Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Kickoff: Can the Seattle Sounders make an MLS Cup run?
0 Plays3 seconds ago
Coming off a 2-1 Decision Day victory at New York City FC, it's time to look ahead to the MLS Cup Playoffs for the Seattle Sounders. A Round One matchup with Minnesota United awaits, pitting the Rave Green against an opponent that's gotten the better of them twice in 2025. Can they flip the script and commence a push towards the club's third-ever MLS Cup title? We'll also discuss the injury to Pedro de la Vega and preview some of the other Wild Card and Round One playoff matchups. Follow Lobbing Scorchers:
SPONSORS
Haxan Ferments - Specializing in unique, small-batch fermented hot sauces and vinegars, Haxan Ferments is handcrafted in Georgetown and made with the best local ingredients from across the Pacific Northwest. Use Code LS for a FREE Hot Sauce w/ purchase!
Sounder at Heart - Our network host and biggest supporter, Sounder at Heart covers the Seattle Sounders, Seattle Reign, and MUCH MORE! Subscribe and Support to the BEST independent Seattle Soccer coverage.
Podium Edmonds - Located at 114 4th Ave N, just off Main Street in the heart of Downtown Edmonds, come shop and explore the best menswear in the Pacific Northwest. Tell them Lobbing Scorchers sent you!
Full Pull Wines - Founded in 2009, they the best boutique wines of the world to members, with special focus on our home, the Pacific Northwest.
My Data Removal - Data brokers are selling your personal information! Fight back with My Data Removal. Hunt down and scrub your sensitive information from the internet. Use code "LS" for $10 off your annual plan.
Seattle Sounders Tickets - Get tickets to an upcoming match straight from the club and help support the show at the same time.
MLS Season Pass - MLS Season Pass is back on Apple TV with access to every single MLS match—including Leagues Cup and the entire Audi MLS Cup Playoffs—with no blackouts! Subscribe today to support the show.
MLS Store - New year, new gear! The 2025 MLS jerseys are here, and MLSStore is the ultimate destination for every fan. Every purchase helps support our show!
Lobbing Scorchers is a production of Just Once Media.
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.
Contact: lobbingscorchers@justoncemedia.com
Recommended
Transcript
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 a real scorcher today. Why the scorcher today? Well it's gonna be scorcher.
00:00:44
Speaker
Good morning, everybody. Welcome to another episode of Lobbing Scorchers Kickoff. I'm Ari. That's Nico. We got a big show for you all here this morning, folks. It is time for the playoffs. The Seattle Sounders have a round one matchup on the docket with Minnesota United. We'll be previewing that.
00:01:02
Speaker
ah We'll be taking a look at the other playoff matchups from around Major League Soccer. We got the wild card round and we've got a few other ah round one matchups set. And then We're going to be talking about a couple of MLS coach storylines. We got a couple to hit regarding a ah Chris Armas press conference for the Colorado Rapids that kind of resembled the one that Brian Schmetzer had after the New York City FC game, except it was even more of a contentious interaction between coach and journalist there.
00:01:36
Speaker
ah We're going to play that. We'll react to it. We'll see what we think of ah the conduct of ah Chris Armas. Spoiler alert. It was not good conduct. And then we also have an MLS coach firing ah Ronnie Dyla out at Atlanta United, the first domino to fall as we look ahead to the playoffs and then the subsequent Major League Soccer offseason.
00:01:56
Speaker
ah So a lot to get to. Nico, what's up, man? How are you feeling post NYCFC press conference? We talked about it on the podcast. on the watch along, but, ah you know, couple of days removed. How are you doing, man?
00:02:09
Speaker
Hey, man, I am feeling pretty, pretty good. You know, I've been able to ah watch that New York City FC game one more time, and I was even more encouraged than I was watching it live the first time.
00:02:25
Speaker
Clearly, there's a big looming cloud above the entire win and the close of the game. 2025 season because of Pedro de la Vegas injury.
00:02:37
Speaker
But um we are hoping that maybe that is not an ACL and it's ah something less serious that it might keep them away for you know, this year in the playoffs, but it won't be an issue starting 2026.
00:02:54
Speaker
twenty twenty six And I feel like that's basically a scenario to be quite honest. So feeling good. A lot of messages from the fans. ah So I appreciate everybody reaching out, ah you know, talking about all kinds of stuff about the game, not about the game.
00:03:10
Speaker
ah So, yeah, man, it's exciting. I feel like everybody has been ah very active, engaged in social media. Yeah, i guess let's just, ah let's start right there. Before we do all that, if everyone could please like the video, subscribe to the channel, ah follow us on Instagram and TikTok, like the reel we posted on both of those platforms of Noah Photoshopping Jordan Morris into a Mets jersey, if you're watching the watch alone.
00:03:36
Speaker
It was a really, he worked really hard on it and it's only a 200 likes. So give give the ah New York Mets Photoshop a like. and uh buy the lobbing scorchers hot sauce via hacks and ferments lobbing scorchers.com sauce and uh i think that's everything that we have to show we're going to doing a lot of uh playoff coverage so everyone just uh get ready to lock in it's time for the postseason it's the best time so uh the the content train keeps rolling we're not stopping ah Nico, I guess, why don't we start with what you were just talking about right there. You said you went back and watched the NYCFC game.
00:04:13
Speaker
Obviously, a good result for the Sounders on decision day and a good performance, I think, more importantly. ah on On rewatch, what did you like? I mean, you know, they get the 2-1 win, a Jackson-Reagan game winner. It looks like another blown lead.
00:04:29
Speaker
But then the response was very good. They come back, they get the game winner, and they hold on for the two one And then obviously what you mentioned, though, yeah, it is a cloud over the whole situation ah with Pedro De La Vega going off with the injury. As of this recording, we still don't know the severity or how long it's going to keep him out.
00:04:51
Speaker
Seems like he's probably not going to play in the playoffs. We don't know that for sure yet, but... I think in all likelihood, we're looking at a playoff run without Pedro de la Vega. What'd you see on, on rewatch? And then I guess, how are you feeling about this team's chances of making an MLS cup run?
00:05:07
Speaker
If they do indeed have to do it without Pedro de la Vega. Yeah. Look on rewatch. I was just um more encouraged about Seattle at times,
00:05:22
Speaker
not doing well dealing with the ebbs and flows of the game. You hear Brian Smatter talk a lot about and flows and the way that at times a team can ah get on top of you and make a couple of changes and maybe the the tempo of the game switches or the momentum.
00:05:41
Speaker
And I thought that Seattle in the beginning of the second half, New York City comes off with all the intensity and they really do manage to control a little bit of that game right after, right at the start of the second half.
00:05:55
Speaker
And I thought Seattle managed that well. I thought that the substitutions were timely Bush, Snyder, Burnell for JP and then John Bell for Alex Roldan. ah Obviously John Bell being more of a defensive ah type of, um,
00:06:14
Speaker
four back or, you know, he dropped back like a three-man back line. I mean, yeah i just feel like he gave a lot of soliditude ah to the team. And what you wanted to do against New York City FC was prevent them from hurting you in transition.
00:06:30
Speaker
And I thought that Seattle did that fantastically the whole game. There were all the guys who were on the right side of the ball, goal side. ah There were a lot of, you know, sounder players that were defending well.
00:06:42
Speaker
ah They, they didn't, it's not that they were dropping incredibly deep. They were just very compact. Their lines were very compact. And I thought that they controlled the game of where they wanted to play that, in different lapses of the game, where they wanted the confrontation line to be. I felt like that's where it was at, regardless of how that changed throughout the game.
00:07:02
Speaker
um i think defense is something that we have all thought that We want to see back with the Sounders, right? I mean, regardless of how entertaining and good and fun it is to have a team that creates so many chances and has so much volume.
00:07:20
Speaker
I think that we all know that when he comes to the playoffs, you've got to be better defensively. And I thought that they were better defensively. The equalizer comes in in a moment where, ah once again, I think Paul Rothrock rushes.
00:07:32
Speaker
Danny Leyva's still trying to get up. I think Nico Fernandez is still trying to get him up when Paul Rothrock's already playing that ball negatively back in into the Sounders on third, where New York City already has numbers forward and the repress is just a lot easier.
00:07:50
Speaker
That creates a disbalance there. Eventually, Danny Leyva, there's a bad turnover on him. i don't know if necessarily on him. I think he was trying make a quick pass. ah It has to do a lot with the pressure that New York City was giving you, and that creates an equalizer.
00:08:04
Speaker
ah But aside from that, I thought that Seattle was just – Very disciplined. I thought that their defending was very effective. And that's probably the biggest thing that I took out of the second time I watched that.
00:08:19
Speaker
And regarding De La Vega, how are you sizing up the team's chances if they do have to play the playoffs without him? I mean, i guess for me, where my mind goes, i mean, it creates an opportunity theoretically for a guy like Georgie Manungu to step up. But I'm also i'm thinking about the Ryan situation.
