Transcript
Speaker: Hi, I'm Will Bruin, and I was just recognized as a Seattle Sounders legend. Now I get to do voice reads for the Sounder at Heart podcast network. Here we go.
Speaker: Come on. Hey, O'Shaughness. Let's The Seattle Sounders have done it. MLS Cup winners. The Sounders rule the region.
Speaker: Ooch of a gooch! All creatures, great and small! Rothrock gonna collect it, he does about, runs into the advertising order. Low to our left, ball goes in! Oh, what a goal! Where's my copy? got bunch of them How many do you cost them? 50 bucks.
Speaker: I'll deadline you.
Speaker: This episode of Nos Arietes is sponsored by Full Pull Wines, a Seattle-based wine retailer and proud sponsor of Nos Arietes since 2011. Full Pull was founded in 2009, is based in Seattle, and is owned and operated by longtime Sounder supporters.
Speaker: They offer the best boutique wines of the world to members of their mailing list, with special focus on their home, Pacific Northwest.
Speaker: Welcome to another episode of Nos Adientes, part of the Sounder Heart Podcast Network, sponsored by Full Pool Wines and our subscribers. We're recording on Monday, August 24th, 2026. I am your host, Jeremiah Shan. Today, i am joined by my co-host, Aaron Campo, and an engineer, Lickett.
Speaker: It took more than 100 days, but the Sounders finally gave us something fun to talk about. Not only did the Sounders finally get a point, but we have a real transfer rumor to discuss that will almost certainly be an actual transfer by the time you're listening to this.
Speaker: But let's start with that 1-1 tie against FC Cincinnati. The Sounders fell behind early, stuck around, and got the eagleizer the equalizer through. Who else but Kalani Kosarianzi in the 83rd minute.
Speaker: It allowed them to get out of Cincinnati with a point, ending an eight-game losing streak, but also giving them some genuine momentum that I think was built on both the performance, the who was playing in the game, but also the transfer rumor of Dijon Jovolic coming to the Sounders.
Speaker: ah let' We will talk about that plenty, Aaron, but this result, I don't, I've never, don't remember being energized this much by a tie, but here we are.
Speaker: Yeah. I mean, I think especially the way the tie happened coming late on in the game after a game when the Sounders have played pretty well and they've had some periods of time during the stretch. where they've played well for for, you know, for stretches of games and and maybe felt like they were unlucky to not get a result. So it I think it was nice to keep pressing and and get a result. Cincinnati is a good team. They've been playing really well. So it's it's an impressive result.
Speaker: I think the fact that, you know, Brian Schmetzer was willing to try something a little different, both with the formation and stylistically was encouraging. um And, you know, it paid off. So, uh, yeah, really nice, uh, little, little Saturday afternoon. I was not watching the game live, but, I was at, I was watching engine to Poitrine, uh, and it was cool following the game, you know, during the set, seeing the rumors pop up, uh, made for, made for a good time for me and my, my sounders, uh, loving friend that I was there with. So,
Speaker: Yeah. And then rewatching the game again, you know, like it's it was a gutty performance. I don't think that that that was a ah performance where the Sounders blew anyone's doors off, but they were doing basic things well in a way that they have not always done over the stretch. They looked more confident. They looked more organized.
Speaker: And I thought it was really encouraging. And, you know, it's look, they've still got like a a tough road ahead. But I feel cautiously optimistic about the fact that once players are healthy, now that they've got this result, they've got the monkey off their back.
Speaker: They hopefully have, you know, a new a new player coming in and there should be starting to get some some other key players back. Maybe we're in for another one of those late season runs. I mean, we should be used to it by now. It it always feels every year like this is the one we're not going to be able to come back from.
Speaker: And there's still long way to go. So maybe it's not. But I think with the history of this team has, you know, you'd be crazy to to completely write them off, especially after a result is encouraging as that one. Yeah, look, ah the reality is they actually, I think they dropped in the standings. They're now 13th.
Speaker: ah San Diego looks like they may have jumped them i with a win. But look, they are still just... three points out of the playoffs. They lost eight in a row and they are only three points out of the playoffs.
Speaker: The playoffs are not a remotely unrealistic goal. If they can just put together some mildly competent string of results. Now it is unfortunate that they went through probably the easiest stretch of their schedule and played by maybe the worst soccer that they've ever played.
Speaker: But at the same time, this game against Cincinnati, you know, there was a quote from, uh, I think it was Paul Rothrock who said, we looked like the Sounders again. And I, I gotta say like this, this felt like a very Sounders performance. Uh,
Speaker: You know, they they were competent. They never really looked out of their depth, even though they rotated, I think, nine players in this lineup. They had nine guys who started who who came through to defiance. It was it Look, if people were calling it a USL lineup. And I don't think that's totally unfair in terms of like this is this would be a very good USL lineup. Don't get me wrong.
Speaker: But it was, you know, there was no Albert Rustak. There was no Jackson Reagan. There is no Jesus Ferreira. There is no Christian Roldan. There is no Jordan Morris. We can go down though. There was no new who ah there was no Alex Roldan.
