I just couldn't be happier for him. and And I could not not root for him.
01:06:54
Speaker
One thing that I'm pretty upset about with this CCC final is that ah Sebastian Berhalter, the best number eight in Major League Soccer, suspended for a ah yellow card accumulation. um I already have complained about this a lot, but going to take this opportunity to complain about it again.
01:07:11
Speaker
The two yellows in a series being a suspension policy from CONCACAF is the dumbest shit I've ever heard in my life. There's no reason that... two separate yellow cards in two separate games, even if in they' in the same series, should result in a suspension.
01:07:27
Speaker
If you get a red card, that is what results in a suspension. Not one yellow card in one game and another yellow card in another. There's no, like, I had people in a chat when I was complaining about this last time, like, well, if you think about it, no, there's no rationale for that policy. It's just a stupid policy and it's robbing us. It's robbing us ah all of getting to see the best number eight in Major League Soccer Sebastian Berhalter play in a CCC final.
01:07:52
Speaker
I still think they're going to win with this team right now. It doesn't seem to matter who's on the field. Like they win three to one. So I don't, I don't think it's a situation where it's going to be result defining.
01:08:03
Speaker
It just sucks because he is one of the most fun players in the league to watch right now. This would be a great showcase for him. And it's just stupid. There's no reason at all that he should be suspended. One of them was a time wasting yellow.
01:08:17
Speaker
What are we doing? No, it's not. But I mean, look, it's the way of the world. And if anything, Vancouver has enough of of of an identity and a depth to manage that. But I'm with you. It sucks not to see a player like that and have two teams at their complete full capability.
01:08:36
Speaker
go at it in the final. So it is tough, but you know, it is the way of the world. What I will say is that, um, Cruz Azul himself, they, they haven't looked impressive, uh, and they've had, they they have some, some injuries, some issues as well. So,
01:08:51
Speaker
ah If anything, it'll balance out. And we're talking about almost a month, if I'm not mistaken. Well, it's almost a month when when that game is going to happen. It's going to be interesting what happened if Rand Gold might be able to be back or if he's back and if he's available for that particular game.
01:09:08
Speaker
ah So, you know, we'll see. Maybe, you know, you maybe you lost Verhoeven, but you gained your playmaker. So, you know, we'll see how that plays out. I didn't watch the Cruz Azul-Tigris series, but from what you've said and what I've kind of ah gleamed, it sounds like it was ah two mid-teams just going at it. little They had a little mid-off, and now they've got to play the play the buzzsaw that is the Vancouver Whitecaps. I mean, ah did you did you come out of their second leg feeling any different about it, or is this it was it just two mid-teams?
01:09:41
Speaker
No, it it is. Look, I hate to just you know call them mid-team, but let's just say that they're not playing to their optimal potential.
01:09:53
Speaker
Both of the legs were very... ah physical and sloppy. And although Cruzul to me was the better team in both and they controlled the tempo in both and they have more possession of the ball, they they win this one late. I thought it was going to go into Topeka for a second.
01:10:13
Speaker
And I think a lot of it has to do with, there's been a bit of a rotating door and they're attacking them. I feel like they depend a lot on Rotondi and depending on If he gets pinned back because he does have defensive necessities for the team, they are really unbalanced on their attack.
01:10:32
Speaker
um And it takes them a while to get from point A to point B. I also feel like they have digressed on their build out with Vita, who he's had a couple of really bad games.
01:10:45
Speaker
So... Vancouver might not be the highest pressing team, but they're an effective pressing team. So when I look at it and I see the strengths of both teams, Vancouver for me, I don't want to jinx them, but they might have an easier game than they're expecting because of some of the issues that Cruzul currently has.
01:11:10
Speaker
So Take it for what it is. Believe me or not, but I'm all in on Vancouver. I think that they're going to be able to win this one, and I think they'll win it dominantly.
01:11:22
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, I feel pretty much the same way. You never know what's going to happen, but that's definitely the vibe that that I got right now. ah Do we know if CONCACAF is doing a neutral stadium or is Cruz Azul hosting? I don't know. Nico, do you know that?
01:11:35
Speaker
Cruz Azul is hosting. Why? yeah like How do they decide that? ah It was the way of the tournament. If they drew, it was going to be, if if it were going to PKs, it would have gone to Vancouver.