00:08:40
Speaker
X-Factor. Has he been training and is he is he like on track to be back on the field and contributing for the postseason? it feels like the I haven't really thought about it in a while, but it feels like the timeline should be about right for him to ah to come back, which that would be fortuitous timing given the De La Vega situation. What's going on with that?
00:09:03
Speaker
ah Yeah, he definitely has been training. it he's been ah part of you know He's been a partial participant consistently over the last week. However, Brian has been very cautious on not providing a timeline.
00:09:15
Speaker
That tells me that he's not medically cleared to actually play. With the severity of the injury that he'd had that he has, i think even if you're feeling well as a player and you feel like you could do certain things, when it comes to explosive plays when it comes to shooting the ball at a certain pace.
00:09:38
Speaker
ah Just the physicality of regular competitive minutes, you got to be careful. You got to be mindful. And I just don't think that he's quite there yet.
00:09:50
Speaker
What I would think is that they are continuing to build up Ryan Kent to use some kind of like A break the glass emergency of Hey, that's your quote in Hebrew Hammer right here in chat.
00:10:06
Speaker
Break glass in case of emergency. Ryan Kent. Yes. It's an emergency. Yep. That's exactly it, right? You're chasing a goal. You you need something different. Without Pedro De La Vega...
00:10:19
Speaker
It is going to be a collective effort to um replicate a lot of the things that he does. And although Georgie Minungu has that one-on-one ability, he's very hard to defend, and he's gotten so much better on the defensive side. He's gotten so much better on decision-making.
00:10:39
Speaker
There's clearly a um a decline on on that specific position when Pedro's not there because of everything that he's been able to do, the product, the proven product that he's been on the field, um his mid-range shots, his um creativity, his passing that he hit tries to thread the needle every single time. And not always does it go through, but when it does, it creates – very good opportunities. I think that he reads ah his spacing very well. I think he makes the correct runs into the 18.
00:11:13
Speaker
Not that Georgie can't do that, but there's clearly, you know, what one step back from what Pedro has been doing. So it's going to be a collective effort, right? Paul Rothler has done so many great things.
00:11:24
Speaker
And Georgie's a guy that can come in off the bench, or maybe he could start. ah Ryan Kent's available, of course. So, Luckily for the Sounders, there is a lot of depth in that position.
00:11:37
Speaker
However, i am not going to hide the fact that without Pedro De La Vega, in my opinion, the percentage that Seattle goes into a deep run has decreased significantly ah because, again, he is an X factor. He is a game changer.
00:11:56
Speaker
And any time that you lose that sort of player, ah team is likely not to go as far as they could have had. Yeah, I think that's kind of ah what everyone's thinking about right now, or at least what I'm thinking about is how the De La Vegas situation affects Seattle's chances to make ah deep run. And I do think anytime you lose a player of of that caliber, you're right. It decreases the percentage odds that you're going to make it as far as you would like in the playoffs.
00:12:28
Speaker
I do think this team is more suited than most perhaps to withstand a situation where like this, you do you do have good options at that position. I mean, you got Paul Rothrock, you got Georgie Mnugu, hopefully you got Ryan Kent coming back.
00:12:43
Speaker
So I guess what I'm saying is it it makes the road to MLS Cup more difficult, more daunting, longer odds, but they're not chalked. They're not chalked.
00:12:54
Speaker
I don't think anyone should be going into this feeling like Seattle's got no chance or the MLS cup ambitions are, uh, are done for. I don't feel that way. I feel like this team can still make a run. They've played without De La Vega a lot. They obviously look a lot better when he plays.
00:13:10
Speaker
And frankly, he was healthy. I would feel pretty damn good about this team's chances, even without the home field advantage in the playoffs. Uh, I think De La Vega has been in in that good of form and that's why, uh, it's just so, so unfortunate what happened in, in that game.
00:13:27
Speaker
We obviously are are hoping for for the best, but it just sucks because, ah you know, he had all the injury issues last year and he did a little bit at the beginning of this year, but he he had been on the field contributing for most of this year and looking actually like the player that they thought they were getting.
00:13:46
Speaker
when when they shelled out $7 million dollars to Lanus to get this guy. ah this How he played this year is what ah everyone was hoping for when they when they got this player.
00:13:58
Speaker
i mean, he scored a Puskas... nominee for God's sake. mean, he scored the best goal we've seen at MLS players score in years, perhaps ever. I don't know. Like that, I think that goal was, ah was that good. So we'll, we'll see how the team handles it.
00:14:12
Speaker
But I do think like if there is a, if there is a team that can withstand this, It should be this team. So, and we'll see if that, ah we'll see if that pans out. Nico, I think, ah you know, everyone saw what happened at the, at the presser with the Brian Schmetzer, not taking too kindly to your, your question regarding Pedro de la Vega. And I don't know. I went back, in I went back and watched it again. And I just think that's,
00:14:41
Speaker
It's just a little silly because what he was taking issue with, I think, is not... He he was not interpreting correctly what what people were saying regarding the stakes of of this game. I understand that when a coach hears the word meaningless...
00:14:59
Speaker
they're immediately going to react negatively to that. you know And that's what he was saying. no No game is meaningless. We take every game, every tournament seriously. This was not a meaningless game. I would not have adjusted my lineup at all based on it being meaningless.
00:15:13
Speaker
The term meaningless in this context does not mean like that the game doesn't matter or that the performance doesn't matter ah or that it's like a pointless game that you shouldn't try. That's not what people are saying.
00:15:25
Speaker
Meaningless in this context means that no matter what the result is your your position in the standings isn't going to change. You were in fifth. going into this game you were going to be in fifth coming out of this game no matter what so i think maybe maybe people should have used the term like instead of meaningless like doesn't affect where you're going to finish in the standings one way or the other when when you're in a situation like this where it doesn't affect your position in the standings or your playoff seating one way or the other it's a completely uh normal non-controversial question to wonder if that should affect how you uh
00:16:04
Speaker
how you deploy your lineup. but Like it's, it's no different than, ah you know, we see it in, ah in the NFL, you know, week 17, when teams have their playoff seating locked up and they, they hold the starters out to keep them fresh and keep them healthy and fit for the playoffs. It's a little different. I get, cause football is like a much more physically violent sport where you would be more inclined to hold someone out in a situation like that.
00:16:28
Speaker
But I mean, like the situation with De La Vega is wonderful. why people were uh we're talking about that so i mean i just think there was a disconnect between uh the questions that were uh that were getting asked and how he was interpreting what people were saying like i said i understand why a coach would uh will take issue with characterizing a game as meaningless but like it's it's people weren't saying meaningless in the way that he was uh he was putting that meaning onto it if that uh
00:17:00
Speaker
If that makes sense. So I don't know if that's just kind of how I feel about the situation, having a, having a couple of days removed from it. How are you feeling, man? You were the one who Schmetz was coming after, yeah which is, it's nothing new. You guys have your little, your little dynamic, but I think that was among the most tilted I've ever, I've ever seen him.
00:17:18
Speaker
I don't know. Like, don't you think it's like, I don't watching it again. It's like these, these, they're talking about two different things. He's like responding to something that's not getting asked.
00:17:29
Speaker
Yeah. Yes. So, you know, now that I've had a couple of days to think about it and um look, I think there's a lot of factors. um One is the emotion that I feel like Brian was expecting that,
00:17:44
Speaker
question And he was expecting to be made responsible for it, right? i feel like he knew that there was going to be somebody who was going to blame him for that.
00:17:58
Speaker
And... and For me, um I was going to make that question a lot simpler and a lot shorter and more direct. But I knew that if I asked him, hey, did you feel like it was the right decision to play Pedro de la Vega?
00:18:13
Speaker
He was going to immediately think that I was questioning whether or not he should have started. and and that's not where I was going with it because I took it like that anyway. Exactly. so so And actually agreed with the fact that that you wanted to start De La Vega. And if you, again, look at my ex and my social media, even before the presser, was already answering to people because they had that question that the reason why Pedro, it was important for him to be out there was because of game rhythm, because, you know, some of the the the knee issue, the tendonitis at times feels like it stiffens up when there isn't more...
00:18:50
Speaker
um activity and, and, you know, that competitive minutes, I think would do him more good than bad. ah So the risk reward, there were ah higher reward than the risk of, of a potential injury.
00:19:02
Speaker
ah But he took it immediately that way. Right. And ah to be fair, ah ah maybe because I kind of prolonged the question and I try to preface it with a whole bunch of things, um he got convoluted and maybe he couldn't quite grasp what I was asking.
00:19:19
Speaker
And then when I tried to rephrase it, that's when I was kind of feeling the heat because i I truly empathize with the situation. Right. And I didn't want him to feel attacked and that just made it worse. So yeah,
00:19:33
Speaker
Quite honestly, Ari, you know that when it comes to pressers, it is part of the game to get into some sort of dynamic or heated conversation with the coach, Kayla Porter and Bruce Arena and, you know, whoever.
