Messi Skips Houston, San Jose Undefeated, FA Cup Red Cards, and USWNT First Loss Under Hayes

Speaker 1 Messi should have never been playing in this game, period, because of what happened last week.

Speaker 1 He gets a yellow card right at the end for dissent, and he walks over and grabs the neck of one of the NYCFC assistants.

Speaker 1 He got fined, which I don't know what the exact rule is, but you can't put your hand on someone on an assistant's neck.

Speaker 1 Unfiltered soccer with Landon and Tim, presented by Volkswagen. Volkswagen has long been a supporter of soccer in America and has proudly been a partner of U.S.
soccer for the past five years.

Speaker 2 Yeah, baby, we are back, LD. It's been a whirlwind of a couple weeks traveling doing all sorts of crazy stuff you you

Speaker 1 were in england weren't you i was i was in england

Speaker 2 stadium i was in england i you know what you know what i did i went to the total hotspur game against city and i went with my dear friend my good mate lal hardy who's a legendary world famous tattoo artist in london and uh

Speaker 2 Yeah, I was like, there's not many people I would like go and sit in the terraces and in the stands with. I know.

Speaker 1 I saw that video. You're in like, you're with the people.

Speaker 2 I went to be, I'm a man of the people. So

Speaker 2 I was like, Lal, if it, like, do you have an extra ticket for the city games? Like, yep, let's go. So, went, yeah, dude, climbed the stairs at the new stadium.
I mean, Spurs Stadium is awesome.

Speaker 1 Yeah, I've been actually, you went that place is sick. How was the Everton Stadium?

Speaker 2 Oh, dude, it was majestic. So, like, I went over, I interviewed David Moyes and Jordan Pickford for a piece on PLP.

Speaker 2 And

Speaker 2 they were like, you want a private tour of the stadium? I'm like, yes, I want to private tour.

Speaker 1 Absolutely, it was incredible.

Speaker 2 Like, literally, uh, you know, they had a group of people there with me who I've known at the club, and like, it was unbelievable.

Speaker 2 It was the first time, LD, that I was like, It's going to be sad leaving goodness, and everybody's going to feel that.

Speaker 2 But I remember standing outside and then standing at the center circle and walking on the terrace, and I was like, this is actually a stadium we can be really proud of.

Speaker 2 And I thought, and I think a lot of the supporters felt the same way as they've also toured the stadium. So, yeah, I'm super stoked, man.
What have have you been up to?

Speaker 1 I was in New York actually in your hood for just a day or two, doing an appearance,

Speaker 1 and then back.

Speaker 1 Been doing a little bit of travel, but chill weekend with the family. My son's team,

Speaker 1 it's insane. My son's soccer team has, they have a kid on their team, Tim.

Speaker 1 Like you, you know, this because you were watching your daughter play, and I don't know if your son played, but they have a kid on their team. He plays like a professional.

Speaker 1 And what I mean, and he's, they're seven years old. So I watch him play and like he moves and he sees passes and he anticipates like a pro does.
And you don't see that with kids, right?

Speaker 1 They're just kind of out there doing their thing. Totally.
And every time I watch this kid, I'm like, dude, if the, and he's physically, his dad, I think, was on the verge of being like an MLS player.

Speaker 1 And so, and he's physically really good too. He just dominates.
I mean, he must be by far the best seven-year-old in the country. And I'm just, every time I watch him, I'm like, this kid is insane.

Speaker 1 So they they played in state cup they just dominated everyone one state cup they were like whatever not that that matters but this kid is so fun to watch and you were which is amazing especially at that age and you were in new york in my hood doing tim howard things you went to did you did you someone said they saw you at bang bang tattoo studio what were you doing there uh can i confirm or deny i was there but you might but but you might have been yeah i got a tattoo i got a tattoo that's symbolic of my kids oh i love that some point we'll show it's actually not done yet because it took 10 hours to do half of it.

Speaker 2 So I was like, oh, you went deep, bro.

Speaker 1 That's crazy. He took a while.
He was so good. The guy was so good and so detailed.
So it's amazing.

Speaker 1 Yeah. I mean, you know, it's one of those in the moment, you're like, dude, can I just get out of here? And then after, you're like, thank God he took his time.
Totally.

Speaker 2 Oh, you know, I've, I, I'm at the point now where I'm super heavily tattooed where I tap out after like two hours. I'm like, I'm bored of this.
This isn't fun anymore. All right.

Speaker 1 Let's get on to it. Uh, make sure to follow us on social media, Unfiltered Soccer.
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Speaker 1 If you like what we're doing, please leave a review. Lots of reviews already, and we appreciate that.

Speaker 1 Also, I had a family member, I'm not going to out this person, yesterday said to me, you know, if I wanted to submit a question to your podcast, how would I do that?

Speaker 1 And I said, first of all, you're listening to the podcast? Second of all, if you're listening, you should know. I say every week.

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Speaker 1 So send in the send in the questions. All right.
Let's get right into it. MLS this weekend.
Big weekend. Yeah, there was a lot.

Speaker 1 So it's, it's classic, like two weeks in, everyone's overreacting to everything.

Speaker 1 First, we had Chicago Fire, DC United, Greg Berhalter.

Speaker 1 Not the perfect start. He will get it right eventually, but I don't know if you saw there was a goal

Speaker 1 at the end of the game. This bike at the end of the game off a corner kick.
Jacob Morrell.

Speaker 1 If you didn't know who he is now, you're going to know. Go Google it.
This is an insane goal.

Speaker 1 The way the ball was coming and the ability just to make contact

Speaker 1 would have been difficult. And he looped it into the back post.
Phenomenal goal. I'm guessing it could be goal of the year after week two, but what a phenomenal goal.

Speaker 2 I mean, the timing of it. I mean, big shout out to Jacob Morrell.
I was watching and thinking,

Speaker 2 I'm thinking, shirt off into the stands, like go crazy. It was, especially because it was an equalizer as well.

Speaker 2 It's not like his team was just, I mean, that would have been a brilliant goal, no matter what.

Speaker 2 I mean, a proper bicycle kick, he meant every ounce of it, like sweet contact, left the goalkeeper, no chance. It was,

Speaker 2 yeah, massive, massive shout out to Jacob Murrell.

Speaker 1 All right, time for me to eat a little bit of crow. So I said, Philly, why are you hiring a former Red Bull coach? Yeah.
Looks like it's working out well.

Speaker 1 So their first two games, they beat Orlando 4-2.

Speaker 1 Now they beat Since I 4-1. So, scoring goals, clearly not an issue.
Um, again, we're going to overreact, uh, but damn, they look good.

Speaker 2 They've got a lot of good pieces as well. Like, I think, you know,

Speaker 2 I think your take on it was probably in the preseason accurate because you just don't know,

Speaker 2 you know, what are all the moves that they make the right ones? Are they going to gel? They look really, I mean, Baribo, by the way, what a player.

Speaker 2 You have to have a goal scorer in this league, and he just looks bang on it, man.

Speaker 2 Like, he, yes, he's scoring the goals but he's also like dangerous and hungry and like i'm like wow he's a really really good player but again they've got good pieces around i think sullivan on the wing um there's just some there's a good makeup of this team that feels right and and

Speaker 2 look i think when you score when you score goals like that and in back-to-back games it's there's not like a coin there's not a coincidence to it yeah teams are a little bit some more sloppy in the beginning of the season but like they're they're knocking on the door often when they have the ball

Speaker 1 There are times of the season where you score four or five and you're like, okay, where you know, everything went in.

Speaker 1 But when you do it back-to-back games earlier, you're like, okay, there's something right here. So they're good.
All right.

Speaker 1 So shame on every club who passed on Bruce Arena over the past 12 to 15 months. Again, overreaction Monday here.

Speaker 1 Bruce is getting it right. They went to Kansas City and 1-2-1.
They were down, I think, to 10 men for like 30 minutes or so, but grinded out a result.

Speaker 1 They look good, man. They look good.
Joseph Martinez and and Arango look good together. They got Christian Espinoza playing as a right wing back that's working out well for him.

Speaker 1 They're good defensively. So,

Speaker 2 yeah, I'm with you on the Bruce Serena

Speaker 2 hot takes, man. You just like, you look at the team and

Speaker 2 they're so scary in the attack. Like, I look at that front four and I'm like, man, goals can come from anywhere.
They're playing between lines.

Speaker 2 And you said, like, the wing backs, fullbacks are getting forward. And it's just a,

Speaker 2 you know, it's just a reminder to everybody, if you give a good football manager the right pieces, you'll get performances.

Speaker 2 Like forget, forget formations and like style of play, like stop with all that. There's so many ways to win a football match.

Speaker 2 And if you get a good manager, the right players, top quality players, you're going to win games. And that's what Bruce Marina does.
So if your hats off to San Jose, they look really good.

Speaker 1 I was having this conversation with someone the other day. And it's the same with David Moyes, right? And obviously we're biased because we love both of them.
But

Speaker 1 the most important thing is people are like, oh, we change the formation and move this guy here. And that it's not, it's about having principles.

Speaker 1 And your principles can be physical and on the field and tactical.

Speaker 1 They can be how you treat people, how you get the players to play, but you have to have core principles that you stand by, that you believe in, and you stick with.

Speaker 1 And when you vary is when you see problems. David Moyes.
is a principled man and he's principled in how he plays and sets up a team. Bruce Arena is the same way.