Speaker: This was a heavily, heavily rotated lineup and they just gutted it out. And i liked what we saw from, you know, Tino Lopez. I liked what we saw from Stu Hawkins.
Speaker: I liked, I thought the midfield of Brunel and Kingston looked pretty good in this one. I didn't really have a lot of complaints. I thought Kalani Kosarienzi and Paul Rothrock both looked very comfortable playing as wingbacks.
Speaker: Maybe that was a key in this one. I suspect we're going to see more wingbacks. And, ah and look, the goal that they got came after, know, they really started to turn this game around around the 60th minute. That's when they started bringing in more of their first team players knew who Alex rolled on Albert Rusnak, a couple others that they, uh,
Speaker: I guess De Rosario. No, Masovsky, I guess they they brought in. And ah they, they just looked much better from that point forward. And then to get the assist on Alex, I believe it was Albert Rusnak's first open play assist, at least in the MLS regular season.
Speaker: And to set it up to Kosa Rienzi, who is now tied for second on the team with three goals in league play. That is wild, but it was just, I just thought a very competent, a very ah solid performance against an FC Cincinnati team who,
Speaker: came into this game leading the league in scoring, who had only ah lost twice, I believe, at home across all, maybe three times across all competitions, and who had still a lot of their stars in this game. The goal came from Evander.
Speaker: ah Just really, you know, I think this was maybe the biggest underdog they had been all year. Maybe that's what they needed. Yeah, it could be. I mean, I think that maybe not having the pressure of feeling like, look, ah this is probably a game we're not going to win. So let's just go out there and and not play without that kind of pressure for once. I don't know. Maybe maybe that was a factor.
Speaker: um because again, i I thought that they looked disciplined and organized in a way that they haven't in a while. ah Even, you know, this run since the World Cup break, especially um the Portland, the first Portland game aside and but the Chivas game aside as well. And Toluca, I guess I'll throw in.
Speaker: ah They've looked competent for long stretches in every game. Yeah, there there was never a game in that run where I thought this is a team that is not going to win a game. And ah Well, ah Vancouver, after they went down, I did not feel super confident that that they weren't going to be back. But otherwise, like they've they've looked like a good team.
Speaker: A Vancouver game is is a great example of this to some degree where they're just let down by really uncharacteristic mistakes. Both goals against Vancouver were just brain fart moments for, you know, for either individuals or or the whole team. The first one was just a really bad defensive breakdown, allowing a guy to to stay on.
Speaker: I think there were like three guys that were further back than they should have been. and the in the line trying to run the offside trap. The second one obviously was the back pass. And they were just good for mistakes like that over every game in this run.
Speaker: And they just didn't look like they were going to make that kind of mistake in this game. you know And they they looked confident that they were going to be able to keep it to one goal and and give themselves a chance. And that was the that was a distinct change, I think, from from from previous games.
Speaker: Yeah, and Andrew Thomas also looked very good in this game. I think this is probably Andrew Thomas's best performance since that hot start. You know, he made at least two really big saves.
Speaker: I know some folks were kind of on him about maybe leaving the rebound that led to the ah first goal a little bit, but he makes a great reflex save on the next one.
Speaker: Paul Rothrock clears the ball off the line. And then the fourth bite of the apple of Andrew just smashes it into the net. I have a hard time blaming Thomas too much on that one. ah But I thought it was, this was a good game from him.
Speaker: i really didn't have a complaint about any of the starters. I thought the game plan was solid. And, and yeah, like you said, they've showed moments of competence. And, you know, one of the things that I looked into was,
Speaker: who you know If they had lost this game, they that would have been nine straight. That would have been tied or the ah tied for the third longest losing streak in MLS history.
Speaker: There were two other teams that also had nine straight losses. So there was a file five total teams have lost nine straight games in the regular season in ah in a single season in regulations.
Speaker: All of those teams were abjectly horrible, horrible, horrible teams. They all lost at least 21 matches. the These are teams who are among the worst teams in MLS history.
Speaker: And for the Sounders to be in that conversation just did not feel right. Like this, this team is not good, but they are nowhere. They're nothing like the worst team in the league this year, let alone one of the worst teams in MLS history.
Speaker: So it was nice to just not have to talk about this stupid losing streak anymore. And it has just gotten so tiresome to talk about it. Look, the the Sounders deserved this losing streak in the in the way that they've played during it. I don't think that they've really been the better team in any of these games.
Speaker: But ah you could maybe argue they deserved one or two points during this stretch. But yeah, they this was the most competent they looked. And I don't think we can also...
Speaker: separate the reality that the Dian Jovovich rumor hit like 20 minutes into this game. And so maybe the Sounders weren't aware of it during the game, but certainly everyone watching it was, they talked about it on the broadcast.
Speaker: and this is a big, big move for the Sounders. And it's honestly bigger than what I went into this window thinking they were capable of doing. Like I really did not allow myself to believe that they would sign a designated player quality,
Speaker: ah a player this during this window. like I knew that it was possible ah that there was things that they could do. And more recently in my conversations with various front office folks, they had hinted at how they might be able to make this happen.