00:19:49
Speaker
meet Me and Brian have our dynamic, but that one was a little bit more heated, I think, because of the emotion that went into it. But like I always say, look, if if I ask a dumb question, which which it does happen, right? in in in media, just like it does in sports. Sometimes you fumble, sometimes you miss a clear opportunity.
00:20:07
Speaker
and Sometimes with media, you ask a dumb question. This wasn't a dumb question. I just think that phrased it maybe a little bit too convoluted and he couldn't quite grasp it. I hope that by now he understands that what I wanted to ask was,
00:20:21
Speaker
Look, the narrative yeah surrounding this injury because of Pedro's injury history could very easily be why was he a starter? Was it worth starting him?
00:20:34
Speaker
Explained to me why it was so important that he started this game and and I thought that he was gonna give me something about you know The fact that you want to build some continuity going into the playoffs and you know, he's that part of it Some of things he answered right he deserves to be out there.
00:20:49
Speaker
He's been playing well. He gave you that he's trending this way Oh, by the way, i had said that on x 25 minutes before he answered that question.
00:21:00
Speaker
I mentioned the fact that Pedro de la Vega had been trained against the right direction, had been training no problem, right? So he, for all accounts, was clear to play, right? ah And the same way that people had issues with Pedro starting, some people had issues with...
00:21:15
Speaker
ah Jordan or Ferreira or, you know, other starters that that that were part of that game. But then in reality, we knew that he was going to put together a a a good lineup that was going to go out there and win. And they did that. But at the same time, the risk reward when he came to Pedro de la Vega was maybe a little bit different yeah and Sometimes something like this it's at times unfair for a coach because if nothing happens to Pedro de la Vega, then, you know, yeah they won the game. It was the perfect call.
00:21:46
Speaker
Great job at getting Pedro de la Vega going and comfortable and, you know, confident going into the playoffs, but then something like this happens and then it's like, damn it, worst decision ever.
00:22:00
Speaker
Let's get Brian out of here. ah So I was trying to prevent that. And again, I was of the mindset that And I think I said it with you. I think it's important that that that front four starts another game and gets more time together going into the playoffs. So um it is what it is. I'm obviously not going to take it personally. Maybe at first I was a little bit more more jaded, and a little bit more heated. But now that I've had a couple of days to digest it,
00:22:30
Speaker
And I have read the good comments and I've had read them. I have read the bad comments from people. If you did not understand my question, then I don't know if maybe you didn't quite get where I was going with it, but i had an idea of what I wanted to do.
00:22:46
Speaker
I can definitely admit that maybe I could have phrased that a lot better. ah But at the end of the day, I thought that the question needed to be asked. It was asked, and he answered partly because I asked the question. So I have no regrets other than maybe rephrasing that a little bit better.
00:23:01
Speaker
And again, I'm not... ah mad about it. I totally understand why Brian would be in that sort of mindset, kind of just ready to go, right?
00:23:13
Speaker
doesn't matter who was going to say something. He was going to just go for it. And then after he asked the question, Felipe asked yeah the question about whether the game was meaningless or not. And then he just completely went off hinges. He just went off his hinges and just like started smacking the table and you guys don't listen to me, ah which is completely wrong I mean, again, when it comes to me, I was asking because I knew that people wanted to know.
00:23:41
Speaker
Right. And and a lot of times when I ask questions, it is it is better for that sort of thing to be answered by the coach than by me. I shouldn't be the one saying this is why Pedro started that game.
00:23:54
Speaker
When Brian says it, it has more validity. And that's all I wanted to get out of it. It is a bit of a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation for a coach.
00:24:05
Speaker
ah People might not ah might not admit or acknowledge this, but ah but we know, we know that if he had put out a rotated, rested, starting 11 and effectively punted that game, it's the type of thing that people ask for.
00:24:21
Speaker
But then when when it actually happens and then you lose the game, then people crush the coach for the narrative would have been like, oh, he he cost the team momentum going into the playoffs by playing this rotated 11. It wasn't worth the rest. And that would have admit that would have been the narrative.
00:24:39
Speaker
That would have been the narrative. if they had If they had played a rotated lineup and lost that game, No one in this chat would be understanding of that. Like, i really, I seriously, I seriously doubt it. You have to actually be willing to accept what the consequences are of that, which in that case, like, if he had been like, all right, I'm gonna I'm going to, this doesn't, this doesn't matter standings wise. It's not meaningless.
00:25:01
Speaker
It doesn't matter standings wise. I'm going rest De La Vega. I'm going to rest Ferreira. I'm going rest this guy, this guy, and this guy. They probably lose the game. And then, and then the narrative is just negative in a completely different way. So it is like,
00:25:14
Speaker
it It was a interesting and kind of tough coaching dilemma for him, like how to approach the lineup for this game. And like, to be fair, man, like I, i would if I had been saying before the game, look, it's not worth putting De La Vega out there for this game. You shouldn't do it. You shouldn't start him.
00:25:33
Speaker
ah he's He's got the knee tendonitis. Just give him a rest on the baseball field and then get him back out there for the playoffs. If I'd been saying all that, then I would feel licensed to ah to do the 2020 hindsight, I told you so stuff. I didn't say that. No one no one said that.
00:25:49
Speaker
Literally, I can't name one person who specifically was saying like before the game when the graphic came out, oh, like why De La Vega in there? i don't I don't think I saw much of any of that.
00:26:00
Speaker
So it is... it was ah It was pretty funny when Felipe came in and and then the whole situation just escalated from there. but ah no i'm yeah you know and you the The funny part is that ironically, i thought that He did, b Brian Smetzer did a fantastic job at putting the right players to start that game.
00:26:23
Speaker
Rested Christian Roldan, rested Ovid Vargas, took off Alex Roldan at the right time because he had a whole lot of minutes. um I thought that he did a great job at keeping that attacking four together so they could build some momentum.
00:26:39
Speaker
everything that he did in the game, I thought was positive and I was completely on board with what he had put together and how the team had executed that. And, and maybe that's why it felt like I didn't deserve that smoke because look, if you know me and maybe you don't, but I don't,
00:26:54
Speaker
Run away from the smoke, baby. I want the fire. I don't even want the smoke. I want the fire. I'm more than happy to debate with you, to throw hands with you. Whatever it is that you want to do, I don't back up from nothing. You know, I'm like the little honey badger.
00:27:07
Speaker
You know, it might be that I ain't no six foot tall, but I am going to come at you immediately. So in this one, I didn't want it because I was completely... on You were trying to give him the... Exactly.
00:27:22
Speaker
What I thought was a softball. fins And then he just... say Yeah, absolutely. you got it you You got it. And I'm glad you got it. I'm glad that ah Jeremiah O'Shane got it. you know He immediately called and he was like, Nico, I thought the your question, I understood it.
00:27:38
Speaker
I thought that you know it was pretty self-explanatory. Had a lot of people reach out. Yeah. I read some comments, you know, that weren't as great. And that's totally fair. Everybody is entitled to their opinion.
00:27:49
Speaker
But again, the good, the bad, you know, i i stand tall when it comes to this sort of situation. And I back completely what i wanted to do with that question. we were We were doing the ah the watch along. Like, with we didn't...
00:28:04
Speaker
so usually We're not usually doing watch-alongs during Sounders games. We were just doing that for for decision day. And everyone's reaction in the moment was the exact was that exact question. Like, should he have even been out there?
00:28:16
Speaker
course. Noah was crashing out saying that he that he shouldn't have been out there at all. Yeah. It wasn't just him. There was a lot of people in chat also expressing similar sentiments. And then I think, ah you know, once everyone...
00:28:29
Speaker
Once everyone cooled down, the general sentiment was that i think people at least understand you know why the lineup was what it was, even if the outcome was ah was disastrous. Heberhammer, thank you for the super chat.
00:28:42
Speaker
Appreciate you getting the train rolling. ah He says, playing in Pepo and the other two DPs makes sense. Any upset about playing Pepo is hindsight. Yeah, like it's all it's all hindsight. Correct. you know because Because now we know what the outcome was.
00:28:56
Speaker
it's It's easy to look back and say that. It should have been handled differently. But you know like i always say, man, if I can understand the thought process and the logic, behind why decisions like this get made, then I'm like, I'm not going to base how I think of it on what the outcome is, even if it's negative. Like, I i don't think it was a reckless call or or an indefensible call to have him in that lineup.
00:29:25
Speaker
No, and look, at some people... kind of brought up the factor of the field, the field conditions, what that was that something that was really worth it?