Speaker 1 So you know what what you're getting there is zero ambiguity zero so they don't have to worry what do i feel where am i at

Speaker 1 they're going to tell you you know you're not starting today here's why you're starting today if you do well you're going to play next week yeah and there's no bs they just get it done and it's starting to come to fruition and for san jose it's been a great start looks good they've been great um and you said give player give a manager players but bruce went out and brought in all those players yeah so like you have to give recruit yeah recruit yeah no i know but like a lot of coaches have someone above them doing that but he just said no no no this is how we we do it.

Speaker 1 Okay, let's get into the not so good from the weekend. One right here in my backyard that we'll get to and one on the other side of the country, New England.

Speaker 1 You sent a picture, Tim, to our text that was

Speaker 1 you watching a Columbus New England game.

Speaker 1 I mean, it looks like a preseason game in the middle of nowhere. There might have been, I think I was trying to count, there might have been 200 people on one side of the stadium that I could see.

Speaker 2 On the shot that I said.

Speaker 1 This was home in New England, and it's not good. I mean, the team is poor.
They look all out of sorts. And then when you see what's going on in the stadium,

Speaker 1 I don't know what's going on there, man.

Speaker 2 Well, I sent you that because I was like,

Speaker 2 they, okay, that's it. They announced the announced the attendance, and I'm using air quotes at 22,274.
So 22,000 people.

Speaker 2 Oh, sure. If they're going to announce that, we're going to go with that for a second.
But I mean, you saw what I saw. Like,

Speaker 2 you you read things online like it's called you know what you know where else is cold buffalo everywhere in the buffalo you ever heard of the buffalo bills let me tell you something like number one number two

Speaker 2 it

Speaker 2 show

Speaker 2 show me a football fan in the world

Speaker 2 you can't stop them from going to their team's home opener that's the one game like of that they're so desperate for all season and new england fans who by the way live in that weather are going to say it's because of the temps.

Speaker 2 Like, I looked at, honestly, Lennon, I looked at it and I remember MLS 1.0 because I was a product of that. And I'm there playing for the Metro Stars in the old Giant Stadium.
And

Speaker 2 it looked exactly the same, right? To your point, you can count to 200 and see how many people in the stands. Like,

Speaker 2 man, New England, show up and show out because

Speaker 2 that's not great.

Speaker 1 It's, look,

Speaker 1 there's nuance here, right? Robert Kraft, along with Phil Ann Schutz and the Hunt family, kept Major League Soccer afloat for a long time, and they deserve credit for that.

Speaker 1 But now we're 30 years in, and the stadium is an hour from downtown. There's nobody there.
They're playing on turf. They don't spend on the team.

Speaker 1 It's just a nightmare. It's a nightmare.
And by the way, and this is not to harp on the Bruce Arena stuff, but you had a really damn good coach who had started to turn things around there.

Speaker 1 And you didn't stand by him through a tough situation. You end up getting let go, and it's just a mess, man.
It's a mess, and it's hard to watch.

Speaker 1 And when you watch all these other games, and people are lined up, and we'll get San Diego, you know, tailgating for hours ahead of time, filling up the stadium.

Speaker 1 And then you see that, and you're like, What the hell are we doing, man? Totally, that cannot be allowed to continue. Yep, something's got it, something

Speaker 2 should change.

Speaker 1 Yeah, all right, let's move on. Late night, Saturday night, MLS after dark.
Uh, San Diego FC with their first ever home match against St. Louis City.

Speaker 1 Um, Snapdragon, very cool stadium, coached there, been there.

Speaker 1 It's still desolate around the outside. So people who show up there, it's a long process to get, you know, trees and make it look, but in the stadium, it's beautiful.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 And it was a tough night for them. The game was shocking.
I think the total XG between the two was just over one or maybe one and a half.

Speaker 1 30 minutes in, Chuki Lozano goes out with a hamstring injury, which is just a disaster. And then the real ugly in the second half, there was a, um,

Speaker 1 every time St. Louis, not every time, but multiple times when St.
Louis goalkeeper was taking goal kicks, this traditional, it's either Mexican or Latin in origin.

Speaker 1 And they use a really nasty word in Spanish that I'm not going to repeat here.

Speaker 1 And it happened once, happened again, happened a third time to the point where they had to put up on the big screen, listen, stop doing this. This is not acceptable.
And

Speaker 1 I'm not sure really where to go with this, except that San Diego has to be better.

Speaker 1 And like this community, Tim, I know I live here now for 10 years, is

Speaker 1 probably the most accepting community I've ever lived in.

Speaker 1 If you go along the coast, you got surfer bros, skateboarders, whatever. You go inland, you have families, and you go North County and there's like more affluent wealth.

Speaker 1 You go into downtown, there's more like hipster liberal. You go south, it's like the whole Mexican vibe and you get near the border and it's really cool.

Speaker 1 You go east and inland and you get more more like rural America and everybody loves each other and there's no hatred here and it doesn't happen. It really doesn't.

Speaker 1 Everywhere you go, people are just happy because they love San Diego. It's an amazing place to live.
And then the first home opener ever for an MLS team and this happens and credit to San Diego C.

Speaker 1 Obviously they denounced it quickly, but this was really nasty. It was really ugly to see.

Speaker 2 Yeah. So, I mean, obviously your take on living there is such a poignant one.
You know, I look, San Diego's head coach and sporting director both condemned.

Speaker 2 It's a homophobic chant and slur, and they condemned it.

Speaker 2 Look, what I will say,

Speaker 2 anybody who knows me knows I don't, I don't put up with any of that crap. Like, I am, I,

Speaker 2 none of those things should be said. Um,

Speaker 2 I don't like it. What I would say is, um,

Speaker 2 my hope is, and I like that the sporting director and the head coach came out and condemned their own fans for the homophobic slur. My hope is

Speaker 2 that moving forward, what happened was a group of fans got overzealous and it was the first home game and they were trying to, in their own way, albeit wrong, create this San Diego atmosphere style thing.

Speaker 2 And they got it completely and utterly wrong. And I pray moving forward that in the second home game, in the third and the fourth and beyond, that that doesn't get mentioned again.

Speaker 1 If it does, obviously san diego is going to have a problem and they're going to need to fix it so let's just leave that there and hopefully it it stays there so here's how it quit here's how it stops immediately chuqui lozano comes out during the he is a mexican legend idol during the week social media before the next home game he's on the microphone not acceptable don't do it i promise you it won't happen again so i'm great point i'm gonna urge him to do so because they love him they idolize him and that would uh totally help it go away quickly good point let's move up to your team, LA Galaxy, lost to Vancouver.

Speaker 2 Yeah. 2-1.
How are you feeling?

Speaker 1 I have to say, Tim, I'm not surprised. And I think this is going to continue for a while.

Speaker 1 This is why. So before the final last year,

Speaker 1 I was

Speaker 1 really taking a deep dive. And I know we make fun of it with the Ricky Pooch stuff here, but he is not only their best player.
He is

Speaker 1 their most impactful player in everything they do. Okay.
So so every time they build,

Speaker 1 everybody is trying to find him wherever they can, and he is always going to get the ball. Now, that's a good and a bad, right? Because when he's on the field, you win an MLS Cup.

Speaker 1 He's not on the field, how do you adjust? And so this is,

Speaker 1 there are a lot of analogies I can use here. A little bit like when Michael Jordan, right? Like you get in a pinch, just give the ball to Jordan, get out of the way.
He's going to make a play.

Speaker 1 When he's not on the court, okay, now you actually have to play and you have to,

Speaker 1 you know, the triangle that was built by Tex Winner and Phil Jackson, you have to actually execute now. And it's a lot harder.

Speaker 1 When you have a guy who's a cheat code and can get you out of problems, really helps you. But I anticipated and using or losing Jovalich,

Speaker 1 a big one. Painsel being injured to start the season.
So these are big, big misses. I think long term, they will be fine.
Sure. They just need to get in the playoffs.

Speaker 1 They can go anywhere and beat anyone with Ricky Pooge if they get a striker who's effective, which they might do in the summer window.

Speaker 1 And then from there, they'll be fine. But early on, they are going to struggle.
I mean, they're just, they are an average MLS team right now. They are.
That's just the reality.

Speaker 2 No, I give you that. And I think the interesting

Speaker 2 thing for our listeners is like,

Speaker 2 when you have, you just mentioned it there, when you have so and so dominant who has a cheat code, you're like, you give them the ball, right? And it's like

Speaker 2 in anything else, and I've been on these teams.

Speaker 2 Players are so dominant. And even in a leadership role, there are some times where I can remember there being such strong leaders that you're like, I don't have to say anything or do anything.

Speaker 2 Like, this is going to take care of themselves. Boom, they get a long-term injury or they get cemented.
Now, you turn up at the game and you're in the dressing room, and no one's talking.

Speaker 2 And you're like, you know why? Because this guy did everything for us. And it's the same thing, everything.
Send me on the pitch. I get into trouble.
My back's all. I don't know what they're.

Speaker 2 I know my mates around the corner. I just play it to him.
He'll sort it out. And by the way, he's got two people on him.
I'll still give him the ball.

Speaker 2 And so when that happens, it's hard one to replace

Speaker 2 that person with a like-for-like challenge.

Speaker 1 It's impossible in ML. It's impossible.
No, it's also.