Speaker: But up until the last couple of days where Nico Moreno, to his credit, sort of started putting together the puzzle pieces of we might actually be trying to sign Dion Jovolech. We unfortunately were not able to confirm before Fab Romano put it out there.
Speaker: But. This is a big signing. if as in it Look, I'm saying if the Sounders get it done, they today put out an announcement of a 1 o'clock press press conference, and then on top of that, they put out a teaser that had a chess piece with a Serbian ah crest on it.
Speaker: Jovolec is a big chess player who is from Serbia. They're not exactly being slick about this teaser, But it this is a this is a big, big move.
Speaker: It is. it is. i think that somebody dug up a comment that I made in the Discord before the World Cup break about i yeah like how cool it would be back in May, how cool it would be if they could. I think I said buy somebody out or extend Jordan or something like that. I didn't think Rust not getting an extension was on the table, but.
Speaker: um and and bring in Jovic. You know, he's he's a player I've liked for a long time. I think that he's a player that's going to fit in well to what Sounders do. I think he's a big time Brian Schmetzer kind of guy. ah And, you know, I don't think he fixes maybe the biggest problems that the club has right now. But I do think that every move that the Sounders need are making right now, every move they make should have at least an eye towards the future. And yeah,
Speaker: given standard aging curves, the sound effects could be set at striker for four years now. And that's, that's a huge thing to take care of. I mean, it's been the biggest question mark on the team since 2023.
Speaker: when Raul really started to show, ah you know, signs of decline. And i think they're settled there now it's sorted and that's maybe the hardest position to fill. I know there are some people i will say pleasantly surprised has been less than I may be expected because There are some people who are frustrated that it's a player from within and MLS. But look, man, he's shown he can play in this league and score a bunch of goals in this league. ah he You don't have to worry about him.
Speaker: You know, is he going to take to life in the US? Is the league going to be a good match for his skill set? This is a a proven commodity who, you know, was fantastic for the Galaxy.
Speaker: has been the only player worth watching for sporting KC over the last year. I think it's fair to say has scored some great goals against us. God knows. And I'm, I'm thrilled. I think he's a, he's a really good addition.
Speaker: And I think that as the sounders start to get healthy, knock on wood and maybe learn how to progress the ball a little bit more again, maybe, you know, remember that they're capable of doing that and, and can start creating some chances I really trust that he's going to be able to take advantage of them.
Speaker: I think for the fee they pay, there have been rumored to pay. I think 6 million was the rumor we've heard. yeah I mean, yeah look, that's, that's a steal. I feel like, you know, you're getting somebody, you know, that is going to score.
Speaker: i think he has the potential to be a 20 goal scorer. You know, probably not this year. 20 goals in 2024 for, the LA galaxy, which by the way, included six goals in,
Speaker: In the playoffs, the list of players who have scored six playoff goals in a single postseason is really short. And it is. You know, it's just on that list.
Speaker: Yeah, I mean, he he is a goal scorer. There are some advanced metrics that don't love his game. I have not been convinced by them. I will say, I think that he's he's maybe not as dynamic of ah of a player as some of those advanced advanced metrics like, but his underlying XG numbers have been really solidly, consistently good in MLS.
Speaker: They've taken a dip this year, but he's playing for one of the worst teams in league history. So I don't think that that's super shocking. ah And, you know, I expect, I expect he's going to fit in really well here.
Speaker: And it's, you know, i'm I'm really glad that he can't knock us out of playoffs. Again, I'll say that much. Right. Yeah, exactly. Well, I want to share a couple stats for you that sort of illustrate why, even if, even if striker was not the single biggest need, why it was a need. One of them is that we're 20 games into the regular season.
Speaker: The Sounders still have zero goals from starting strikers. ah The three players who have played striker for them have combined for four goals in league play.
Speaker: Osase De Rosario, currently the team leader among strikers with two goals. Neither one of them came in a start. Jordan Morris has one goal did not come when he came, when he was starting at striker and Danny Masofsky has one goal, by the way, on 3.8 XG, the Sounders are not creating a ton of chances for their strikers, but they're creating a lot more than they're getting goals from.
Speaker: ah those three players have under, uh, have underperformed their XG uh, about five goals.
Speaker: If you put five goals on this team right now, they are probably almost certainly in the playoffs. ah So look, I'm, I'm not going to sit here and say that.
Speaker: Yovelich is. the absolute best player that they could sign if money was not a issue. But look at $6 million, dollars they signed a player who is effectively Raul Rui Diaz 2.0 in terms of what, like, if you want to just a really easy comparison, ah he's actually a year, about a year younger, 10 months younger than Rui Diaz was when he came to the Sounders.
Speaker: He has a very comparable number of professional goals. He's actually scored 111 professional goals at 27. Pretty impressive. ah But his his goals per 90 is almost identical to Rui Diaz. He's actually ahead of him on assists per 90.