01:11:48
Speaker
ah But because of the wins throughout the tournament, I think that's the way they determine it. ah But long story short, it was decided by the but result.
01:11:59
Speaker
Like I said, if they were going to PKs, would have been in Vancouver. If either Mexican team won, it was going to be in Mexico. So they're going to host at Estadio Olimpico. I don't know about that. It seems a little shady to me.
01:12:10
Speaker
The CONCACAF oligarchs are clearly trying to sabotage the Vancouver Whitecaps. They're not letting them host. They're taking away Sebastian Berhalter. It's not going to work. It's not going to work. They they want the Liga and Mekki's team to win. That's fine.
01:12:24
Speaker
That's... ah It's not going to work. You can't you can't contain the Vancouver Whitecaps, even without Sebastian Berhalter. You can't contain State! Yeah, exactly, exactly.
01:12:35
Speaker
a Good stat from James here. Most important news, with their 1-0 win ah last night, Sporting KC became the first team in MLS history to win a game without attempting a single shot in the contest.
01:12:47
Speaker
um I don't know if you saw that, Nico, but... um i did not watch that. i didn't watch So I didn't watch it, but I looked at the stats at halftime, and the XG was... ah So SKC was up 1-0, and the XG was 0.00 for Sporting KC and 0.45 for the Galaxy.
01:13:05
Speaker
And SKC was leading on an own goal. So that's how they had 0XG with a goal. And then they never took a shot again in the match, then they won and they ended up winning 1-0.
01:13:17
Speaker
So that was a really great Sunday night shot soccer showcase ah for the MLS casuals, electric stuff. And the the club of professional wrestling enthusiasts ekes out a 1-0 over. Yeah, it's a great game to watch that game.
01:13:34
Speaker
I ended up watching the Columbus Charlotte, ah the San Jose Portland, The Vancouver RSL, of course, and then the Sounders. So I got a fifth one.
01:13:46
Speaker
I'll probably end up watching that one just to giggle at it because I mean, it's probably going to be boring as hell, but I feel like I need to do it for these two Western Conference teams that might be hilarious to watch.
01:13:58
Speaker
First team in MOS history that' one without attempting a single shot. Soccer is a ah funny game sometime. um Nico, before we ah before we get out of here, anything else that you wanted to hit, either Sounders-wise or league-wide? You know, there's a couple other ah results out there that caught the eye. I mean, Inter-Miami, they bounced back in a big way.
01:14:20
Speaker
They slammed the Red Bulls But I think that – ah that kind of underscores like how impressive the Vancouver result was. i mean, they made inter Miami look not as good as we all thought, but inter Miami is still one of the best teams in the league. I think there's still ah ah top two team, at least in the East Columbus is up there, ah but they, they got right. But actually this is, here's what I'll hit on with this.
01:14:47
Speaker
Did you see ah the whole thing with ah like Messi's reaction after that game? Did you see any of that? Yeah. So he... i Did he score? we go Hold on, hold on. I got to make sure i got... Yeah, he scored. He scored the last goal.
01:15:02
Speaker
He scored, didn't really celebrate, didn't look happy. Then the game ended. They won four to one and he didn't, like, shake anyone's hand or yuck it up with anyone after the game. Straight to the locker room, stone-faced, didn't look happy at all. I think the ah way that that Champions Cup series went is still eating at him.
01:15:21
Speaker
And just in general, like... The absolute number one priority in that organization is specifically keeping that guy happy. I mean, they've hired the all the entire staff that they've hired since he got there is like his extended social group.
01:15:36
Speaker
ah his His boy is the coach. His boy is the sporting director. All his boys are on the team. If he's not happy, i mean, that that is not good for them.
01:15:46
Speaker
That's not good. Yeah, no, that's tough. That's job number one is keeping him happy. So whatever it is, this team has undershot either way. It's about titles and the shield is just a consolation prize, in my opinion.
01:16:00
Speaker
so for me, I know that, you know, the league's couple fantastic when he first came in, but he came in here for multiples. And I thought that he saw himself doing that. And it hasn't equated. and And that's why he's probably pretty obsessed, pretty frustrated. um And look, they beat a Rebels team that, you know, they they kind of beat themselves to be quite frank in this one.