Speaker 2 Right. It's impossible, but it's also then you're now asking other players to take more responsibility when they're like, wait a minute, I'm going to have to take responsibility.

Speaker 2 Let's give him the ball. You know what I mean?

Speaker 2 It's a different dynamic. Don't get it right.
The galaxy will get it right, but obviously slow start.

Speaker 1 It's also in the dressing room too, Tim, to your point.

Speaker 1 From coaching, I learned this. If you add one new player to a team, the whole dynamic of the dressing room can change.

Speaker 1 If you take one player away who's not on the field or who's gone or whatever, the whole dynamic changed. Like different people take different roles.
Some people step up. Some people shy away.
So

Speaker 1 there's going to be an adjustment. I know Greg Vanni will get it right.
He's bright and they'll figure it out.

Speaker 1 Okay. Now to your,

Speaker 1 well, not team you played for, but team you're part of now.

Speaker 2 It's funny how our producers did that back to back, put your team line to that.

Speaker 1 They're not stupid, are they?

Speaker 1 Okay, so Houston Dynamo.

Speaker 1 I'm going to lead this and then I want to hear your thoughts, which I'm sure everyone wants to hear yours more than mine because you're part of this.

Speaker 1 So Houston Dynamo put out a message on Saturday that said, You know, we welcome Inner Miami on the report for who's available. Leon L.
Messi was not included.

Speaker 1 He will not be traveling to Houston, will not be playing in the game.

Speaker 1 He didn't play in the game. I'm going to walk through the whole thing first and then we'll get into it.
Didn't play in the game. That certainly didn't matter.
Inner Miami were dominant, 4-1 win.

Speaker 1 And then, after the game, Houston Dynamo

Speaker 1 offered all of the fans, I believe, who had a ticket to the game a ticket, a free ticket to a future match because Messi did not show up.

Speaker 1 So I have my thoughts, but people want to hear yours first and then I'll jump in. I want to hear your thoughts.

Speaker 2 That's great.

Speaker 2 Yeah, it's an interesting dynamic when it comes to Leonel Messi and the MLS and Apple TV. And I mean,

Speaker 2 everyone knows the story.

Speaker 1 Look,

Speaker 2 I think as an organization, we did the right thing in terms of

Speaker 2 compensating

Speaker 2 our fans who bought tickets in the hopes to see Leonel Messi

Speaker 2 by giving them a, you know, allowing them to come to a game complimentary of the Houston Dynamo

Speaker 2 at some point in the season. So again, I think we did the right thing.
That being said, Leonel Messi missed 15 games all competitions last year.

Speaker 2 My expectation is that Leonel Messi will miss 15 games all competition, if not more, in all competitions this year. That's just the, that's

Speaker 2 the pink elephant in the room. And, you know, no put Nintendo with their pink jerseys.
Like he's going to miss games. And I don't know,

Speaker 2 you know, well, I do know that's not, that's not on the away organization. When he doesn't turn up

Speaker 2 in your city, that's not a reflection of the away organization, in this case, the Houston Dynamo.

Speaker 2 But, you know, we're we're certainly sensitive to our fan base and felt, you know, felt the need to try and compensate them in the best way we could.

Speaker 2 But ultimately, someone recently mentioned to me that, well, like if Erlen Holland for City doesn't turn up because he's been wrested for playing Tottenham, Tottenham doesn't compensate their refund.

Speaker 2 But

Speaker 2 I get the argument.

Speaker 1 I hope, Tim, that this is a growing moment for the league and in a lot of ways. Number one, if you are an organization, I understand

Speaker 1 you have one of the greatest stars in the world and maybe the best player to ever play coming potentially to play a match at your stadium. Here's where clubs get it wrong.

Speaker 1 The average ticket price was $100. Now they charge people $1,000.

Speaker 1 So people go, okay, well, I'm going to really commit to this. By the way, you and I talked about this.
I almost took my son to the game this weekend in Houston, right? And I was considering doing it.

Speaker 1 Thank God I didn't now,

Speaker 1 but i was considering doing it right because of our connection i thought it'd be great whatever but that would have been an expensive trip right for the weekend so i

Speaker 1 clubs if you can't be on both sides of this right you can't take both sides you can't say okay we're going to charge you a thousand dollars now but if he doesn't show up you're just screwed so in that way houston yes did the right thing because those people paid a lot of money but i hope it's a growth moment where when you're on the phone and i know it's hard ticket sales people are trying so hard to fill out the stadium It is a hard job.

Speaker 1 I've watched it in person,

Speaker 1 but we got to get to a point where you say, here is the price for every game, regardless if it's Messi or Toronto or Columbus or San Jose. Yes, maybe there's flex pricing based on who you're playing.

Speaker 1 Every club in the world probably does that. But with the caveat, hey, by the way, Messi missed 15 games last year.
We cannot promise he's going to show up and we're not refunding if he doesn't.

Speaker 1 You make the decision. And I promise you, Tim, people are still going to go, all right, I'll take the chance.
As long as you have the info,

Speaker 1 have the info, and then you can make the point or

Speaker 1 take the risk.

Speaker 1 This happened when I was playing with the Galaxy. One year, we went up to Seattle.

Speaker 1 We talk about this all the time still on our Galaxy group chat. We went up to Seattle, we battered them 4-0.

Speaker 1 It was like a Saturday afternoon, like 2 p.m. game, and we absolutely battered them 4-0.

Speaker 1 We go back home on the Monday, they sent out a message to

Speaker 1 all their fans that they would get refunded for the game because it was such a poor performance by the team, showing by the team. So, we forever will be like, remember the refund game?

Speaker 1 So, every time we talk, every time it's Galaxy Seattle, we go, remember the refund game? But I also thought that was a terrible precedent. Like, it's the sport, things happen.

Speaker 1 You know, you can't just then refund. So, this is a messy one.
No pun intended. It's tricky.

Speaker 2 Is Bex on the Galaxy group chat? No. Or is he opted out? Does it say like, yeah, we'll move the team?

Speaker 1 Every time we write, he says, who does.

Speaker 1 So no, anyway,

Speaker 1 it was difficult, but I will say this about that game. Messi should have never been playing in this game, period, because of what happened last week.

Speaker 1 So last week, he gets a yellow card right at the end for dissent. Then he walks over and grabs the neck of one of the NYCFC assistants, which at a minimum should have been a yellow card.

Speaker 1 So that should have been a second yellow. Then when you go back and review it, you should be suspended, right?

Speaker 1 He got fined, which I don't know what the exact rule is, but you can't put your hand on an assistant's neck, right? So

Speaker 1 I think justice came out in the world and that he shouldn't have been a part of that game anyway, because he should have been suspended for what happened last week.

Speaker 2 Yeah. Well, the problem, first of all, first of all, the powers at B ain't retroactively suspending Leonardo.

Speaker 1 I know they're not. I'm not.
No, I know.

Speaker 2 My point is, though, that creates its own problem because there's going to be a melee of some sort in the MLS this season, and that's going to happen.

Speaker 1 And they're all going to get suspended. And they're all going to get suspended.

Speaker 2 And you can imagine the Lee's going to get flooded with like pictures of, oh, wait, did

Speaker 2 Messi get suspended for that NYCFC game?

Speaker 1 But yeah, anyway.

Speaker 1 All right, let's move on. It was a good MLS weekend.
There was lots to talk about, lots of talking points. All right, we'll take a pause.
When we come back, we're going to talk to U.S.

Speaker 1 men's national team. There's a lot going right and some not going very well.
Also on the women's side. So right here on Unfiltered Soccer with Landon and Tim, presented by Volkswagen.

Speaker 1 Stay right there.

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Speaker 2 Oh, yes. USLNT on USMNT.
A lot of people's favorite segment, one of our

Speaker 2 favorites as well. So let's hop right in with Josh Sargent.
Talk to me, LD.

Speaker 1 On fire. On fire.
He didn't score this weekend, but that's now seven and seven. He's got seven in his last seven.

Speaker 1 I want to talk about a couple of things where he fits in the national team, but his manager at Norwich, Johannes Hof Thorup, hope I got that right.

Speaker 1 He, I don't know if this was like a mind games thing or something. He went to the media.
He said he needs to run more. He told the pinkun,

Speaker 1 whatever that is,

Speaker 1 website,

Speaker 1 magazine.

Speaker 1 He said, when we look at the best nines in the league above us, they run more and they are more involved than he is in the game.

Speaker 1 There are still moments in the game where it seems he can be out of it for five or 10 minutes where we need him to be involved because when he is, he's very good for us.

Speaker 1 What do you think about that?

Speaker 2 Well, um, and as I say this, our producers will frantically tell me. I think one of the games recently he scored like two goals or something on like seven touches, something crazy like return, right?

Speaker 2 And I, and I think what the manager is trying to say is essentially like

Speaker 2 that's 12 touches, two goals and 12 touches. But hey, if you get 30 touches, imagine what you could do.
I think that's kind of what it is.

Speaker 1 It doesn't work that way.

Speaker 2 No, it doesn't. But I think the other part is I'm not, I think he sees a striker in form.
This guy, clearly, the manager knows what he's talking about.

Speaker 2 He sees a striker in form, and I think he's trying to get more out of him. Maybe he knows the character and makeup of Josh Sargent and knows that he's.