00:29:37
Speaker
But look, again, it's all about risk-reward. And there was more to gain out of Pedro playing that game than there was to lose. And just to, again, add to the decision being made, Pedro had been flying,
00:29:56
Speaker
Across training Had been flying ah we i think we were all wondering You know The the whole point of this Is to build up Pepo To play 90 Or close to 90 Because maybe that's the one thing That he we wasn't doing Was when he's going to be able To play more minutes So For all accounts We were just hoping for more minutes Rather than less So you know like people say it's handset, right? i I heard a comment to somebody saying, well, you know, if if b Brian had not played Pedro, then Nico would ask why Pedro wasn't playing. And that is not true. I wanted Pedro in. And if he had not been in, ah you know, i would have, you know, I would have stuck to what I said prior to the game. I'm not going to change my mind depending on whether a player played or not.
00:30:38
Speaker
I wanted Pedro in. Brian put Predo in and that was as good as it was. So it's not that I'm trying to go against what, you know, Brian does. It's just we were ironically in the same page and then it didn't quite look like that afterwards. and And look, people also have a problem with the fact that there are no mini-list games. and And I also understand that, right? I mean, there was it was a low-stake game.
00:31:02
Speaker
But it was more about keeping momentum and carrying that over into the playoffs. say and And that is more important than you may think. You don't want to, and again, I said this prior to this game, you don't want to take in a couple of goals, three goals, or be outmatched, or just simply put in a poor performance that is bleak and uninspired. would have been bad. You don't want that.
00:31:27
Speaker
That would have been bad. That would have been not the vibes that you want going into the playoffs. i fully think it it would have been it would have been way worse to to put out like a punt the game type lineup, which, you know, Schmetz doesn't do that anyway.
00:31:41
Speaker
But like, if he had done that in this case, and they went out there, got worked in the Mets outfield, and then had those vibes going the playoffs. Now, you know, ah you do it you do have...
00:31:53
Speaker
good vibes and some confidence going into the playoffs. I think in in a way that game was, ah was a perfect playoff tune up in the sense that ah you had to go on the road, which you're going to have to do a lot in the playoffs depending on how far you make it, but you're going to, I mean, this Minnesota United series, you're going to have to go on the road, play in a tough environment, going on the road, playing against a really good team. That NYC team is, is no joke, man. They're really good.
00:32:17
Speaker
They got a art Nico Fernandez, ah Alonzo Martinez, you know. Maxi Morales. Maxi Morales, you know, 48 years old, but like still kind of still doing it at pretty much the same level. Yeah, oh yeah. oh Always does.
00:32:29
Speaker
And I really- Andres Perez is a really good player. He's very underrated. You know, he's been in the league for a very long time. i really think Alonzo- yeah is a very good defender. I mean, this is a good team. Alonzo Martinez, I think, is the most underrated attacker in the league right now. what What other guy scored 17 goals this year whose name you hear less than him? They kept him completely out of that game. nobody i was That was going into that game. I was like, man, I mean, I i would be shocked if Alonzo Martinez, every time he plays on that on that baseball field, that guy's scored at least one goal.
00:33:01
Speaker
they the It was a big-time effort, honestly, from the from the defense to keep him At bay and ah you know they can see the one goal, which was unfortunate, but like if you're playing NYC FC on the road and you hold them to one goal. That's a good day at the office, especially when you consider like ah ah one of the things that I really liked about this performance from Seattle was just kind of the the control they exerted over the over the game state in the tempo and how they were. in possession and all that. I thought all that was right where it needed to be for for the playoffs, which that is not but has not always been the case for this team this season. there's been ah There's been parts of this season where defensively it has not been airtight, let's say.
00:33:46
Speaker
ah Yeah, I mean, we all know about the red card boys, but like just I mean, they conceded 47 goals, 47, 48 goals this year, which is uncharacteristic of the Sounders team. I thought defensively and in midfield in this and NYC game, it looked more like a the type of ah the disciplined and fundamentally sound defensive play that we've come to expect from ah from the Seattle Sounders.
00:34:09
Speaker
And conceptually, again, it's it's about having a team that can go out there and perform on the road with changes to the exact same effect that it has all week. And we had been praising this coaching staff for doing so. And when it came to the pressing, the spacing, the possession moments they had were were great.
00:34:30
Speaker
There was patience on the ball, which is something that this team thrives on. And at times they get too rushed. I mean, all of it was quite there. I thought that Danny Leva's performance was outstanding, and it's a guy that you want to continue to build up for if you need him in the playoffs, whether it's a set piece, whether it's a moment where you need to sob out ah Obed, ah you know, Obed.
00:34:54
Speaker
you know Let's knock on wood, but an injury, anything that that that could potentially happen, Brian did a good job at getting all these players on the right path, on the right mentality. JP had another strong game, right?
00:35:07
Speaker
Jesus Ferreira, I've been saying that I didn't want him to lose that edge because he's really built that up. And in what we learned this week on Friday, I highlighted him not just because of his talent and what he's been able to do on the field, but leadership wise, he's pulling guys aside. He's, he's talking to him more than he used to. He has really taken a step forward when it comes to being another guy in that field that because he's so cerebral, he can share a lot of things and he could really get this guys up to speed.
00:35:45
Speaker
I thought Jordan Morris needed this game and he comes up with the goal. Uh, A great set piece by Albert Rusnak. A great header, the way he flicks it, the way he gets to that ball.
00:35:57
Speaker
I thought that he was good on link-up play. I thought that he was good making himself available for a lot of opportunities. He creates a PK that eventually gets overturned by VAR.
00:36:09
Speaker
I mean, all of those things that Jordan was doing, that was huge. That was huge prior to the playoffs because he needed that. And we said that going into this game, if there's a player that needs this game is Jordan Morris. So all the objectives you can check on.
00:36:24
Speaker
And that's why this was such a complete game, I thought, from the Sounders. Jesus Ferreira was so good in this game. And it's, it's just, it's kind of funny. Just, but we posted a, like a reel on our Instagram and TikTok of, a it's like Noah giving a pro Jesus Ferreira take, man. And I, you know, I looked at the comments and there's still, there's still, i think most people have like come around on this topic, but you know, you still get a couple of those like, oh, he was a ghost. He wasn't worth the trade. I'm just like, oh my God, like,
00:36:56
Speaker
I feel like I'm taking crazy pills sometimes. like i have no I have no idea for the life of me how you could watch that game and come to any other conclusion other than Jesus Ferreira was balling out of control, man. That was one of his better games of ah of the year. He just, you know, he snake bit as far as the stat sheet goes, so maybe that's where that ah that stuff comes yeah I was just like, I don't know how that's still out there with the form that he's been in over the last years.
00:37:23
Speaker
Yeah, people people don't quite get that, right? And look, I get that, you know, sometimes ah ah he could be a little bit more aggressive and things like that, but he's just playing a different role. And I don't think that quite gets with people, but his pressing, his defensive contributions, you know, that that his link of play, everything that he does in terms of spacing. I mean, he's he's just such a cerebral player.
00:37:46
Speaker
ah You know, just looking at the stat sheet, right? He had four defensive contributions, right? ah He was one of four in shock targets, 39 touches, um five passes into the final third. That's a big one.
00:38:00
Speaker
ah Three of five out of accurate long balls. I mean, when it comes to switching the ball and switching the point of attack, he does it so well and he does it so timely that is key for what the Sounders do. And when we're talking about patience, he's one of the players that is going to Take a second, turn around, keep a session, pass it the right person, then make himself available, ask for the ball.
00:38:24
Speaker
He creates those overloads. I think that there's a lot of what Ferreira does that maybe people do not see. ah All right, Nico, let's ah let's take a look at ah we got a couple more things to get to here.
00:38:36
Speaker
Let's take a look at the rest of the playoff matchups from around Major League Soccer. And then we'll talk some ah Chris Armas and Ronnie Dyla to ah to close it out. Yours wasn't even the most blatant coach press conference of the ah of the weekend. But yeah, go ahead.
00:38:50
Speaker
Before you go, I just wanted to praise two guys. Obviously, we've talked about Jackson Reagan. i just He was my player to the match. And then Stefan Fry. Stefan Fry being able to, once again, come out big when he was needed. ah That is something that people want to see. I continue to...
00:39:07
Speaker
Again, praise the decision to keep him on. I think that he has put all conversations and debates aside. So and those are two guys that I wanted to add on. And Albert, too.
00:39:18
Speaker
Let's give Albert some so some praise as well. Coming in after you know being available because of the red card, thought he had a very good game as well. Very effective on the ball. Really good assist. Yeah.
00:39:28
Speaker
Really good assist as well. All right. Well, folks, with decision day in the books, we have got the matchups. for the MLS Cup playoff set. Let's take a look ah and scope out which matchups we think are the best, what we'll be watching for.
00:39:43
Speaker
And we'll start. Let's start right here with the wildcard matchups. You know, some people don't like the wildcard, that there are wildcard teams. I say it's too many teams that are able to qualify for the playoffs, which there might be something to that. But I,
00:39:58
Speaker
I do enjoy getting to watch these teams duel for the rest of our entertainment. You know, it is, it is fun to watch them scrap it out when you're not a part of it. ah In the Eastern conference, you have Chicago fire against Orlando city SC Orlando fell all the way down to the nine seed, which is kind of crazy. And honestly, crazy.