Speaker: But you can actually compare Jovolec to Hugo Kuypers when he came to MLS at a very similar age. You can compare him to Peter Moussa, who came to MLS at a very similar age. And those guys both cost more money than Jovovich did.
Speaker: And i get how there are fans who just don't like the idea that the Sounders signed a an MLS retread, I guess is maybe the pejorative way to refer to him because he's played on, this will be his third team and in ah basically three years.
Speaker: But I just don't know that, That's to be taken seriously. The reality is that he's a proven and MLS goal scorer. He's put up big numbers in this league when he's played. He's mostly played on bad teams.
Speaker: ah Really, the only good team he played on was that 2024 Galaxy team, and he was one of the best strikers in the league that year. So look, if if the Sounders can put together a competent team,
Speaker: service for him. I think this guy is going to score a ton of goals. ah He potentially compliments Jordan Morris just fine. Like you can put Jordan Morris out on the wing. You can put like, it's not that hard to imagine a really robust attack here where you have ah not even that many changes. You just put Yovale in and you have Rusnak in the middle. You have Morris on the right and you have, I guess maybe Paul Rothrock on the left.
Speaker: And I'm not going to sit here and say that's the, that's a MLS cup winning ah attack right away, but I don't think it's that far off from one either.
Speaker: yeah I mean, i'm I'm glad you brought up Hugo Kuypers because he's a guy that I think a lot of people were really interested in and there was a lot of consternation when he got sold to Monterey about like, why are the Sounders ongoing signing this guy?
Speaker: And I get it. he's ah He's a very good player. I think he he'd fit in the team very well, but he went to Monterey for more, I think about $2 million dollars more than the Sounders paid for Jelic. Yeah. which And from 2024 through 2026, the time that Kuypers played in MLS, he scored 40 goals.
Speaker: Jovo Litch has scored 45. And he's two years younger, which I think is, he's he's two and a half years younger, really, because he just turned 27. couple of weeks ago.
Speaker: Yeah. yeah August 7th, I think. Kuypers turned 29 in February. So a full two and a half years older, which makes a big difference for a striker, as I think we've, we've,
Speaker: kind of come to see over the over the last few years uh i think it's just if you would have been over the moon with kuypers i think you should be more excited for real which and i mean look would i rather have like the next kevin dinky like sure ah Right. maybe Maybe, but maybe, yeah, maybe, maybe, maybe not.
Speaker: I don't know. I mean, there is something to be said about nobody's a sure thing, right? Like even just moving to a different team, a different system, a different like soccer players are weird stuff can upset their, their balance. And, you know, maybe he comes here and is a total bus. i think that's pretty low odds though, because he's, he's been able to produce across different teams, different environments. He's, he's just been a productive player his whole career. So yeah,
Speaker: i'm I mean, he's a guy that I have been saying for since he got traded from LA. Like, man, that is a guy i would really like to have on the Sounders. And and he he's here. And i think that given the profile, his age, everything, like we've talked about how I don't necessarily think that strikers was the biggest need on the team.
Speaker: But if you can add a player that's that good for what the Sounders got him for, and And you're kind of in a, I don't think the Sounders are ever going to do a true rebuild. I just, I don't think they feel like they can afford to do that for, you know, for fairly reasonable reasons, seeing how people react every time they have a ah bad spell. But, you know, I think he's he's a player you can build around going forward.
Speaker: And, you know, they've they've still got a week and a half, right, of the transfer window left, so they can still make it ah yeah other additions. and ah And as far as I know, they are still interested in making moves. yeah That is a a notable thing that this is not, I don't think this is the end of it. And I got to tell you, this move gives me a lot more confidence of the next move.
Speaker: ah yeah Whereas like I was always a little skeptical that they were just going to get that first move done because it just feels like there is a, an inability to make a decision sometimes to, to pull the trigger, to make something happen. The fact that they got this one, which undeniably is the bigger is going to be the bigger move.
Speaker: And so the other ones are, are more ancillary, you know, icing on the cake type of moves. But you know, you bring up, we bring up Kevin Dankey. I just want to share this real fast over the last two years playing for a much better team, by the way, like FC Cincinnati is a infinitely more talented team then than, than a sporting Kansas city.
Speaker: He has 26 goals. Dankey has 26 goals and three assists, ah including five penalties. Day on your village has 26 goals and three assists and including five penalties. They have the exact same yeah production over the last two years. Now, granted, a little itch has played more, not a lot more, but he has he has played, you know, about you know, call it 650 minutes more, uh, which isn't nothing, but still like, this is the, this is what we're talking about. Uh, Jovo has been a very, very productive player for a really bad team. He's played on a lot of relatively bad teams.
Speaker: And I don't think he's what, uh, I know that there are going to always be accusations that this guy has not been very, you know, he's he's played on a lot of bad teams.
Speaker: I saw someone pointing out that I don't really love the idea of us signing someone from a worse MLS team. And it's like, I just don't think that factors into it at all. mean, look at every other league in the world. Like, where do you think Manchester city gets its players?