Speaker 1 Yeah, but Tim, say that. Just say that in private then.
Why is he saying it publicly? Yeah.

Speaker 2 No, but that part I don't.

Speaker 1 No, I understand. I don't.
I'm asking. Why would he say that publicly? I don't get it.

Speaker 2 Maybe he had the conversation with Josh.

Speaker 1 Maybe he, maybe genuinely had a conversation with Josh. F'd him off.

Speaker 1 Maybe not. I'm just making it.
I don't know.

Speaker 2 The other part, and I say this to

Speaker 2 all younger players, I certainly say it to my daughter. Like, here's the thing.
Don't leave anything to question. And this is actually quite good.

Speaker 2 Cause if Josh reads this and he's playing well and he's and the manager says, need to run more, need to be involved in buildup, whatever it is.

Speaker 1 Now,

Speaker 2 There is no gray area. And if there is, go to your manager and go, I heard what you said.
Like, how do I implement it? In your eyes, what does running more look like?

Speaker 2 Running deeper, running beyond vertically, getting side to side. Like, talk to me.
And now, now he'll have like a checklist of like one, two, and three things that I can do. Right.

Speaker 2 And I think it, and I think that's helpful because what ends up happening is there's always, and you know, there's always a miscommunication between players and managers.

Speaker 2 And I don't know what he wants. And he's always on, he's always on my back.
And it's really easy. If you're a player, ask the manager what he wants.
And in this case, you didn't have to ask him.

Speaker 2 He actually said it. So I think this is a good thing.
Josh is in a good vein of form. I know you don't love it.

Speaker 1 No, i don't like it at all if you have a relationship with someone that you can speak to them in that way you don't go like

Speaker 1 it it you wouldn't go talk if you have something to say to your significant other say it to them don't go say it to their friend right and then that gets back like just say it to and i why he needs to say this publicly is bizarre to me so it leads me to believe either he by the way this was not an off the cuff oh some random reaction oh i shouldn't have said that like i mean i think he knows what he's saying he knows what he's doing.

Speaker 1 He knows. So something interesting is going on there.
He's not going to sit, Josh. Like the guy's

Speaker 1 incinerating for him. But I'm totally fine with him saying this in person.
Like, hey, man, you want to play at the next level? This is great. Here's your running numbers.

Speaker 1 Here's Esox's running numbers. You want to play it for Newcastle? You better do that.
Right. Or here's Rory Delap or Delap or whoever you think is that next level that he can be like.

Speaker 1 So just interesting.

Speaker 1 I have to think that

Speaker 1 Balagun and and Pepe out, that Sargent, you would assume he's going to be starting in the Nations League semis and hopefully finals in a few weeks. Yeah.

Speaker 1 I mean, if he doesn't start now, he's never starting for Marie.

Speaker 2 That's a really good point. That's a really good point.
And look, it's a great time for him to be in this form. You know, no Balagun, no, no Pepe,

Speaker 2 which stinks

Speaker 2 for the team and for the depth.

Speaker 2 Next man up, Josh Sargent is playing really well. And this is, again, an opportunity to kind of get in there.
And look, you get into the NASH team and you score in Nations League.

Speaker 2 Now you have more of an argument.

Speaker 1 Well, we said this about Pepe, right? He was crazy for him. He gets in, does well with the national team, crazy for him.

Speaker 1 Unfortunately, he got hurt, but all of a sudden, we were like, yep, he's the guy. Yep.
He's the guy right now.

Speaker 1 Until he's not, right? So that's right. Big moment for this is again, falls into the headline of things you don't even bat an eye at anymore because of where we've gotten.

Speaker 1 But Johnny Cardoso scores a header against Real Madrid. Yeah.
I mean, I don't know the stats, but how many Americans have scored against Real Madrid?

Speaker 1 Not many.

Speaker 2 Not many.

Speaker 1 I'm sure.

Speaker 1 If any of any, yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 2 I feel like maybe, but big moment for him. I mean, Jesus, big moment for anybody to score against Real Madrid.
So that's obviously, we'd love to highlight those.

Speaker 1 Other things going well for the national team. Tyler Adams just continues.
I mean, I don't know their exact form of late, but they won again in the FA Cup. Basically, when he plays, they win.

Speaker 1 I mean, it just, it's just all there is to it. And he is one of those guys.
Every coach will tell you. I'm sure

Speaker 1 Jesse Marshall will tell you this when he had him. When he plays, your chances of winning go through the roof.
And he's not going to show up on the score sheet. He's not doing anything flashy.

Speaker 1 So he's in the right place, right time, does all the little things well. His coach, Andoni Areola, is very high on him.
He's been speaking about him publicly, full of energy.

Speaker 1 We think he's a player that fits well in our system.

Speaker 1 We hope we can keep him in a place where he's healthy because when he is, he's very good for us.

Speaker 2 Yeah, I mean, I think the thing for me has always been like, I love seeing American players thrive abroad, but also more than anything i i read between the lines playing well being a part of a team is check number one when your manager is talking about you publicly about like how great you are for the team and how how important you are for the team it's like that's a different level that takes you to another level publicly right again so that's the opposite of this heart like when they go out publicly and that means they trust you because it means it's not going to your head.

Speaker 1 Because a lot of times you're like, oh man, I'm invincible. I'm going to start it.
And so when they say that publicly, you're like, okay, that's good.

Speaker 1 I'll actually, I'll never, I'm just going to, that just triggered a story in my head. The first week I was at Everton, we played my first time, we played Arsenal Way.

Speaker 2 Yep.

Speaker 1 And I played like 70 minutes in the snow. And that week in film, you won't remember it, but I totally remembered it.

Speaker 1 In film, there was a play where like the ball turned over, we were attacking in there and I was in top of their box and it turned over and I sprinted back like 60 yards and tackled the ball out of bounds off the guy and we got the ball back.

Speaker 1 And Moyes showed it to the team and he was like, that's what it means to and i was like

Speaker 1 this is my first week here and he's showing but it in some cases you would say oh my god that's going to go to your head and i was like oh my god that's a big responsibility yeah like i better do that every time and i wanted to do it every time because he showed me yeah and so tyler's thinking my manner just got my back he's talking about me put like let's go but you're right it's a great story and it's also but with tyler's no surprise man jesus i feel like every coach thinks that way of him which means this isn't an accident he doesn't just turn up every now and again like that's a that's a kid who turns up every single day at training, every morning for breakfast, and is like, let's do this.

Speaker 2 And he can be counted on. That's a really special player.

Speaker 1 Let's keep him healthy, man. Just needs to.
Oh, Christian Pulisic scored against Real Madrid. Okay.

Speaker 2 Unsurprising.

Speaker 1 What a shock that is. He scored against everyone.
Okay, so let's move on to Christian. Speaking of Christian.
So now he is, this is crazy. I didn't realize this goes fast.

Speaker 1 Nine games without a goal, Tim.

Speaker 1 They were eliminated from Champions League by Fire Nord. He missed his first penalty of his career, which is going to happen.

Speaker 1 That's not a slight on him. Once goalkeepers have more information on you as someone who took 60 or 70 penalties, it's hard, man.
It's such a mind game. So it's hard.

Speaker 1 Their ninth place in Syria, nine points back of fourth place Lazio, who they lost to, I believe, this weekend.

Speaker 1 He posted this on Instagram last week. Really tough week.
Hate letting down this amazing fan base. We'll give everything to finish the season on a positive note.

Speaker 1 That was before. Two losses to Bologna and Lazio.
So do you think there's something there going on? Is this just a hiccup? Is what's going on now? I mean, look,

Speaker 2 he'll probably tell you, look, nine games without a goal, he's probably kicking the wall in this house, right?

Speaker 2 But Melanjas haven't been in a good way this season. Things seem off with them,

Speaker 2 you know, in terms of like on the field in the dressing room.

Speaker 2 We're obviously not there, but you can tell with some of the changes that were made and obviously what's been going on in terms of results. Look, you know this as well well as I do.

Speaker 2 When you're playing in a team that's on bad form, like it's it's hard to stand out.

Speaker 2 You know, it's, I mean, his job is a scorer, goals, defenders, it's their job to keep it out, but you've been in teams.

Speaker 2 You've been in teams that just have no vibe and no flow and it's and it's difficult. So no, I don't, I don't put that on Christian Palisic at all,

Speaker 2 other than the fact that his team just isn't where they obviously need to be.

Speaker 1 And they, you know, they made that coaching change, right, with Paul Fonseca leaving and Conte Sao coming in. And I think they just gotten worse.

Speaker 1 And I'm, you know, Christian, before I think Xiao Felix came in, Xiao Felix,

Speaker 1 he was comfortable. He was in a role that he was clearly thriving in.
Now he's been moved around a little bit on the front line. He's moving positions.

Speaker 1 And I'm thinking to myself, he's the best player on your team by a mile at that point. He might be the best player in the league right now.

Speaker 1 And remember, during that time, every week, it was like a goal, a goal, an assist, two goals, an assist. Why are you messing with that? Yeah.

Speaker 1 Like, just leave him alone.

Speaker 1 You can work on the other things, but why are you messing with with that that's always that's always a clever part is like why what

Speaker 2 managers trying to overthink things but i guess

Speaker 2 real quick i want to give a shout out to chris richards he's a player who you know i really like he started uh going back to the premium league started 12 uh straight matches for palace in that time um they've only lost two of the 12 conceded eight goals they play in a back three um you know he's he's on he's on either side um of the center back so it's he's he's kind of found a home there which is great under Oliver Glasner and Palace.