00:40:18
Speaker
I think Chicago ah might win that game. And then ah Nico, the Portland Timbs, God love them. They fall into the wild card round as well, where they'll be taking on Real Salt Lake.
00:40:29
Speaker
ah Chicago, Orlando, I think, I mean, for me, the only, the notable thing about that is that you got an Orlando team that really was kind of an Eastern Conference front runner for a lot of this year until the last like month or so.
00:40:40
Speaker
And they have like, they've almost fell out of the playoffs entirely. But they ah they tailspin all the way down to the nine seed, which that's just kind of unexpected. And they're playing a Chicago team that I kind of like this Chicago team, Nico.
00:40:54
Speaker
They don't defend very well still, but they score a lot of goals. They're pretty fun to watch. I think this year is kind of reinforced that, you know, whatever you want to say about Greg Berhalter and his tenure with the U.S. men's national team, which I think was more...
00:41:07
Speaker
honestly, like a neutral tenure than outright bad. Like some people characterize it. This guy clearly knows how to coach an MLS because getting the Chicago fire to the playoffs, not an easy feat. I don't know if anyone's managed to do that. It's like, it's either on his first year, uh,
00:41:22
Speaker
Yeah. and And like, they haven't made it. They never make the playoffs. I think they made it last in like 2017 or something. Like this has been one of the most, uh, not good clubs in the league for a long time. Now, Berhalter got them to the playoffs in the East and, uh, has them. I think, I think they're the favorite against Orlando. Uh, but, uh, Nico, I mean, the Timbs, what's, what's going on, man. I mean, Phil Neville said it was a failure if they, uh,
00:41:47
Speaker
if they fall into the wildcard round. So that's ah that that's what happened. So that's not that's not good for him. But he's he is coaching for his job right now, like in these playoffs.
00:41:58
Speaker
If they make a good run and look good in the playoffs and make it close to MLS Cup or to MLS Cup, if that happens, then I think Phil Neville is back. If they bomb out in the wildcard to RSL, he's he's probably out of there, isn't he?
00:42:12
Speaker
like that's I don't see a way around that. The biggest problem with Phil Neville's timbers is that they lack an identity. There's a rotating door of multiple positions, including midfield, including fullback.
00:42:32
Speaker
They are a team that's very easy to play through in the midfield. ah They have tried all kinds of pairings of Ortiz and Paredes and Ayala, and they're still trying to rely on Diego Charada. God help him. I mean, the guy cannot do any more for a club that he's already done. I mean, how much more could you ask of this guy?
00:42:52
Speaker
i think that offensively they are – too inconsistent. And you look at this team, you look at the quality that the, on paper, there's such a nice looking team, but when it comes to the execution and when it comes to the concepts and and being able to do it on the field, they're just hard to watch. It's so, um,
00:43:18
Speaker
first of all, uninspired play at many times. They rarely win duels. ah They're a team that has such a hard time possessing the ball. Simply when it comes to ah inner good passing is just not quite there.
00:43:32
Speaker
The Timbers are at their best whenever they're able to get the ball out wide, when Anthony is doing his thing, when there's individualities from Valde, ah when Acosta is ah costa' filling it and he can give you some magic.
00:43:46
Speaker
They depend too much on individual play, but the collectiveness is just not quite there. And that just has been their downfall throughout the the whole game. And when you play a team like San Diego, that's the total opposite, that they know exactly what they want to do with the ball, that they play almost at a level of just understanding and knowing that a player is going to be in that position. It's just easy to play. You look at the couple of chances and the goals that Dreyer got.
00:44:12
Speaker
I mean, it's an easy through ball, past the back line, Dreyer's behind him, and then he's just finishing in front of goal, you know, uh rainbows the the the goalkeeper i mean it's just it's too easy to score on this team and then not to mention the fact that later they give an easy possession coming out of the back they're just gifting goals on top of it i mean it's just too sloppy and that there's just no real sense of what
00:44:44
Speaker
You can't tell me what it is that Phil Neville has his team do well Like if you can point out one thing that Every single time the Timbers are going to do well You can't find one So that's going to continue to be their problem And I think it's going to be their downfall Yeah, they're the Timbs for as long as I can remember have been like a really good counterattacking team that can score a lot of goals.
00:45:05
Speaker
It looked like they were kind of like that at the beginning of the year and ah maybe maybe for like ah half the season, but it feels like the second half of the season and down the stretch. They have kind of even lost that.
00:45:17
Speaker
identity And ah yeah, like I didn't even mention it, but yeah, four zero on decision day at home again, San Diego, who obviously San Diego, they've been one of the best teams the league all year. They got first in the West, but you you still, you know, you can't get four oh at home on decision day.
00:45:35
Speaker
That's, that's kind of why I think he's coaching for his job right now is because ah think about how their season ended last year. I think it was six. Oh, at home. to the Vancouver Whitecaps. I remember in the playoffs. Was it not?
00:45:47
Speaker
Then you get four road this year on decision day. You need to like to be in good standing as a, as a coach, you typically, especially like a new coach, like Phil Neves within the last couple of years, you need to be showing forward progress year over year.
00:46:02
Speaker
And ah if anything, they've stagnated or regressed. So It's just, you know, like we're, we'll be, we'll be keeping tabs on the, on the Timbs and see what the future holds for them. But for me, if I had to guess right now, they're probably looking at a new coach in 2026. Nico, who do you like in these wildcard matchups?
00:46:20
Speaker
I got Chicago and, ah and we also like, I think we all salt Lake is going to X dog, X dog them to death. I think Pablo Mastro any ah this is, this is what he does. He's able to win games like this.
00:46:33
Speaker
ah So I kind of like real Salt Lake in that matchup not because they're good but because ah Because they got x dog in the timbys are reeling. ah Do you see any either of those differently? No, ah to be honest, I did kind of went back and forth because of how bad RSL looked against San Luis there late in that game But I'm with you.
00:46:55
Speaker
I think that when I'm looking at a playoff game, I'm looking for the team that has the better coaching, that has the better collective play, ah that is ah willing to kind of grind out a game, that has better defensive ability.
00:47:09
Speaker
discipline And I think that's RSL, right? I think Pablo does a great job at getting his teams up for this sort of games. I think that Gozo coming back was important. You saw him assist on a couple of those goals.
00:47:22
Speaker
ah Victor looked pretty dangerous up top. Luna's back. I think that defensively, Vera and Glad, you know they have moments where there's a lack of communication there, but for the most part, they're pretty consistent.
00:47:37
Speaker
I just don't see this Timbers team being able to get on the offensive quickly enough, be able to expose with those overloads. Juan David Mosquera, sometimes he's so hot and cold.
00:47:52
Speaker
and And when him and Anthony are on, the team is look better, but, He's so hard to really get on. And Anthony, who's your most consistent player, he can't do anything by but himself.
00:48:03
Speaker
he He looks so alone sometimes. And then the rotating door between Kelsey and Mora, pick a guy. Pick a guy and stick with him and and make sure that he gets that confidence because neither guy is confident.
00:48:14
Speaker
Neither guy, ah neither Kelsey or Mora, I would bet on scoring a goal against ourselves because they have been dead bad as of recent. So, For me, RSL is the clear cut answer.
00:48:27
Speaker
And on the other side, I'm a little bit more heartbroken. I have been so high on Orlando. Oh, you are the Orlando guy. You've got to learn. You're always the Orlando guy and it always backs you. Always, and he bites me in the butt every single time.
00:48:43
Speaker
like guess It's like a toxic relationship yeah where I can't let it go. Martino Hayda, Oscar Perea, coaching. you know The roster is really good. They look really good on offense sometimes. what have you been I haven't really been watching them that much. how is that What is going on with them? like Why are they so bad right now?
00:49:00
Speaker
they have really lost their, they've lost their edge on the attack, right? There was a ah moment in time where you felt like,
00:49:11
Speaker
um Muriel had turned into the Muriel of Serie A. You felt like Ramiro ah ramiro was just scoring all around at will.
00:49:22
Speaker
ah Martino Jada, obviously MVP type of season. D'Amito was looking really good with Atuesta there. And over the last, I don't know, maybe four or five games, there has been just inconsistency on their attack. And when they're unable to put...
00:49:39
Speaker
the opposition under the rest, they're not necessarily built to absorb pressure because if they have a little bit of a downfall is their center backs. They're just not quality center backs.
00:49:51
Speaker
And they depend a lot of how how their holding mitts really kind of play the game. And because of that, they just have been put in bad positions. Not to mention that Pedro Galesa has had a pretty – Irregular season and when Pedro Galesa is not the octopus and he becomes the calamari that team just has a real hard time getting through games, right? So it's difficult because Oscar Pereira has a guy that typically gets his teams very disciplined, very organized, but this Orlando team just hasn't been consistent. And when you don't have a floor that is visible, that's when I have an issue with your play.