Speaker: Right. Like right they bought their most expensive English transfer of all time came from Aston Villa when Aston Villa was dog shit. So it's not, you know. Yeah, it's that's just how it kind of goes.
Speaker: but Good teams pick up the the best players from bad teams.
Speaker: Sounder at Heart has been around in one form or another since 2009. In 2026, though, we make a pretty significant evolution when we go analog. Yes, that's right. In the year of our Lord, 2026, we are publishing a real-life magazine. We're calling this thing 4, as in Sounder at Heart 4.0. But we're stylizing it as i IV because we absolutely love Roman numeral. And if you want to refer to it as IV, that's cool, too. The first issue has a comic book-style cover that was hand-drawn by local artist Kevin Newbern. Features by Tim Foss, Susie Rance, and Charlie Boehm. A statistical deep dive by Kat Bush. A Q&A with Brian Schmetzer. A column by G. Willow Wilson. And photographs by Noah Reif, Max Aquino, Mike Russell, and Jane Gershowitz. I could not possibly be more proud of the work everyone put into making this, and I think you're going absolutely love it. If you'd like to get your hands on one of these limited edition copies, we're currently selling them for $15 on our website. Get yours now.
Speaker: Right. ah Yeah. And I also point out that Danky's Cincinnati averages almost a full point more per game than sports sporting Kansas City has been like, look, sporting Kansas City has just been so awful. I don't know that people appreciate how bad they've been. The fact that this guy has 26 goals on a team that this bad should be really encouraging because he's finding goals. He's finding ways to score.
Speaker: is. he is he is everything people wish Jordan Morris was, I feel like, sometimes. like yeah You watch him play and you go, like can't Jordan just do that?
Speaker: ah he's He's got all the the moves around the box. he He scores in a variety of ways. And by the way, he's got a great personality. Just not for nothing.
Speaker: I've watched a few interviews with him. He he really tries to connect with people. His English is not literally perfect, but it's, it's really good.
Speaker: ah He just so happens to be an um apparently an amazing chess player. Like, yeah, like legitimately really good. Probably the best. I would imagine probably one of the best chess playing soccer players in the world.
Speaker: So chess chess.com and and the the chess app that you can get has like bots that are based on real players. And he has uh, like a huge margin, the highest yellow of any of the athletes on there, including Christian Pulisic.
Speaker: So he's he's got, I mean, he's, he's got a 2200 yellow, which is like, not like good for a person, but like legitimately extremely good.
Speaker: Right. Yeah. yeah he's so He's, I don't know. I just like, I like a lot about him. I just think that he's going to be a fun person to have in the locker room. I'm looking forward to interviewing him.
Speaker: Uh, I can't imagine it hurts that there's already a Serbian on the team and Nikola Pekovic. I would imagine that it helps that Precky is a kind of like a Serbian hero.
Speaker: ah So I don't know. I like this move a lot. I don't want to get too far ahead of myself because we're going to probably do a whole podcast ah tomorrow about this thing, but I just really like it. I think this is a great move.
Speaker: I think that it, and And the thing I like best about it is that it does show that the Sounders are willing to spend some money. And yeah, if you want to get nitpicky about it, it's them finding a bargain. And I do think that that's sort of what this is, is somehow they were able to spend $2018 on in a 2026 market.
Speaker: That's kind of the way like this is there. They're somehow buying. raw ruy like they were able to buy Raul Ruiz Diaz for, again, like somehow. Like, I don't really... it it doesn't make sense, but they they were able to do that. And, you know, meanwhile, yeah, Sporting Kansas City's out here talking about spending $50 million dollars on transfers for guys who... I mean, yeah, it would be cool if the Sounders were spending that. i don't I don't... That's the part where I'm like, I i don't really...
Speaker: care how much the Sounders are spending as long as they are spending something and they're getting value. And and like, look, if he comes out here and he scores 20 goals, I don't care if they spent 20 million or 10 million um or six. Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, I think that the the key thing for me, right, is that I actually think that MLS teams spending a lot of money on transfers is pretty stupid. i I think I generally agree with the philosophy that the Sounders seem to have, which is just like what transfer spending is not how you win games.
Speaker: But where you do have to do it is when we need this player. We need this kind of player, this profile of player. but We need a difference maker, whatever it is. And they are not available as a free agent and we need them now.
Speaker: Okay. Then you've got to spend, the you've got to spend some money, right? Like, and that's true of DPs. It's true of, ah you know, players that are going to be key players on your roster.
Speaker: They paid a transfer fee for Yamar. They, you know, they paid a transfer fee for Xavier Iaga. They've done it before, right? Where it's like, we need a guy that is this and we can't get them for free. So we're going to go get them.
Speaker: And I think the position the Sounders have put themselves in the past has been, we found a player and we like the player and we don't have to spend any money on them. So we're just going to get them and figure it out.
Speaker: Right. Like, right. We like Jesus Ferreira. We're just going to make it work somehow. And that's how you end up with him and Rusnak playing together is like dual pens and not really complimenting each other super well. Right. Because it's just like you're you're trying to make pieces fit that maybe aren't the most holistically well thought out roster builds.