Speaker 2 And, you know, it's, he was kind of in, kind of out, but now, again, a player really being counted. And I'm just curious: will Poch

Speaker 2 in Nations League? Will he think that that's nailed on as well?

Speaker 1 Are you

Speaker 2 written into the starting lineup?

Speaker 1 What else do you have to do except being a prominent starter for a successful team in the Premier League as a center?

Speaker 1 I mean, you're playing, you are playing the best players of the world every week, every single week. So I think Jordan wrote in our chat, he said, you know, is Chris Richards' name written in ink?

Speaker 1 Yeah. And I said, well, I think it's probably still in pencil, but that eraser might be getting lost pretty soon.
You know, like it's starting to be where you're like, okay, he's playing every week.

Speaker 1 He's playing every week. And if you're him, and if you're him, you're like, who's going to play ahead of me? Yeah.
And what else do I have to do? Yeah, correct. What else?

Speaker 1 There's nothing else he can do. Yeah.
So, no, he's been fantastic. And that is, that is a position of weakness.
When we went back and talked about the national team,

Speaker 1 that has been a position of weakness. And if that can be a guy who's doing it consistently, that's a huge, huge boon leading into the World Cup.
Totally.

Speaker 1 Okay, so let's switch over to the women's side.

Speaker 1 Been a while since the women played. So this is US LNT on USWNT.
They lost their first game, Tim, under Emma Hayes on Wednesday. It was actually here at Snapdragon.

Speaker 1 They lost to Japan, who, by the way, are so good. So fun to watch.
Yeah, they are. Allie Sentinore scores.
She's a young player. She's a really good player in the 14th minute.

Speaker 1 First goal and first appearance for her. My question is, is this concerning at all? It's their first loss under Emma Hayes.
What does that mean? Because

Speaker 1 we've been a part of teams where things go really, really well. And then you have the first hiccup.
And then what does that mean?

Speaker 2 Nothing. I think

Speaker 2 it's good for the team. We always say we judge the women's national team by a higher standard because they win.
They win all the time, right? And so it's not about, you know, when you have...

Speaker 2 When you have a loss, it is magnified when you're part of the women's national team. So, look, Emma Hayes is a fantastic coach.
She has won everywhere she's been. She's won with this team, you know,

Speaker 2 talking about the gold medal. And as you form this new group, like you know as well as I do, and Emma's a really good coach.
She'll take that loss and use it to their advantage.

Speaker 2 Because by the way, in order to grow as a group, you need to have adversity, right? Like you can't just be great all the time. No one ever is, right?

Speaker 2 And so more than anything, the quality of your team is oftentimes measured on how you react to adversity so um you know adversity sounds like a really dramatic word given that they they lost that game 2-1 but uh i think i think the manager will use it to their favor and i i think obviously everything will be fine because there's some incredible talent on the team not just the same old faces that we know that are household names but like allie sentinor and these you know some of these women who are coming through really trying to make a name for themselves like the the pipeline is really healthy and strong yeah and i you know there's two sides of this one is outside of the olympics and playing japan it's not like they've been playing these top top teams right so like there was going to be a loss along the way the other side of that coin though is no malpugh no trinity rodman no soph smith yeah maybe a few but even just those three who were so dynamic as a front three in the olympics and were literally unplayable so you don't have those three It's going to be tough to win, right, against a good Japanese team.

Speaker 1 So I don't see any issues here. I just wanted to just broach the question and they'll be fine.
They do have qualifying, I believe, starts in October for Honk Caf Women's Championship. FA Cup.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 Interestingly,

Speaker 1 I never know when these FA Cup weekends are coming because I like, I turn on my FOT Mob app and I'm like, yeah, let's go to my Premier League Fantasy

Speaker 1 first place, by the way.

Speaker 1 And then I'm like, oh, there's no games. But then there's FA Cup games.

Speaker 1 And when there's FA Cup games on a weekend where there's no Premier League games, they're really good games because they play all the players, everybody, like it's a real game.

Speaker 1 So outside of one game that we'll get to at the end, Palace, we talked about beat Millwall. I'm sure we saw this tackle on Mateta.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 You know, I have to be honest, my first perception of it was everyone was freaking out about it. I was like, okay, like he's got his foot high, whatever.
The more I watched, I was like, oh, God.

Speaker 1 That's pretty bad, man. Like, I've seen some battle.
It's not the worst I've ever seen. I mean, you might think it's the worst you've ever seen, but maybe from a goalkeeper.

Speaker 1 It's not the worst tackle I've ever seen, but it was

Speaker 1 what could have happened, it was really dangerous. It looks like I would say it.

Speaker 2 Yeah, it looked nasty. I mean, Liam Roberts was a millwell goalkeeper, and yeah, it comes flying out.

Speaker 2 You know, you oftentimes see with goalkeepers, and I've been guilty of this, like these compound errors of like, oh, I made a really bad decision.

Speaker 1 And

Speaker 2 all right, I got an idea. I'm going to fix it by making another really bad decision.

Speaker 2 Like, but also, it's like it lives in the psyche that every goalkeeper coach, I don't know if they do it now, but every goalkeeper coach for forever would constantly say once a week, like, take everything if you make the wrong decision take everything like that was the thing like if you come off your line and you've made a bad decision just clatter into somebody like literally it's it's it's common knowledge and so but yeah obviously keepers flying like literally like a karate kick with his studs up catches matetsa in the face you know the only thing i would say Actually, again, I referenced my career and like my daughter, and she's a striker, and she was, she's tough and she's strong.

Speaker 2 And she'd always go into these tackles with goalkeepers, LD. And I said to her, and you can probably appreciate this: there was a point in time where she was getting injured.

Speaker 2 And I said, Yep, if you see the goalkeeper coming, get at, like, get out of the way. And I'm telling you this: it ain't worth it.
I'm looking you in the eyes.

Speaker 2 I'm telling you, get out of the way, like, because it's not worth it.

Speaker 2 And when in that case, you're like, oh my God, you just wish, yes, it's a goalkeeper, Liam Roberts' fault, but you're just like thinking, oh, my Teta, I wish you just protected yourself.

Speaker 2 There was nothing there for you. You know what I mean?

Speaker 1 Totally. I'd be curious, actually, just like people ask me a lot,

Speaker 1 did you ever get injured in your career? Like, seriously. And I said, no.

Speaker 1 And they say, well, how's that possible? I said, well, a few things. You definitely have to be lucky, take care of yourself.

Speaker 1 But to me, the biggest thing is having like this, and this is just genetic, a spatial awareness of what's coming. So you feel the tackle coming.
You're like, I ain't going for that.

Speaker 1 And coach at Bruce Unius, Bruce Arena used to hate this. He'd be like, get stuck in and tackle.
And I'd say, Bruce, dude. Do you want me to break my leg on that play at midfield?

Speaker 1 Is that really worth it that I'm out the rest of the season? Totally.

Speaker 1 Really? And maybe one out of 50, I break my leg, but that one's going to happen, right?

Speaker 1 And so, and I was just hoping that he could like feel the goalkeeper, Liam Roberts, coming and be like, This one ain't worth it, right? Like, this one ain't worth it.

Speaker 1 Now, maybe it's a World Cup final, and you're like, okay, maybe that one's worth it, but some of them, they just ain't worth it.

Speaker 2 The only problem is sometimes, and I get this spatial awareness, but it's also in your peripheral, like there's a defender there. So he's looking at the defender.

Speaker 2 Did he, yeah, what point did he take the snapshot of the goalkeeper? Was it a couple I don't know?

Speaker 1 Yeah, that's true. I don't know.
That's true. That one, like when the ball's coming over your head in the box and you're like, I know the goalie's coming out.
And then you kind of chicken out of it.

Speaker 1 And the goalie was still standing on his line. You're like, God dang it.
Why not just watch the ball? So, anyway, let's hope.

Speaker 1 I think he got a bunch of stitches, but it sounds like he got released from the hospital. He is going to be okay.

Speaker 2 Big JP Mateta. Be all right.

Speaker 1 A couple more red cards. Cunya got one.
He'll miss their next three matches. Pretty ugly.
Red card against Ipswich.

Speaker 2 He saw red. Not actually like

Speaker 2 red card.

Speaker 2 He was.

Speaker 2 he was looking for a fight and like there was no stopping him i've been there before i get it like it happens it was nasty newcastle brighton anthony gordon sent off um and he will now miss the carabao cup final which is a big loss for them so that's gonna be that will be impactful yeah let me say this i i you saw that anthony gordon it was just frustration at the end.

Speaker 2 I mean, he shoves the Brighton defender over. He ends up catching him a little bit like in the neck area.
There wasn't a lot in it, but when you put your hands up above the neck, you can't do it.

Speaker 2 But here's what I hate. And I know the argument.
I'm not dumb to the argument. Like, it's the same governing body, right? The FA.

Speaker 1 But

Speaker 2 I hate when red cards carry over to different competitions. Like, I'm all for him being suspended for the next FA Cup match next season or whatever.
I'm all for that.

Speaker 2 But like, and I know it's the same governing body. I get it.
But like, you know, when you get sent off in a World Cup, you shouldn't be, you know, you're not going to miss Premier League games.