00:50:36
Speaker
However, even with all that said, I think that Greg has issues of his own. You know, I like Cypress. like what – This ah Chicago Fire team does, but I do feel like a lot of times they trip themselves and they have a lot of issues just coming out of the back and they have a lot of issues ah with the way that they try to build out their game.
00:51:02
Speaker
But I don't know. i I want to go with Orlando because I don't learn my lesson. You don't. Because I believe that Duncan McGuire and this team are going to figure it out. And Angulo, who has been awful the last couple of games, is going to figure it out.
00:51:18
Speaker
And Freeman, who's one of the you know better U22s in MLS, is going to have a baller of a game. so I'm going to go with Orlando and Oscar Pereja. without listening to you or my family members or my group of let go of Orlando city, sir.
00:51:35
Speaker
So yeah, going go with Orlando. I'm going to go with our cell. you You can't let it go. Let's take a quick look at the rest of these matchups and then ah we'll hit a Chris Armas and Ronnie Dyla discourse to, ah to close it out on Friday. You got Miami Nashville, ah which, you know, Miami famously lost Brad Guzan and Atlanta United, which who were the nine seed last year.
00:51:57
Speaker
in the playoffs. So there there's, I mean, I think there's as much pressure on inner Miami as anyone else in the playoffs. This is definitely not house money for them. They need to win MLS cup. They need to win MLS cup.
00:52:08
Speaker
And their first obstacle to get there is going to be a Nashville team that ah somehow ended up as the six seed. I feel like they were, uh, they were better than that this year, but I guess not there. They are playing, they are house moneying a little bit here because they won the open cup. They got their first ever trophy.
00:52:26
Speaker
and now they got to deal with Miami and the Barca boys who I'm not going to pick against the Barca boys in round one, but I also didn't pick against them. Uh, last year and they lost uh they got owned by brad guzzin so i guess you never know but i i'm like i'm mainly keeping an eye on that one uh just for the the storyline of whether the barca boys can actually get this mls cup thing over the line they have not been able to do that yet and you got uh you got busquets retiring you got jordy alba retiring uh who knows what's going to happen with uh with louise suarez so a lot riding on that one
00:52:59
Speaker
And then, ah you know, Philly and San Diego, they don't have their opponents yet. One seeds, they get the bye. ah You got Vancouver, Dallas, Cincy, Columbus. The hell is real. So yeah that's what we're looking at ah for –
00:53:14
Speaker
It for it from Monday through Monday, those are going to be the matches. And then you got Minnesota, Seattle, actually also on Monday, Charlotte, NYC, LAFC, Austin.
00:53:27
Speaker
What are what are you what are you looking at with these, Nico? Anything stand out as the as the best matchups or anything you're keeping your eye on with these? Yeah, Cincinnati Columbus just always has a different feel to it. i think Columbus is trying to get right. ah There's still a team that is a little bit of a shell of what a Wilford Nancy and a Columbus team, to be quite honest, look like on the field. um There have been some improvements.
00:53:53
Speaker
ah If you're going to get it right, it might as well be against an arch rival like Cincinnati. um I think Gosdog is getting hot in the right time.
00:54:03
Speaker
i still feel like they lack that finishing touch. They just don't have that guy up there that's going to really put it together. But if you can collectively add some goals and, ah you know, you can get Arson to get some goals and you can get Nagby to get some goals and, you know, Russell Rowe, who's a guy that's been up and down for him, he can get out at the right time. That could be a ah good one.
00:54:26
Speaker
but But Cincinnati is just, to me, just too powerful, just too strong. Brenner and um Evander, and there's just so many weapons there that can come up for the Cincinnati team that I just – I think that obviously the favorites, they should be able to get through, but it's going to be fun no matter what. I think that this game is going to be the most entertaining out of all of them.
00:54:48
Speaker
um The Inter-Miami Nashville is interesting because of a three-game series, right? I think Nashville is built better to do different things with their setup.
00:55:00
Speaker
And like you mentioned, there was a point where Nashville was like in the Shield race, they were red hot and, you know, some surge was killing it and Mokhtar was amazing and all of these things. But in this game against Inter-Miami just now, which is going to be a rematch, look, they had control of that game in the first 45 minutes.
00:55:17
Speaker
And then all of sudden Andy Nahar is a silly handball. You give Messi PK, you give the momentum, and in literally 25 minutes, they flipped the score to 5-2, which is wild because you do have that Messi factor.
00:55:31
Speaker
But that's going to be an interesting one. I think that one's going to go to three. I think that one's going to be a lot more difficult difficult than people may see.
00:55:39
Speaker
Yeah, ah that that ah that decision day game between Inter-Miami and Nashville, that that kind of showed like, i To me, it was like what Seattle did to enter Miami in the week's cup final. It's like you kind of can't undersell how impressive that was because that team that team can do stuff like that in any given game. It's like it's not easy to ah to prevent like that. and And you saw that like Nashville, who is a good team. They're one of the they've been a solid to very good at times team in the ah in the East. They won Open Cup this year and they they couldn't stop it. And that was at Nashville. That was Geodas Park. That was not yeah in Fort Lauderdale.
00:56:15
Speaker
um And then two two quick notes on the other two. The only thing, the only thing I will say about the Charlotte New York City game is, Saha, why are you so...
00:56:29
Speaker
Selfish. Why are you so selfish? That's bad. How could you possibly be this phenomenal player, this electric guy who had a phenomenal goal, a beautiful technique with the outside of your foot, and then you're going to cost your team a red card in the 89th minute in a 2-0 game? oh bad. The the petulance, the the selfishness, the childish play. I mean,
00:56:53
Speaker
You're supposed to be a leader, man. I mean, it's it's it's honestly, it blows my mind. and And honestly, if New York City ends up winning this series, it's going to be because in the first game that you could have taken the lead, you're going to be without your most prolific player.
00:57:10
Speaker
And you're going to give New York City the advantage. So just selfish, man. Absolutely selfish. And then when it comes to Sounders, Minnesota... This is a totally different ballgame. This is a totally different roster than the one that beat the Sounders twice this year.
00:57:27
Speaker
So I think Seattle has the edge. I think they're the favorites, and they should be able to get through Minnesota. We've been pro Willy Zaha on this show all year. He's a lot of fun. He's been a fun character.
00:57:40
Speaker
His crash outs have been endearing at times. His Snapchat presence is legendary. i haven't checked his Snapchat since that red card, but I can imagine that there was some good content on there that you can't, like you said, 89th minute up to zero.
00:57:56
Speaker
there's literally There is no reason at all to get into anything. Like i that was just, Mind-blowing with what was at stake and going into the playoffs. You're winning the game. You scored a goal. your're head The team's having a really good year.
00:58:10
Speaker
They were my dark horse pick in the East to make MLS Cup. that was ah That was worse than any red card the Seattle Sounders got this year. agree. And that's saying a lot.
00:58:21
Speaker
yeah All right, Nico, let's talk about some Chris Armas. Does that sound good? thats Yeah, do it. That's not something that I expected to be doing today, but we're going to be doing it. Because, you know, we all saw your and Schmetz's interaction at the Sounders postgame presser. It was not the most blazing hot coach press conference of of Decision Day.
00:58:40
Speaker
And we're going to do a blazing hot coach press conference right now, sponsored by Hacks and Ferments, lovingscorchers.com slash sauce to get our hot sauce that we made ah in collaboration with Hacks and Ferments.
00:58:52
Speaker
And ah they sponsor this segment. and we haven't We haven't done this segment. you know In a while, I frankly haven't been on it enough about monitoring the pressers. ah You know, I usually pride myself on knowing if there's a blazing hot presser. And the last few weeks or so, i just haven't i haven't been locked in on that. But, I mean, it got lobbed over the plate for us this weekend between between the Schmetz presser, which was blazing hot after a win. But ah let's talk about this Chris Armis one because this was this was telling.
00:59:20
Speaker
I thought this was telling. ah Chris Armas, head coach, Colorado Rapids. They missed the playoffs. Not a good year for them. You know, we were talking about the Timbs regression with Phil Neves. ah the The Rapids had an okay year last year, a pretty good year last year. They got last in the West two years ago.
00:59:35
Speaker
Last year, they made the playoffs. I think they finished seventh and they got absolutely boat raced in the playoffs. I can't remember by who, but they got absolutely boat raced. I think nine, oh, was by the galaxy, nine, one aggregate. So, ah but like they, they made the playoffs. They took a step forward and, ah I'll be honest. Like I thought that Chris Armas did a, it seemed like he was doing a good job. He had them playing better last year. And I, I have never been, uh, as anti Chris Armas, maybe as, uh, as some people, he had a less than distinguished 10 years at, uh,
01:00:08
Speaker
at New York Red Bulls and at Toronto. And that's why his hiring by Colorado got kind of lampooned because of how badly it went off the rails in Toronto. I was never sure how much of what happened in Toronto was due to it being Chris Armas or it it being Toronto. Like it's a dysfunctional organization.