Speaker: Whereas I think this is a guy that it's like, look, we can whatever team we put behind this guy, he's going to score goals as long as they do their jobs. Yeah. And yeah, you've got to go out and spend the money, but there's no sense in going out and spending $20 million. dollars I mean, if you look at what the teams that are spending big are getting in return for the big spending, I i think you'd be crazy to be in a, like, I just have to figure that,
Speaker: Arthur Blank and and then the new guy in Sporting KC, whose name I can't remember. Malik. I think they just like spending money. They just like the idea of being big spenders because there's just no justification for spending that kind of money as as an MLS team owner.
Speaker: ah Yeah, look, ah I understand the argument of... yeah If you want to be an MLS contender, you've got to spend like an MLS contender. And there is like, i understand why the, ah there's no correlation to spending and winning in MLS drives people crazy because they, it is true. If you look at the big sets of data, which is the regular season, it does not feel as true when you look at the playoffs.
Speaker: I get it. There's some validity to you got to be spending at a certain level. But this is the level that I think you got to be spending at. Like this is this is the level where you're you can comfortably like if you're.
Speaker: If you're spending this kind of money, this is how you get to be a contender in in the MLS Cup. This does not make the Sounders MLS Cup contenders overnight. But look, if you bring back Christian, if you if Jordan can look like his old self, big if look, it's a big if I'm I get it.
Speaker: But if Jordan looks like himself, if Christian looks like himself, if if you can have a if Hassani Dotson and Paul Areola can be competent veterans coming off the bench.
Speaker: Look, you can start stacking this stuff. And this looks like a pretty competitive team. I fully at this point, if the Sounders don't make another move, I make the I expect them to make the playoffs.
Speaker: I think that's a really low bar making the playoffs is not what success is for the Sounders. I don't, I'm not going to get into, is this enough to save Craig Weibel's job?
Speaker: we We can deal with, let's talk about that when the window's over, but in terms of like, is this enough to get Sounders into playoffs? Yeah. And I, and I think it's a good first step towards making them, getting them back to a point where they can be contenders because look, I don't think they went out and spent you know they're going to commit, let's say, $6 million dollars in transfers.
Speaker: I strongly suspect that Jovulic is going to sign a new contract that probably adds at least two years to his current his current deal. It takes him into the through the 28, through 2028, which would be the middle of the 28-29 season.
Speaker: I suspect that he will be around at least until 29-30. So you add a year and a half to his contract. They're probably committing something like $18 million dollars to your village.
Speaker: I do not think that they are doing that to just say, that's it. We're done. i hope you're happy. Like the only reason you do that is because you are serious about wanting to put a winning product on the field.
Speaker: And I think they understand that they are not one piece away from MLS cup contender right now. And, and, and yeah, it's, you can argue that this is, this is not, this, this is,
Speaker: multiple windows too late they should have been doing this all along i am open to that argument but i will also say i don't know that they could have gotten a much better player than dion jovelich at 27 years old like this is like maybe they should have got him ah back when sporting kansas city first got him from the galaxy you can totally valid argument But of course, Jordan had just had a a great year and become a DP. So absolutely.
Speaker: Totally valid. Counterfactual there. Right. But. I'm thrilled. I am. I am. This is this is something close to the ideal signing as far as I'm concerned. And I'm thrilled and I'm i'm looking forward to see what comes next.
Speaker: Yeah. I, I think the only thing I would have been happier with would have been if they had found an equivalent player who, you know, was a winger or something like that. But even then, you know, like it's, it's really nitpicking. I think this is a great move.
Speaker: Sets them up well for the future. Like I said, which I think is so, so important right now with, with these signings, if if you're going to spend money, you need to get more out of it than a couple of seasons, I feel like. And, uh,
Speaker: Yeah, I'm excited to see what they do next. ah You know, I hope it's a winger. I think that they could really use one. Even even if Jordan comes back and and can play. No, they need a winger. They need a winger. I think that's fair. They they really do. So um whether it's a U22 or, you know, maybe they've got like another Andreas Ivanchicz out there somewhere. I don't know. Hey, I'll take that. Pulling that out of a hat would be pretty nice right about now, but.
Speaker: it would Yeah, I feel i feel i feel good about, you know, I'm not expecting a ton for the rest of the season, but just them showing the. ah You know, the endeavor to go make a move like this, I think is is super encouraging. And yeah, hopefully hopefully they can get it turned around soon. And this will just be another one of those summer swoons that becomes a joke.
Speaker: Look, ah I think what we've been asking for is a sign of life is like, show us you're serious. Show us you care. Show us that you aren't just asleep at the wheel.
Speaker: Show us that you understand that fans are not just freaking out and that it's that there's like a five alarm fire.
Speaker: And this is to me. recognition of those things. This is this is them saying, and I, and supposedly they've been working on this deal for three months is, is what I heard. Like they've been trying to figure out if this was a guy that they could get.