Speaker 1 Club game, right? Yeah. I don't like it, but whatever.
It's part of it. All right.
Last one.

Speaker 1 Just because I kind of secretly love this.

Speaker 2 You and a lot of people.

Speaker 1 United lose to Fulham on penalties. Losing on penalties at home, missing your last two penalties is tough.
This felt like it was the last thing United had this year.

Speaker 1 And now it's just kind of like they're just going to finish out the season in the Premier League and be a mid-table team. And, you know, it is what it is.
Interestingly,

Speaker 1 of all people, Eric Ten Hogg decided to open his mouth this weekend or last week, sorry. He had an interesting comment.

Speaker 1 He said, this generation usually finds it difficult to deal with criticism criticism really gets to them the generation that i grew up in had much thicker skin agreed you could be much more direct agreed i was approached much more directly same

Speaker 1 if i would do that with my current group of players i would demotivate them if you do that to the current generation they find it offensive so i have a lot to say about this yeah first of all you don't have a current group of players

Speaker 1 you're out of a job.

Speaker 1 Second of all, that's BS to me. Like, I think people take that.

Speaker 1 I think coaches now,

Speaker 1 they're just afraid to confront. And if you have a demeanor and an attitude and a way about you that says you ain't taking that, the players are going to fall in line.

Speaker 1 And this is, so like David Moy is a great example at Everton. I can promise you the first day he walked in, everyone was like, oh,

Speaker 1 okay. I I ain't messing with him.
Right. And that's just the way it is.
And it's fine. And it's not good or bad or whatever.
It's just the way it is. But

Speaker 1 to say that you can't criticize, that you can't be hard,

Speaker 1 I don't think that's accurate. I think people are just chickening out to that and you're allowing that to be and perpetuate.

Speaker 2 I hear that, bro. I'm on both sides.
I see it on both sides of the fence. Yes.
Questions been asked. Okay.
Are players hypersensitive to criticism more so now? Yes, absolutely.

Speaker 2 You want to get the best out of me?

Speaker 2 Give me tough love drive me criticize me that's how i thrived but no i i i think players today have have struggle with that based on a whole host of things but yes okay what why let's state why what do you think it is because i have a very clear opinion on it i think some managers

Speaker 2 you know popular managers have kind of allowed that to creep into the game so i think it's two things one it's parenting

Speaker 1 right so these kids grow i see trust me dude i see it where i live i see it all over

Speaker 1 Parents are like afraid of their kids to discipline their kids. Right.
And that has been a generational thing. And in our generation, you and me, I was scared to death of my parents.
Yeah.

Speaker 1 Like, cause they would wallop me. And now kids, I hear kids speak to their parents now.
I'm like, what? Yeah.

Speaker 1 Like, what? I feel like an old man here yelling, but that is one. And two, I think social media, right? I think everybody's so hypersensitive of how they're viewed and likes and comments and all that.

Speaker 1 So they're like, oh my God, you said I'm not running enough. Am I fat? Am I this? Am I that? Am I, you know, I'm not good enough? Whatever.
And it's like, no, I'm just trying to help you out.

Speaker 1 So I just think it's interesting that a manager at that level feels like he can't walk into a locker room and command it, or else he's going to.

Speaker 1 And by the way, I used to, I said this to our owner, Andrew Vassiliadis at the loyal.

Speaker 1 If there is a player who does XYZ and is acting that way or whatever, do I have your permission to just cut the contract out the door because I know he's bad

Speaker 1 for culture?

Speaker 1 And he said, yes. Now

Speaker 1 that was, you know, $50,000, $100,000 when it's, you know, terminating a contract that's $10 million a year. That's a different story.
But that's, you ultimately hold the Trump card, right?

Speaker 1 In that, in that case, because you're the manager and you decide whether they play or not and you can impact their career. And so if they're going to do that, you say, okay, fine, then leave, right?

Speaker 2 Look, look, they still have something to play for. You know, they play Real Society in the Europa League on Thursday.

Speaker 2 Sticking with Ten Hogg, though, I think the managers have a lot

Speaker 2 to

Speaker 2 be responsible for as well. Like, so many managers who put on this brave face, they're not that behind closed doors.
They're afraid to have like one-on-one conversations and have confrontations.

Speaker 2 Like, it's okay to disagree.

Speaker 2 Like, I think one of the greatest coaches in the world with God's gift of coaching is Thomas Frank at Brentford.

Speaker 2 And if you watch the way he operates and he talks to his players and the way he recruits his players, like he has an understanding that things aren't always going to be great.

Speaker 2 And he and he gets his arm around these players.

Speaker 2 Like ultimately, like I said, I do think there's some tough love involved.

Speaker 2 And if we're talking about Man United, I remember them saying, and this is, you talk about parenting, which is a reason, social media, which is absolutely a reason.

Speaker 2 One of the other things that they've taken out of, and certainly in England, was the youth team. And this is going to be based on laws and children and

Speaker 2 work and labor, but they used to clean boots. And people are like, what does that mean? Like, literally, you know, Phil Neville would have to go to the first team and get Eric Cantona's boots.

Speaker 2 Totally. And you have to clean them.
And every day, it wasn't the Kitman, it was Phil Neville. So you're learning these lessons, right?

Speaker 2 And then, and then Cantona gave you a shirt or put his arm around you and gave you a money bonus at Christmas. But like, you learn these things.
These young kids now don't have to do anything.

Speaker 2 They think they're God's gift of soccer. It says it on their social media.
They get a really nice car and they post. You weren't allowed to do that back then.

Speaker 2 You were put in your place and you were told to earn it.

Speaker 1 It was destroyed. Totally.
Yeah. Okay.

Speaker 1 All right, we're off our soapbox. Um, two old men yelling at the cloud.
All right, let's take a break when we come back. ATT fan connections.

Speaker 1 So, to my family member who wanted to submit questions, I don't think it'll be this week, it'll probably be next week.

Speaker 1 Um, and then we'll also talk anything but soccer right here on Unfiltered Soccer with Landon and Tim, presented by Volkswagen. Do not go anywhere.

Speaker 1 This episode is brought to you by Airbnb.

Speaker 1 All right, Tim, between your work, your daughter, your son, or maybe just your own enjoyment, how much traveling do you think you've done to see soccer this year?

Speaker 2 Honestly, I've

Speaker 2 lost track at this point.

Speaker 2 You know, just this summer alone, I was all over the place.

Speaker 2 But it is, it's a beautiful thing to see how many soccer fans and how soccer has been embraced no matter where we go.

Speaker 1 Yeah, I mean, I was just in Austin. I'll be traveling to New York.
Everywhere I go, I meet fans. Whether I'm going to see a game myself or just on vacation, I see people everywhere.
I hear stories.

Speaker 1 I hear stories about their pilgrimage to Everton to go watch a game, to go see the new stadium, to go see their favorite team.

Speaker 1 They get immersed in the chants, the songs, that incredible feeling of seeing the game up close and personal.

Speaker 2 Well, I mean, I think that's where the game has changed. These trips have become a big deal for soccer fans.

Speaker 2 And this summer is going to be no different as we'll see the soccer community make their way to 11 host cities here in the U.S. to support their favorite national team.

Speaker 1 It's going to be incredible. I can't wait for it.
And what if those fans could turn their homes into an opportunity while they're away at the game?

Speaker 1 Hosting your home on Airbnb while you travel is an easy way to earn a little bit of extra cash, maybe go towards tickets for your game that you want to go to. We know they're not cheap.

Speaker 1 Or maybe to help your kids pursue their soccer dreams.

Speaker 2 Yeah, your home might be worth more than you think. So find out how much at airbnb.com slash host.

Speaker 2 LD, for me, the holidays are all about connection to family and to friends. We host a lot.
So we got a lot of people over the house.

Speaker 2 Oftentimes when it starts to get chaotic and the turkey or the ham is getting burnt and the kids are running around playing with their new toys, I go out back by the fire pit and I choose chill.

Speaker 2 I crack open a core's light.

Speaker 1 Yeah, it's my favorite time of year. It gets cold,

Speaker 1 not quite as cold as New York, but it's cold outside. It gets dark early.
Kids are playing.

Speaker 1 We turn on the jacuzzi, relax in the hot tub with a core's light, choose chill, relax, have family, friends, good food, good memories. My favorite time of year.

Speaker 2 When you embrace a chill mindset this holiday, it's a good time to choose chill and crack open a Coors Light.

Speaker 1 Choose Chill this holiday season and then reach for a Coors Light. Get Coors Light delivered straight to your door.

Speaker 1 Visit CoorsLight.com slash USLNT, or you can find it pretty much anywhere that sells beer.

Speaker 2 Celebrate responsibly. Hooray's Brew and Company, Golden, Colorado.
There's nothing better than feeling like someone has your back and that things are going to get done even without you having to ask.

Speaker 2 Like your crisp new jersey waiting for you in the locker room or a perfectly set up wall for a free kick.

Speaker 1 Yeah, as we on Unfiltered Soccer get ready for next summer, we know that very little in the beautiful game is guaranteed.

Speaker 1 But as we prepare to bring our unfiltered brand of non-stop soccer coverage, it's good to know ATT has your back with the ATT guarantee.

Speaker 2 Staying connected matters. That's why, in the rare event of a network outage, ATT will proactively credit you for a full day of service.
That's the ATT guarantee.