01:00:26
Speaker
Not many coaches would have thrived in the, in the environment they had at that time. And he had MLS experience. I was like, all right, I mean, let's see how this goes. It seemed like it was going, ah Okay. Last year, this year, uh, it did not go as well. They were fighting for the playoffs on the last day, but they, uh, they didn't make it.
01:00:43
Speaker
Chris Armas has given his post-game press conference after the game. And, uh, he gets a ah question from Matt Pollard of the Burgundy wave, which is like the, uh, SB nation blog that covers the Colorado Rapids. And, uh, he goes off on Matt. We're going we're going play it right now. And then, uh,
01:00:57
Speaker
and then talk about it. But i I think just to set the stage, it did not go well for the Colorado Rapids really in on decision day or in 2025. So let's ah let's play this sound from Chris Armas at his postgame presser. And then we'll react.
01:01:15
Speaker
um Chris, now with the season over and the team not making the playoffs, you've been generally positive. We didn't make the playoffs. Colorado Rapids missed playoffs. Thank you. Always good to, you remind me of this.
01:01:26
Speaker
Yeah. Good. Yeah, what do you got? With the season ending and now knowing the conclusion of that, where do you think this leaves in terms of your ae tenure with the club and possibly coming back?
01:01:40
Speaker
Thank you. I'm not sure what you're gonna put out there, Matt, because it's always from from from you guys and and what you your outlet, it's always negative. It's always poking holes in the team.
01:01:52
Speaker
It's attacking the coaching.
01:01:56
Speaker
I'm not sure where you're going to go with what you do. you you do what you do and not people read it, but I don't appreciate all the negativity you've given us ah over the the months and and even quite honestly, the the few years. So have fun with this one that we didn't make the playoffs, but yeah, my, my future with the team, listen, it's, it's fresh, just ended.
01:02:16
Speaker
We'll have discussions with, with leadership and continue some discussions. That's all I can say for now.
01:02:24
Speaker
Coach, mentioned with com conversation radio
01:02:33
Speaker
He's cooked, Nico. He's cooked. He's cooked. He knows he's cooked. That's the only reason you do that. That's just, ah that was one of the lamest things I've ever seen from an MLS coach.
01:02:45
Speaker
That was so bad. Like for so many, for so many reasons. First of all, uh, It's another one of those situations where how can you be like aggrieved or surprised that that question is coming?
01:02:59
Speaker
Like it couldn't be um more fair or expected question, number one. Number two, matt Matt Pollard, who, you know, they, he a but Burgundy Wave and he hosts the Holding the Highline podcast.
01:03:11
Speaker
ah Mark Asher Goodman, his co-host, has been on this podcast. show. ah Those guys are my go-to outlet for nice Colorado Rapids coverage. So yeah, I mean, everyone's subbed to their stuff. They do great work.
01:03:23
Speaker
But I actually, i went back and looked at some of their Colorado Rapids coverage to see what Chris Armless was talking about. They couldn't have been more fair. or deferential, like ah like calling it straight down the middle, and in fact giving Chris Armas like credit for the things that they said he does well.
01:03:42
Speaker
They said he's been ah he's been professional to cover and had no issues with him as far as any of that goes. So the idea that they were like incessantly negative is just not accurate at all.
01:03:58
Speaker
So like just the fact that he reacted like that is, is ridiculous. And there's just, a there's no reason to do that unless you feel like you're, ah you're probably, you're probably cooked.
01:04:12
Speaker
The Burgundy wave. They're one of the only outlets that actually gives regular coverage of the Colorado Rapids. That's the other thing. So their organization and their coaches, they should be appreciative of them. And then finally, like,
01:04:24
Speaker
Chris, my God, the reason the coverage is negative is because the team is bad. That's it. There's nothing more to it than that. If the team was playing well and taking good results, ah then the coverage would be would be good. How has someone who has played professional soccer for as long as he did and now been a coach for as long as he has not understand that?
01:04:42
Speaker
It blows my mind, man. if youre If you're getting like negative coverage in the way that he's describing it, that's on you. Coach better. Have a better team.
01:04:53
Speaker
Have a team that wins. And then you you have the agency to ah to change that. If your team is not good, like this team is not good, how do you not understand that the coverage is not going to be positive? What do you expect?
01:05:08
Speaker
Yeah, I think that coaches, like everyone else, a lot of times... ah they're emotional and they're aware their feelings on their sleeves. And it doesn't happen all the time, but there is that one moment where it happens and you kind of get unraveled. And, you know, we've seen it with Kayla Porter, you know, trying to argue with the press a member about, you know, does he know more than I do about where a guy should play, you know, a whole bunch of pettiness that i think it happens because look, there is a lot of work that goes into
01:05:42
Speaker
putting together a team and and no one's discussing that, right? But as you mentioned, you should be waiting for those questions. And although I know it's hard to do, I would think that knowing that those sort of questions are coming, you should be more prepared for it. So, you know, i think it happens, you know, with Brian Smetzer, like it happened just recently.
01:06:02
Speaker
your Your mind is somewhere else. Your mind is more focused on on what just happened and and what that's going to look like for the near future. ah When it comes to Chris Armas, he's thinking about, look,
01:06:15
Speaker
I've been reading all this negative stuff and um' I've been waiting to tell you off. So I'm going to use this last presser to tell you off, right? That that you've been writing negatively and all these things.
01:06:26
Speaker
And maybe it wasn't consistent. Maybe it was just an article or two that he read and then he stuck with that. Because I have that with Brian as well. Ironically, I've been praising him for the last four weeks And still he thinks that we're talking negatively about him, right?
01:06:42
Speaker
And I think that happens with a lot of coaches that maybe they hang on to a quote, a tweet, an article, a comment that they heard. And then it just kind of goes from there.
01:06:52
Speaker
And at some point you kind of want to get that splinter off your hand and then you do it in an unclassless way. And I think that's what happened to Chris Armis in this one. And and it is unfortunate because, know,
01:07:07
Speaker
I do think that he's a a good coach. ah He just has to not been able to really – do enough with this roster? Because you look at the Colorado roster, that's a good roster, man. I mean, you you look at a guy like Aronson and Bassett and Reggie Cannon and Vines, Navarro. I mean, these are quality players that he has. He has Zach Steffen.
01:07:29
Speaker
they They basically, he asked and they brought it, right? I mean, he he got everything that he wanted to to get to build his team and he wasn't able to deliver. So you got to kind of Live with that. you got to take accountability and say, hey, look, I got everything that I wanted. I got the team that I wanted and I was unable to get them to the playoffs. And as simple as that. But to be empathetic, I think it'd be very hard to be criticized on my work consistently and then not be able to kind of let it out. So I get it to a certain extent. job But it's part of the job. Exactly. that Exactly. But it's part of the job. Correct.
01:08:05
Speaker
Correct. i got so that That is exactly it. I thought the other most ridiculous part of ah of that diatribe was when he was like, I don't ah i don't even know if anyone reads it.
01:08:17
Speaker
Well, first of all, if if no one reads it, why do you care? Second of all, you read it. You clearly read it. If someone's reading it, you are. yeah What are you talking about? And I think you're absolutely right about the fact that, look, a a market like Colorado should be happy that there's someone writing about it. war Worry when nobody writes about you.
01:08:35
Speaker
If it's good, if it's bad, there's somebody vested in Providing some coverage when that coverage is gone. That's when you should worry about it. that That's when you be oh, where are these guys at? So they they should be more Valued they absolutely should be more valued ah Antagonizing and making the media's job more more difficult is unfortunately kind of a prevalent Issue throughout MLS I will say I appreciate the Seattle Sounders because they they actually they don't operate like that they don't add off like
01:09:09
Speaker
They never, I've never had a single issue with them, like taking offense or coming after me or any of us for quote unquote negative coverage. They, they accept the coverage, whatever it is. Like they understand that when the results are not going well, the coverage is probably going to be more critical. And that's just part of it. They don't do stuff where they talk about like revoking credentials. If you say something critical of the team or the coach.
01:09:36
Speaker
So it I, Seeing that, it does make me appreciative of of how their organization and their public relations staff operate. Because we don't have to deal with that stuff, Nico. As long as we are ah are fair about what we're saying and not attacking anybody, where we...
01:09:53
Speaker
um we I've never gotten any indication that they care about stuff like that. No, and even if there's an issue, they're going to approach you directly. They're going to take care of it professionally, and they're going to figure out a way to make it better. You know, we've had situations with, you know, ah media members that have done this, that.
01:10:12
Speaker
Maybe they didn't know at the time and they were at the wrong location. They were somewhere in the stadium. They weren't supposed to, it's a conversation is had. But yeah, I think that the Sounders PR team is the best in MLS.