01:16:20
Speaker
But at the end of the day, Lionel Messi probably has a lot of pressure within himself that that that he wants to prove that, you know, he's the ultimate player. soccer player, and I guess.
01:16:31
Speaker
um In terms of the scores of the weekend, I just, there was two that I wanted to just touch on and it was just Minnesota just showed you that putting $30 million dollars into your offense in terms of Austin doesn't equate to goals. 3-0. Austin looked awful and Minnesota just beat the brakes off of Austin.
01:16:50
Speaker
ah Same thing as San Diego and Dallas. San Diego gets a get-right game. 5-0 over Dallas who... we will see in this stretch of of road games at some point. Oh no, no, they'll be here.
01:17:03
Speaker
They'll be home. After the that the stretch of three games, road trips, it'll be a home game against Dallas. But ah yeah, San Diego gets it right. They're still a fun team. That's a team we'll see as well here moving forward.
01:17:16
Speaker
its a good point about Austin FC. You know, I've been talking about Atlanta United the last couple weeks because I shot in Freud follow all their struggles quite closely. And they also poured $30 million dollars into their attack and are off to the worst start in club history.
01:17:33
Speaker
Austin FC similar idea. They, they, they went big on the transfer fees in the off season. And ah even when they were taking some results earlier in the season, it was not because they were scoring goals.
01:17:46
Speaker
ah So yeah, that's a, it's, it's another interesting one. It's another example that, Just throwing money at the problem isn't always going to fix it. We're seeing it with Atlanta. We've seen it a lot with
Inter-Miami's Struggles and Management Issues
01:18:00
Speaker
Toronto. We're seeing it with Austin.
01:18:02
Speaker
Meanwhile, the Vancouver Whitecaps are the greatest team that we've ah ever seen. ah So go figure. Nico, I did want to circle back, ah get your take, inter-Miami related take. why do you think it is that they have underachieved as much as they have in terms of like the overall trophy hall?
01:18:20
Speaker
I don't think there's any debate that when Messi and the Barca boys are at their apex, the, the, i mean, the footy that they play is excellent. And i don't even want to downplay that they won the shield and set the points record. That's a great accomplishment for any team.
01:18:36
Speaker
ah Whatever you think of leagues cup, they had an impressive performance in that tournament to win it. ah But, There's also no question about it that when you look at their total trophy case for ah the amount of time they've had this version of their team together, i would be disappointed by it if I was a fan of their team. And really, when you look at how they've played at their top level, it's kind of surprising that they haven't been able to finish the job in at least a couple of these situations.
01:19:06
Speaker
what do you What do you think it is that... ah Is it just unlucky or are they just like not up to the moment? like why i I think they'd miss um they missed their chance and this team was always going to have a very short window but be extremely successful because of the age of the team and because of the relevance of certain players.
01:19:32
Speaker
The fact that they were bounced out by Atlanta... completely dismantled that team. is it it was It was a ah hit to the organization that they might not get over.
01:19:45
Speaker
And for me, that was the start of the decline for this team. They completely broke everything apart. They gave up Diego Gomez. They moved Campana. and look They have a very good squad right now. i'm not saying that they don't because they have the capability.
01:19:58
Speaker
But you moved away from that group that, like you said, Basically the hardest, although it's a consolation prize, because for me, if you don't get the league, you don't get anything. But the hardest trophy to get is the Shield, because you have to be consistent the entire year, which is not easy. And they did that with that particular group of players.
01:20:16
Speaker
But then they were outperformed, or they just couldn't get past Atlanta. And That to me was just too much of a hit for the organization to take.
01:20:28
Speaker
Chris Henderson's gone. whole bunch of things have moved on. i think Jorge Mas is a guy that's way too involved in the um ah management side. And I think this specific group right now is starting to feel some of those ah that age. Look, Suarez this year doesn't look like Suarez of last year.
01:20:47
Speaker
He just tried to clear the fence or the... What is it called? The little things behind the the the the goal when he celebrates and he ends up hitting himself really hard. more no i didn burie you don you know i mean He just looks a lot older. Messi looks a little bit frustrated with everything. i feel like they...
01:21:11
Speaker
They let guys go that were big, influential guys that they haven't replaced. Matias Rojas, Diego Gomez, a whole bunch of guys that were a big part of this group. So I just think it's it's a lot of things come together. But all in all, for me, the window of success for this team was going to be very short.