Speaker 1 Learn more at ATT.com slash guarantee. ATT, connecting changes everything.

Speaker 2 Credit for fiber downtime lasting 20 minutes or more or a wireless downtime lasting 60 minutes or more caused by a single incident impacting 10 or more towers must be connected to impacted towers at onset of outage.

Speaker 2 Restrictions and exclusions apply. See ATT.com slash guarantee for full details.

Speaker 2 It's time for the fan connection presented by AT ⁇ T. Every week, we invite you, the listener, to connect with us by submitting your questions.
The best way to grow the game of soccer in the U.S.

Speaker 2 is to keep asking questions and keep talking about the sport we all love. At AT ⁇ T, connecting changes everything.
And on US LNT, our connections with you will help grow the game.

Speaker 2 We love a bit of AT ⁇ T fan connection, don't we? And who else Landon loves it? Jordan. We always say her favorite time of the week.
She loves her time. Get in here, Jordan.
How are you?

Speaker 2 Hello, Jordan.

Speaker 1 Hello. What shirt are you wearing?

Speaker 2 You always have something crazy.

Speaker 1 Oh, is that an Everton shirt? No. It is.

Speaker 3 And this is like Umbro did a thing with Factory Records, and I'm a big

Speaker 1 paid by Umbro, didn't you?

Speaker 2 You got such a crazy shit.

Speaker 1 Sam, do you remember that color Everton shirt? Do you remember that one? Vaguely, yeah. I have one in China in my garage.
Was it an away shirt or a third?

Speaker 2 It was either third kit or away. Yeah, I know which one.

Speaker 1 It's cool. Like, that color is really cool.
Yeah. So, anyway.

Speaker 2 Well, it seems.

Speaker 1 Welcome back. All right.
Should we do some questions?

Speaker 3 Yes, let's do it.

Speaker 1 Did you listen, Jordan, by the way, my family members saying, Where do I send a question?

Speaker 3 Send it to feedback and unfiltered talker.

Speaker 1 No, but I was like, one, why are you listening? Two, you really want to submit a question? So I'll tell you offline what their name is. So if you see it, you know.

Speaker 3 Well, I was just going to say, please let us know that you are Lannon's relative in the subject matter, in the subject line, so that I can prioritize

Speaker 2 it. Just a side note, because I want to make sure we get clarity.
If any of my family members text or call in, do not read it live on air, but keep going.

Speaker 1 Please send baby pictures of Tim and Lannon to feedback at unfilteredsoccerwards.com. Thank you.

Speaker 3 Tim, this first question is for you. What are your thoughts about the new goalkeeper rule about awarding? Oh, sorry, this is from Mel via email.

Speaker 3 What are your thoughts about the new goalkeeper rule about awarding a corner kick if a goalkeeper is time wasting after eight seconds?

Speaker 1 Don't care. I don't care.
I think it was. You don't care.

Speaker 2 I don't care. It's a dumb rule.

Speaker 1 You don't care what the rule either is. No.

Speaker 2 So what's the evolution?

Speaker 2 It was you, when i started playing pick it up you have four seconds uh sorry four steps right and they change it to six seconds and then now it's eight seconds they they're going to enforce it for i don't know

Speaker 2 like what are they going to do are they going to count like a like a like a nba referee like i'm fine with that by the way if the referee like

Speaker 1 one two

Speaker 2 like it's good it's so subjective and like right and by the way you know it's going to lead to it's going to lead to managers on the sideline going one two three and they're so who

Speaker 2 yeah of course so the whole crowd's gonna be like what?

Speaker 2 Which probably will happen, which is good. I mean, if it speeds it up, to be honest, I didn't really who, who, who, who made that rule? Like, who brought that in?

Speaker 1 I don't remember.

Speaker 2 Landon, would you say that like goalkeepers have held the ball as long?

Speaker 1 They waste time when the ball's not a player. That's my thing.
It's a joke. It's a joke because when that first, I mean, I was playing during when the six-second round came in.

Speaker 1 And I would count to like 18 in my head, and the ref wouldn't do anything. And I'm like, what's the, what's the point of having this rule?

Speaker 1 Because the last thing a ref wants to do is give an indirect free kick right there. At that time, that's what it was.
Leads to a goal. The game's over.
It's like, so it's going to be the same thing.

Speaker 1 Like, they'll do it a few times and then it'll go away. And it's the same with the mass confrontation thing now.
People mass confront the ref now.

Speaker 1 They don't, they should be throwing out yellows everywhere then, according to the rule. And I'm actually a big fan of that.
Like, yeah, agreed. But they're not going to enforce it.

Speaker 2 Yeah, it was IFAB, International Football Association board. But look, ultimately, as just give my big thing with wasting time, which I always wasted time, right?

Speaker 2 At some point, don't have to be first half, but at some point, like mid-second half when the team's winning, just book the keeper, man. I'm telling you now, if I got a booking,

Speaker 2 I'm going to get the ball and I'm not getting sent off. So, like, yeah, don't care about the rule.
Thanks, Mel.

Speaker 3 Our next question is from Joe via email.

Speaker 3 He says, with MLS and the Premier League being aligned with Apple and NBC/slash/Peacock, what are your thoughts on pay-per-view and how streaming affects fans trying to follow these leagues and specific teams?

Speaker 1 Okay. How deep do we want to go here? Go deep.

Speaker 2 There's a fan connection.

Speaker 1 There's just a bigger, yeah, this is a deep connection. There's a bigger, deeper problem in that

Speaker 1 there's just way too much content in the world. And so all these companies are producing way too much content and they can't afford to do it.
So they then have to pass on the feed of the subscriber.

Speaker 1 It's like, dude, we pay enough money for either cable or direct TV or dish or whatever i'm i have by myself peacock paramount

Speaker 1 apple tv espn plus

Speaker 1 maybe one other and it's it it's not even the money it's just like dude are you gonna keep gouging me every time for all these like i'm just trying to i'm trying to support you i'm trying to watch the games and it's getting it's getting to a point tim where like I don't have Netflix, right?

Speaker 1 So I can't

Speaker 1 the Women's World Cup in a couple of years, unless I get it, I'm not going to be able to watch, right? And I just, I'm sick of it, but I get it.

Speaker 1 I get that they're trying to, they're trying to justify all these platforms, these streaming platforms that they've, yeah.

Speaker 2 But you're, you're, you're going, here's the thing. You're going to watch the Women's World Cup.
So you will have Netflix, right?

Speaker 1 Like that's,

Speaker 1 yeah.

Speaker 2 And also, right. And also your,

Speaker 1 your

Speaker 2 seven, what, eight, nine dollar matcha latte that you got this morning in San Diego

Speaker 1 also would have paid for

Speaker 2 would have also paid for two I do drink matcha but not a lot lot um i don't know no i get it i guess i would have paid for a month of i get it kind of the way that things are going i it's it's it's a tough one it is i mean i look

Speaker 2 i i hear what people are saying i watch everything and i own i i subscribe to i think double the platforms you subscribe to like just because there's shows i want to watch and things i want to see on all these different ones and they're getting us but i mean i think there's also

Speaker 1 i get mad at your your employer nbc for like they'll have like city liverpool on peacock and i'm like you don't want that game on and i get it there's all sorts of nuance involved i get it but i'm just you know you do get it i'm old i'm old i'm old man who i'm saying old and jaded i'm old and jaded

Speaker 3 i have a suggestion for joe uh support a team at the bottom of the league so that you don't have to worry about champions league and europa league and all that stuff and that's one less streaming platform that you have to sign up there you go

Speaker 1 there you go support a team like manchester team that's why you're here jordan that's why you're here here yeah or tottenham um this one's from

Speaker 3 from chris v email what causes players after they retire to become an analyst or to work in management or to step away from the sport completely why did you each pursue the path after you retired that you did good question great i was bored

Speaker 1 um no you're you okay so there's a few For a few, and we don't need to mention names, but we know who they are, it's about ego and being relevant and hearing their own voice and hearing themselves speak.

Speaker 1 For others, it's a way to stay a part of the game. I find it enjoyable.
This, I never knew I would find this as enjoyable as I have. I could really enjoy it.
I never thought I would

Speaker 1 find commentating and studio work as enjoyable as I do. I've tried other things.
Coaching is enjoyable to some extent, but a lot of stress. Tim and I both do appearances, which can be enjoyable.

Speaker 1 Sometimes it's, you know, whatever. But

Speaker 1 it's what what I find joy in personally. But there's not that many jobs in that way, right? If you're not going to go into a football club or a soccer club and be a part of a club.

Speaker 1 So you have to find what you,

Speaker 1 what you find passion in. But also players are getting smarter and smarter about starting that process earlier, even while they're playing.

Speaker 2 Yeah. I mean, I think that

Speaker 2 for me,

Speaker 2 Like I love like I love football. It's who I am.
It's my identity. I love everything about it.
It's given me the greatest joys of my life.

Speaker 1 I don't. Dude, you were watching New England Columbus in an empty stadium.
Fair enough.

Speaker 2 Case in point.

Speaker 2 I don't enjoy playing anymore. One, because it hurts and I can't.
And I don't know. That bucket is empty for me.
Right. So like I don't.

Speaker 2 I don't get any joy or satisfaction out of playing the game anymore, but I love being around. I love watching.
I love watching my daughter play.