01:10:26
Speaker
And not just because of what you said. As as this issue goes, I really think they are like, yeah well Not just that, but in terms of accessibility, as someone that you know has worked with several, maybe 10 or 11 different teams to get players for Zoom conferences, ah go go to their stadiums, work on one-on-one at a hotel or something like that.
01:10:50
Speaker
the Sounders have always been extremely gracious. When I was doing a lot of work for MLS ES, you know, 2019 conference final in LA, needed something to know with Raul Rodriguez at the hotel.
01:11:05
Speaker
They were gracious enough to give me a time. Here's where we're going to meet. ah Here's the timeline, all these things. Ever since I started covering the team, they've always been phenomenal. But but this one specifically, this particular team right now,
01:11:18
Speaker
With Gigi and Kevin and Alex and Matt, they're just always phenomenal on helping us with the access, which is huge for what we do. Yeah, 100%. All right, Nico, one more topic for this morning, and then we'll get out of here.
01:11:32
Speaker
ah Ronnie Dyla out at Atlanta United. it was a It was a riveting tenure that he had that started at the beginning of this season and made it to the end of this season.
01:11:44
Speaker
Now it's over. Yeah. This was expected, but I think also underscores just like how far things have gone off the rails for Atlanta United.
01:11:55
Speaker
this that like they This is a situation that I honestly couldn't have happened. They needed to get this dial-a-hire right. It seems like they went for the high floor, high percentage option, a coach who has experience in MLS, who has shown that he can win in MLS. He won MLS Cup with NYCFC. So all that made sense at the time.
01:12:16
Speaker
ah They spend $40 million dollars over the offseason ah bringing Miguel Almy Roan back. $22 million MLS transfer record on Emmanuel Latte Loth. ah Alexi Marinchuk, $10-plus million player.
01:12:29
Speaker
They got this high-priced, high-powered attack. Garth Loggerway says we're back. ah and then they Then they go out there, and they were literally playing for the wooden spoon on the last day of the season.
01:12:40
Speaker
Arthur Blank. releases a letter to the supporters, like basically apologizing for the results and the performances this season. And then they fire the coach. ah Nico, I guess, what do you make? What do you make of ah how this actually ended up going down?
01:12:56
Speaker
And then really where, uh, Where in like Atlanta United is at, man? One of the highest spending teams in the league, a club that took MLS by storm in their first couple of years in the league. And now they're playing for work the wooden spoon and firing their coach despite spending $40 million. dollars Where do they go from here?
01:13:17
Speaker
What's what happened? How did how did we get here? Atlanta United continues to be haunted by the curse of the Martino. After Tata Martino and their phenomenal start and their high-praised team that you know just took the league by storm and won a championship, once Tata was gone, that curse was set upon Atlanta, and it has been awful since.
01:13:44
Speaker
This is their sixth head coach that has taken over, whether it's interim head coach or hired. Out of the last four hired, only one, Gonzalo Piedera, has lasted more than a season.
01:13:56
Speaker
Maybe DeBoer had won in a little bit, ah but other than that, I mean, it's been it's been awful. for Hainstead was a miss. DeBoer was a miss. And now Ronnie Dyla, he just didn't fit, right? So you could build the team that you want and put all the money that you want, but if the head coach cannot get the best out of the players. It's just not going to work. So unfortunately for Atlanta United, you're right. They went with the household name, the the name that had won an MLS cup that had European, you know, experience.
01:14:33
Speaker
Sorry, i got a call there. They had European experience and it just didn't work out. ah Now, I wouldn't blame Garth for it. I've heard a lot of that Garth lost at all these things.
01:14:44
Speaker
Garth's in a completely different role. Now, he's part of the decision process, but that's no longer his role. And so it's hard for me to Compare him to what he did. Yeah. At the Sounders organization.
01:14:55
Speaker
Now he's working on similar things on building that academy, doing a lot of the things that he did here as he's helping out, but that's not necessarily his job. I do believe that the next one, there will be more in lines of the intangibles and the fit of what this roster has, but it just hasn't been easy for Atlanta United. Right. I mean, from, know,
01:15:19
Speaker
just a whole bunch of missed pieces and missed DPs and money that was wasted along the lines. When Garth Laguerre got there, he got rid of a whole bunch of dead weight that needed to get rid of.
01:15:34
Speaker
He gave, ah um what is the name of the the former GM? um Bocanegra. Bocanegra, time to try to figure it out and all of these things.
01:15:46
Speaker
ah Then he took him off, brought in Chris Henderson. So I think from now on, they'll be in the right path, but it definitely has been a disaster in Atlanta. ah The name that I've seen as far as who their next head coach is going to be the name I've seen floated the most is Tata.
01:16:05
Speaker
He's unemployed right now. And apparently, reportedly, i think Tom Bogues reported that. There is like, it's not just speculation. Like there is genuine interest from Tata to make a return ah to Atlanta United, which ah you think that's a good idea because on one, it's getting talked about like a good idea.
01:16:26
Speaker
Like all the pundits are like, this would be, this would be perfect. yeah You know, bring Tata back. He's got such a distinguished track record, both with this exact club. And then, ah you know, inter Miami, he was the coach when Messi first,
01:16:38
Speaker
got there and ah they honestly, they were a lot better, I feel like under him than they've been under. Absolutely. And under Mascherano. ah So on on one hand, I get why people think that that's logical and it could be the best course of action for them.
01:16:53
Speaker
But then there's another part of me, Nico, where I'm like, dude, like, yeah You know, you already brought Almiron back and that didn't work. Like, just bringing everyone back from the 2017, 2018 glory days and then hoping that that's going to be what it recaptures it.
01:17:12
Speaker
I just don't know if that actually... like i feel like we saw an analogous situation with what they tried to do bringing Almiron back. And I realize it's different because it's a coach and Tata's got so much pedigree and track record.
01:17:25
Speaker
I just, I don't know. I can't help but feel like hearkening back to the past again with another higher I don't know if that's going to be what gets you, gets you guys out of this. Like you need to, you need to like find what's, what's next. What's in the, what's in the future. Like, what are you gonna do next? Bring Joseph back too?
01:17:45
Speaker
Like, I don't know. I just don't know. I'm a little, I'm a little skeptical of that. What what do you think of the whole Tata idea? No, look, I like it. I like it because Tata is a good fit for many reasons, right? Tata still has a lot of,
01:18:00
Speaker
ah push a lot of um influence in South America to go out there and get these young prospects to really get guys interested to playing for him, right? And he has, you know, a blank check for anybody who wants it, right? So it it fits. I think that he fits with the current players that are likely going to stay there in Almarone and all ah you know, Lott and all these other guys that I think could ah benefit from a coach that has the experience, can handle a locker room like no other, has the um experience both on the international level and in MLS and has been a winner.
01:18:41
Speaker
I mean, Tata is a winner and he's going to come in and he's going to raise your floor immediately as soon as he gets there. That's what they said about Dalek. Well, daa did that i don't I just don't think he has that the same um track record. Same number of MLS Cups won.
01:19:00
Speaker
Well, that is true. but but But I mean, that that's one thing. I'm talking about track record at the international level and you know internally, of course, too. But the other name is Jim Curtin. I mean, those are the two names that I think would fit the...
01:19:12
Speaker
the aspirations of a club that is in dire need to get back to the weaning and that has all of the resources in the world, that has this phenomenal stadium, this phenomenal fan base ah that, you know, they were so good, so quick, so early on that that bar got set so high that they have been unable to replicate it.
01:19:35
Speaker
I think that it's Jim Curtin and Tata, the only two names that I see feasible to get that sort of responsibility and get this team on the on the right direction. So we talked about Tata, everything that he can do to get this team in the right direction. Jim too, right? Jim is a guy that's going to be able to develop your players too.
01:19:54
Speaker
ah if If, you know, Garth's going to do what he did here and kind of invest in in the academy and really get some sustainability there, Jim can do that. He can create an identity. He understands the league.
01:20:05
Speaker
So, you know, that could be another way to go about it. But for me, those two guys are the biggest names that could be potential candidates for that job. Yeah, me personally, I like the curtain idea more, but I mean, I understand the thought process behind why they might go for Tata. And honestly, if I have to predict it, I think, ah you know, seeing that Tata actually has that interest, I think that's kind of all you need to have. And then they would happily...
01:20:31
Speaker
welcome him back with open arms. So ah we'll see we'll see if that happens and then we'll see if it works. Nico, we are all out of time for this morning, so let's ah let's wrap it up right there. Thank you all so much, as always, for for tuning in.
01:20:45
Speaker
Another banger show. we'll be We'll be at it this week with all your playoff coverage. Stay tuned for ah for timing on all that stuff. Follow me on Blue Sky if you haven't. Like, comment, subscribe, rate five stars. Everyone still in chat.
01:20:59
Speaker
Everyone. Like the video right now. Come on now. the video right now. Like the video. Sub to the channel and follow us on Instagram and TikTok. Stay tuned for all the postseason coverage this week.
01:21:11
Speaker
And we'll catch you next time. We out.