Speaker: And yeah, I don't know exactly how true that is. have also heard that as recently as a couple weeks ago, that there was no real budget.
Speaker: But again, I think this gets to the idea of like for the right player, they're willing to spend money as long as it's ah like the right amount of money. And I think this to me is like, okay, good.
Speaker: Like, yeah. Make more signings like this. yeah. Yeah. you know, ah like you don't have to spend 25. You don't need to spend $25 million dollars to make me happy. But if you can spend 6 million smartly, I am.
Speaker: I am happy about that. Let's see where this goes. ah And, and look, I'm, I'm cautious. I went from down in the, I went from as low as I've been like after the, the loss to Austin, which look, that was one of the worst teams in the league who hadn't won on the road.
Speaker: It was rightfully called one of the worst losses of the season of maybe ever that they've had. And, and this result was, you know, didn't make up for it, but it was a step in the right direction. And that's look, all I'm asking for is hope.
Speaker: Like give me a reason to be optimistic and i will be optimistic. And this is what that was. ah The result was a big reason why as well. I don't think this would have all hit the same if not for the, for the point.
Speaker: Like, I think that was a big part of it. Like I was really, i was stoked after that, that point. And I think that that's, It's all part of this. And now they need to go get another one.
Speaker: They need to go win at home. Like that's the next one. like they They play the Chicago Fire, a ah a pretty good team. Robert Lewandowski. this is a This is not a pushover Chicago Fire.
Speaker: ah It is by no stretch of the imagination going to be an easy game for them. But if they can get a win here, if especially if Jovolic plays, that's the other thing I like about this move.
Speaker: Jovlich, you don't got to wait on a green card. You don't got to wait for him to figure out MLS. he He's, there's every reason to believe that he can hit the ground running. And that's, that's another reason I like this.
Speaker: Yeah, I mean, that's the thing is like even good signings in MLS. I think we got so spoiled with Nico and Raul because they both came in and hit the ground running. That's not the way it goes all the time. I mean, I'd say it's a 50-50. More times than not, doesn't. right yeah Yeah, it takes a while to adjust to the new league, your teammates, all that stuff. So um I think getting somebody who can get in and help right away was critical because...
Speaker: I don't think that any signing they make right now, especially a DP signing that they're spending money on and restructuring contracts to to make work, can be, we've got to save the season, right? Like, I don't think that's a panic signing, right? that They're always talking about wanting to avoid.
Speaker: Right. I think it has to be one that you feel like sets you up for the future, but it's it's certainly nice that you can feel pretty confident. Like, I wouldn't be shocked if he's starting on Saturday.
Speaker: you know No. That wouldn't surprise me at all. ah And, and yeah, I mean, that's, that's a huge benefit. And I think now that they have the proof of concept of like, oh yeah, we can score goals even on the road. We can create chances. We can hang with good teams.
Speaker: ah Maybe we're going to see them playing with some more confidence again and and playing like they feel like they can actually accomplish something. I'm not expecting a win against Chicago and I'm not going to be all that distraught with a loss, although they so they certainly need to be getting all the points they can at this at this page. But Chicago is a good team and that's that's going to be a tough game.
Speaker: But if they can put in another solid performance, especially if you can get involved and and, you know, we can see how that's going to look and and how he's looking with his teammates.
Speaker: It's the first game in a long time that I'm excited to watch. I mean, it's the first game since probably the first game back from the break that I'm excited to watch. Now, given what happened in that game, maybe that's ah not good. Maybe that's a, ah you know, portentous feeling. But for now, I'm i'm excited to see how that looks.
Speaker: Yeah. ah And I think one of the other things that a number nine does do is that it can, like, I feel like a number nine has the ability to imbue the entire roster with some confidence because yeah i don't, I do think that there's nothing more frustrating than a number nine who doesn't put away a chance.
Speaker: ah You know, Mussofsky, look, The Sounders were really close to pulling out all three points against Cincinnati. Danny Mussovsky had maybe not a tap in, but like a ball you really want to see him finish on ah on a on an open header that he he just didn't quite get his head to his enough enough.
Speaker: And if he finishes that, if the Sounders win that game, Look, I don't know if it's a different story because I'm already pretty enthusiastic about this. but that's the kind of But that's the kind of goal. They need their number nine scoring.
Speaker: and ah yeah you know And I feel like that's the kind of goal that Jovolec is going to score more of. Yeah, it's especially a goal that Danny Mussovsky needs to be scoring. And you do kind of have to feel for a guy losing his his spot as both the the presumed starting striker and the resident chess guy on the team.
Speaker: It's kind of a bummer for him, I guess. But, you know, if he'd been scoring goals, it probably wouldn't happen. So that's how that's how she goes sometimes. But yeah, I definitely think that there are when those chances come up and when you expect them to be scored in a way that I have not this year, otherwise.
Speaker: Yeah. ah Yeah. ah I think that's, that's probably a good place. I don't, I don't have much else to say. We've got a press conference coming tomorrow. We're probably going to do another podcast tomorrow.