Speaker 2 I love being involved in soccer conversations at ownership level, at analyst level. I love it.

Speaker 2 So, you know, I look the the other side of it, I think, Jordan, which is, you know, it was a great question.

Speaker 2 People oftentimes are like, you're an athlete. What do you do next? And I'm like, nobody ever asks a lawyer after they went to law school and they've practiced law for 15 years.

Speaker 2 They go, what are you going to do next? They never asked a doctor after they've performed thousands of surgeries.

Speaker 2 This is who we are. Or you would never ask that question because you'd be like, that's a dumb question.
So the same thing goes for me. I've had friends who are like, I'm going to pivot.

Speaker 2 And I'm like, yeah, but why? This is who, like, you, you have, you have your PhD

Speaker 2 through through incredible life experiences in soccer. Why would you pivot to real estate? Now, some have.
It's fine. But like, I look at it.
I'm like, that doesn't make sense to me.

Speaker 2 No one else does that. So I'm going to naturally stay in my lane, which is football and soccer, because I love it.
I adore it. I can't play anymore.
So what's next? And yeah, I find.

Speaker 2 as Landon said, trial and error. Something in the game you like.
I don't like coaching. Don't enjoy it.
Never really wanted to do it. So I kind kind of ticked that box and said, that ain't for me.

Speaker 2 But yeah, love the game.

Speaker 1 But you also have other skill sets, right? And some players don't have much of anything, right? They just have. They didn't go to college.
They didn't, it's all they have.

Speaker 1 So we are fortunate in that way that we have

Speaker 1 other abilities to do things. But yeah, it's fine what you're passionate about.
Definitely. Before I go,

Speaker 1 I just thought I would mention

Speaker 1 something. This feels ominous.

Speaker 3 As this episode is released, it will be the fourth of march okay which if i if my calculations are correct is landon donovan's birthday wow your birthday is tomorrow

Speaker 3 uh and also two days after that is the birthday of one

Speaker 1 shout out loud shout it out loud oh really pisces yeah or you pisces right yeah amazing fourth and the sixth

Speaker 3 connect happy birthday to us fan connection so we actually asked some people if they would like to wish you a happy birthday.

Speaker 2 There's been some people who wanted to wish me other than that, but keep going.

Speaker 3 So we've got some messages that we're going to play for you now. So buckle up, YouTube.

Speaker 1 Here we go.

Speaker 2 Lynn's so nervous.

Speaker 4 Yo, what's up, fellas?

Speaker 1 Larry, Timmy.

Speaker 4 Hey, man, just want to say happy birthday to both of y'all.

Speaker 4 Timmy, when you're back in Houston, man, I owe you a dinner. for sure.
And Larry, I'm sure you owe me a couple of dinners. A lot of times I pay for all your food.

Speaker 4 No, but just want to say happy birthday. Love what you guys are doing with the podcast.

Speaker 4 Keep it up. And yeah, man, we're supporting you from here.
So happy birthday. Enjoy it.

Speaker 4 We'll catch up soon. All right.
Peace.

Speaker 1 That's nice.

Speaker 2 By the way,

Speaker 2 very few people know that on the inside, we called Landon Larry, and that's just amazing.

Speaker 2 Also, by the way, Bees, Demarcus Beasley, one of the greatest players and greatest human beings you're ever going to meet. I absolutely love him.
We're doing dinner.

Speaker 1 if that larry piece ever airs everyone on here is fired just for the record i just need you to know that when he sent the video in we were like does he think it's somebody else like who does he

Speaker 1 had i don't know where it came about but sometime in like the 17s or the 20s or something uh i started calling him mark and he started calling me larry and it's larry stock

Speaker 1 he's not a mark you're definitely a larry no he's a mark he's the mark the mark we've got another one off for don't give it to us. LD and Timmy.
Happy birthday, boys.

Speaker 1 X-Pros, podcasters, all-around great guys, great dads. You guys are crushing it, man.
Hope you both have a great day. I was going to do something funny and, you know, whatever.

Speaker 1 But, you know, you guys are both great guys. Miss you both.
Hope you have a wonderful day, boys.

Speaker 2 Happy birthdays.

Speaker 2 You know the great thing? God bless Stu. I love that kid.
The great thing about Stu is you all as a production team have to reach out to people. Stu just sent that.

Speaker 1 left. Here, I got an idea.
I got an idea. Let's wish him happy birthday as long as I get some air time.

Speaker 2 Love you, Stu. We'll always have you on.

Speaker 1 Ah, Stu.

Speaker 1 One more? One more? Yeah, yeah, yeah, one more. Come on.
Tony's bringing you. How you doing, boys?

Speaker 5 Happy birthday to both of you. These are both getting older, a bit like myself now.
It's getting a bit bit long in the tooth. I'm wondering how I'm sitting here doing this job again.

Speaker 5 But I have to say, you two are two of the finest USA players,

Speaker 5 still are.

Speaker 5 Two of the finest boys I've come to know in my time. and I'm really proud to say that you were both my players, but also proud to say that you're friends and also people who I respect greatly.

Speaker 5 So, have a great birthday.

Speaker 5 I hope that you continue to drop in and see us here at Everton. Everybody thinks so highly of you both.
So, when you get the opportunity, do so. Great to see you, and happy birthday.

Speaker 2 Amazing! Wow, he's like, He's like a father figure to me. Everyone knows that.

Speaker 1 I think someone left onions in here crying, right?

Speaker 2 Like Jesus.

Speaker 2 I got to spend some time with him last week

Speaker 2 in England and sat down, not just interviewed him, but sat down in his office and chatted. It was just like, God, we had so many great days.

Speaker 2 And I mean, the things that he's still doing as a manager and that you can like call on him as a friend and still get advice.

Speaker 2 He's a 10 out of 10. He's amazing.
Absolutely amazing.

Speaker 1 All right. To all our crew who we give a lot of crap to.
Thank you. That was awesome.
Yeah. Appreciate it.
Welcome.

Speaker 3 And big shout out to Demarcus Beasley, Stu Holden, and david moise and the team at everton for sending us those videos we really appreciate it sweet awesome thank you happy birthday and enjoy the abs yes

Speaker 1 a lot of feels a lot of feels here tim all right let's be perfect

Speaker 1 how old are you by the way uh 43 pal are you you 46.

Speaker 2 oh i'll be 46 on thursday i don't 43 does not feel good you know what's really funny real quick for our audience you know what's really funny we're three years apart And that like, that's like normal.

Speaker 2 We're the same, basically the same age. When I was in camp with you, the first camp, we ever, was it my U20 team landing or something? And it was in Chula Vista.

Speaker 2 And you came in because they were like, this kid's a wonder kid and he's playing for our whatever team. We're going to bring him into training.
And I just remember you feeling like you were a baby.

Speaker 2 Like that gap felt huge. And now you're like, oh, it's three years.
Same thing. Maybe it was then, yeah.

Speaker 1 All right. That was certainly a unique AT ⁇ T fan connection.

Speaker 1 A lot of connecting there. Thank you guys.
That was awesome. I enjoyed that.
Okay, little ABS, anything but soccer. First thing, we both want to give a shout out to Diana Taurasi.

Speaker 1 You know, the word goat gets thrown around too much, but she is absolutely, I'm just going to run through her stats so people can understand for young people who don't understand.

Speaker 1 So she was, in my opinion, the greatest WNBA player of all time

Speaker 1 and probably greatest college basketball player. All-time leading scorer, WNBA, the only player to ever exceed 10,000 career points.
Three-time WNBA championship with Phoenix Mercury.

Speaker 1 Five-time WNBA leading scorer, 11-time all-star, two-time final MVP, six-time Olympic gold medalist. It's one thing to win a gold medal and how hard that is.

Speaker 1 Think about she did it over the span of, what would that be, 20 years to get you through 24, 20 years and to play at the top and win six times. It's just a stud.
Congrats to her on an amazing career.

Speaker 2 Yeah, GOAT. I mean,

Speaker 2 and by the way, one thing you didn't mention about her stats, she kept her shorts long. She rocked those knee-length shorts all the way through.
Like, such a baller.

Speaker 2 Like, I think I marvel at, you know, the goat conversation the best of all time i marvel at it because

Speaker 2 i think there's levels right ld like

Speaker 2 how do you make it how do you make it uh to the be a professional that's a level how do you have one good season that's a level how do you become an all-star or champion that's a level when you're doing that consistently over the course of whatever it is 20 years like that's like at that just amazing like i don't care what sport is but like she literally um one she stood on the shoulders of giants but she also put the league and the sport on her back and like massive credit to her i mean i i can't wait for her to put her feet up in retirement because she's earned it yeah it's one thing to do it one year or two years or three years but when you do it that long that consistently it's not just because she was talented which she was she just had more about her that other people don't and absolute legend so congrats to her on an amazing career all right really good show that got a little emotional at the end there um not gonna lie we appreciate all of you for being with us us again.

Speaker 1 Subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, wherever you get your pods. And always, always follow on social media, Unfiltered Soccer for lots of bonus content.

Speaker 2 Yeah, thanks, everybody. Always love spending time with you.
Thank you to our presenting sponsors, VW, and our fan connection sponsor, AT ⁇ T. Have an amazing week.

Speaker 2 Look forward to seeing you all back here next Tuesday with another edition of Unfiltered Soccer.