01:21:29
Speaker
And I like to say that it might have closed already. It looks like it low-key might have. Because the thing about the Whitecaps series is it's like you are going against the greatest team we've ever seen, apparently.
01:21:40
Speaker
But to be kind of non-competitive. Like, there was a brief window in that series where Jordi Alba scored the goal to cut it to 2-1. But outside of that, that series was all Vancouver. They looked so far off the level.
01:21:52
Speaker
Like, in a way that I would be pretty alarmed. if I were there because they're the team that's supposed to be far surpassing the other team's levels. They're not supposed to get run like that by anybody. And ah the fact that they did messy looks frustrated.
01:22:07
Speaker
I think the, the vibes are tenuous down there. The vibes are tenuous for messy in the Barca boys. i you know, I'm not even that anti messy in the Barca boys. I, when they, ah like I said, their top level is some of the best footy I've ever seen played in the league. like yeah but Like for them, like how Seattle looked in the second half against St. Louis, that was like every game for them for a long time for that season where they set the points record and set the shield.
01:22:30
Speaker
That's literally what it looked like every time they were on the ball every week for like pretty much the whole season. So, uh, That was great for them, but if if the final haul they get from that is a Shield and a Leagues Cup, I wouldn't say it's a failure, but it's definitely a pretty big disappointment.
01:22:48
Speaker
It'd be a pretty big disappointment. And I think the reason why Messi's so frustrated is because, and I said this from the very beginning, and it's a lot easier to win a tournament that in six games you're in a final rather than a league that you need to be either good the entirety of the of the year and then go to the playoffs and perform.
01:23:08
Speaker
So by him being kicked out of the semis, I think quite honestly, he made him realize that there's a possibility that he goes this whole year without winning anything. And maybe even a Leagues Cup might not be good enough for him. And unless he's thinking that they're going to win Club World Cup, which I seriously doubt, it's not looking good for Miami to get a trophy this year.
Conclusion and Call to Action
01:23:32
Speaker
Nico, let's call it right there for this episode of Lobbing Scorchers Kickoff. Another great one. Thank you, everyone, as always, for tuning in ah Please, there's still 100 or so of you in here. Every single one of you liked the video. Let's get this to triple-digit likes. I want to see triple-digit likes on this episode and sub to the channel and follow us on Instagram and like, comment, subscribe, write us reviews, all that. Nico, before we get out of here,
01:24:00
Speaker
you have anything coming up that you wanted to plug that you're working on for Pulseau, Sounder, Ed Hard, or anything else? ah Yeah, no, just make sure. Obviously, check Pulseau Sports for all of our content on YouTube.
01:24:11
Speaker
Our Thursdays, soccer down here, 7.30 8.15. Go ahead and check that out as well. ah Lots of fun MLS talking, of course.
01:24:22
Speaker
Always the best information and the best podcast in the Sandra Hart Podcast Network on Fridays. We're going to, as always, do ah what we learned this week with Jeremiah O'Shan.
01:24:32
Speaker
ah we We might have an interesting um guest in this one, so go ahead and check that out. ah But make sure, man, you subscribe, you like. You know what? If you guys like this video right now, might, if there's enough of you, I might bring a little something that we could like raffle or something with people that like this video or something. Yeah, triple digit goes to hosting a raffle. You heard it here.
01:24:56
Speaker
Derek Richards, thank you for the $3 super sticker to close it out. You the man. Appreciate you. Tacoma Defiance versus Portland Timbys. U.S. Oakland Cup at Starfire tomorrow.
01:25:09
Speaker
Noah and I are going out there. We're going to have Jeremiah and a special guest. Nico, are you rolling? I'll be rolling, man. I'll be there. we'll ah we'll We'll get you on as well. The whole gang is going to be there. last Last time we were out there, it was super fun. ah like I love getting to a meet you all in IRL hangout.
01:25:29
Speaker
So definitely, if you got no plans for your Tuesday night, tomorrow night, come out to Starfire. We'll be there with with friends and special guests. And then I'll also be back at it on Thursday for Under the Lights, 7.30 Pacific time.
01:25:47
Speaker
And Noah and I also have a dub pod to lay down. So lots of content coming your way this week, including including tomorrow's live show. So See you all out there. Thank you for tuning in and we'll catch you next time.