Speaker: Do a lot more Yovelich content. ah Don't got a lot else to say about the Cincinnati game. I don't know. Is there any anything else other than a winger you really feel like this team needs? ah You know what? We don't actually, I do want to do this.
Speaker: We have at times been very, very hard on new who, and I would say rightfully so in my opinion. Yeah. But i credit where it's due, the play of the game may have been new tackle that sets up the goal.
Speaker: Yeah, incredible play. I mean, I think since the Vancouver game, he's been, but I mean, it's it's only been two games, I guess, but he's been he's been good. Yeah. And I thought, you know, I thought he was good against Austin for all that was worth. But that i mean that play against Cincinnati was... it was a It was a spectacular play. I don't think there's a lot of, there's honestly not that many defenders who make that play because if he misses that tackle, pretty good chance it's two zero Yeah. Oh, yeah.
Speaker: Yeah. And that that would have felt really deflating. I think you you still could have taken some positives from that game, but I think it would have felt deflating for sure yeah to go down to zero in that moment. And yeah, it's it's a hell of a play.
Speaker: ah I think that I am increasingly knew who is always going to be a player that is not my favorite kind of player to watch. But I think a lot of it is the frustration with him being put into positions where I just don't think he's being put into positions to succeed that well. yeah And and i I like him so much more in a back three.
Speaker: um I know he wasn't playing center back, although he had kind of switched to center back by that. point of the game right he was playing more exactly I mean he came in as a center but he he came off the bench but oh that's right that's right so yeah I mean I think he he and Lopez both played as a left center back in that yeah and and I think that that is if he's playing left center back I don't think knew who is even on my radars is somebody that's frustrating me honestly uh so you know maybe we'll see a little bit more of that um But yeah, incredible play. um
Speaker: That being said, I think that outside of Winger, another left back is probably my biggest thing that I would like. Not because I feel like they, i don't think that Nuhu is, unless you bring in Alphonso Davies or something, I don't think Nuhu is losing the starting job.
Speaker: But we have one left back on the team. And yeah, he's, he's been remarkably durable throughout his career. I mean, he's, he's missed very, very little time to injury over the course of his career. ah But you know, that's the thing I always say is players are durable until they're not.
Speaker: And you know, that would put them in a really bad spot. I mean, I know that they, Brian feels comfortable putting Tina Lopez and, and center backs left footed center backs generally at left back.
Speaker: And with the way the left back and the sounder system is asked to play, you can get away with that. But, man, I would really like to have somebody who that's just their their natural position and and also who who could conceivably push Nuhu for playing time. I think that the best version of Nuhu is always when there is somebody who is plausibly capable of taking his job.
Speaker: um And I think that's true of a lot of players, right? Like I'm not singling out Nuhu here. I think that that's just the way a lot of players are. If they feel that pressure, they're going to, there's just that added impetus to be their best. Yeah.
Speaker: I would love that for both for insurance purposes and, and, you know, maybe getting a little more out of new who purposes, but I think winger is, is very clearly the gotta to be the number one target. And maybe they can find a winger who can, who can play a left back too, you know, maybe they can find a wing back type. I don't know.
Speaker: Yeah, i mean, it does seem like their answer to the left back depth question is to sort of chain. Like they don't have another player who can really play as a left back in a traditional four, two, three, one kind of setup.
Speaker: Lopez can sort of fill in as a left center back. And I suppose you could argue that Areola or Rothrock could play as a left wing back, but they really, if they want to play with a real left back in a four back set, which you would like to think is a, you know, like a, a formation you might want to play, you know, right. Right. They they really don't have a natural left back to backup.
Speaker: Uh, new. And that's, I guess Alex has played there in the past. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, like they could put there's players that who they can literally force to play the position, but I don't know that they should feel comfortable with it. Like no one has proven themselves.
Speaker: Frankly, Cody Baker was the ah best option that they had before they, they moved, they loaned him out. And I would look, I would still love to have re Baker Whiting.
Speaker: Right. Like I, I don't need to get into this whole thing, but I, I understand why they felt like they, they didn't want Reed sitting on the bench anymore and that yeah sure that they're eating an opportunity cost there.
Speaker: I feel I'm less, I understand the Cody Baker move less because I just feel like rotational guy on a good team is kind of where he's at.
Speaker: You know, I don't know. Maybe he's playing all the time in New England. I don't know, but um yeah, that that was more perplexing to me for sure. Yeah, but all right. Well, let's let's call it there. Aaron, it's been wonderful, as always, catching up with you.
Speaker: But let's get out of here We'll probably have another episode for you coming up soon after the Yovalich signing is official. But for now, I am Jeremiah Shan signing off for Aaron Campo.
Speaker: ah Thank you to our sponsors, Full Pull Wines, and of course, our listeners and readers of Sounder at Heart who are ah coming through right now in August and making sure that August is another good month.
Speaker: With all that said, we're going to get out of here. This is No Sadiates, part of the Sounder Heart Podcast Network. And remember, you'll never get alone.
Speaker: Let's go and Sounders.
