In short
CONCACAF and UEFA discussing a combined Nations League for all 96 member nations (likely starting fall 2028), with debate over motives, competitive balance, travel/resources for smaller countries, and FIFA’s role. Also covers proposed MLS playoff overhaul (20-team double-elimination, potentially starting fall 2028) and reactions to whether it cheapens the regular season. Additional segments: Americans abroad (Yunus Musah at AC Milan; Ricardo Pepi and Sergiño Dest at PSV; Brendan Aaronson extending at Leeds), Lionel Messi fined for slapping Quinn Sullivan, and Inter Miami’s struggles.
Guests
Casey Keller (former U.S. goalkeeper; joins as co-host/analyst). Hercules Gomez (co-host/analyst; returns after being ill). Ken Marcotti is the host/producer voice.
Key claims
Combined Nations League could create meaningful matches and more U.S./Europe fixtures, but may be power-posturing against FIFA/Infantino and could default to U.S.-heavy hosting. MLS format would reduce regular-season importance because ~two-thirds of teams qualify. Inter Miami’s five-game winless streak is blamed on injuries/suspensions and lack of defensive work around Messi.
Notable examples
Infantino’s Dominican Republic U14 youth tournament visit; Inter Miami absences (Suárez suspension; injuries to defenders; Messi missing father’s wake); Musah playing full 90 for Milan; Pepi scoring for PSV; Dest scoring; Aaronson’s Leeds Premier League opener win; Messi’s fine after Union-Philadelphia incident; Inter Miami vs Toronto: goals by Sargent, Etienne, and Messi.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOExciting News: A Combined Nations League
1:52 to 3:40
Discussion on the potential CONCACAF and UEFA combined Nations League.
“but the misery continues for Inter Miami.”
Cash Grab or Genuine Opportunity?
3:41 to 6:53
Debate on whether the Nations League is a financial strategy or beneficial for football development.
“I feel like we're burying the lead here.”
Impacts on Smaller Nations
6:54 to 9:10
Discussion on how smaller nations in CONCACAF might be affected by the new league.
“Is there a little bit of a let's stick it to FIFA?”
Critique of FIFA and Infantino
9:11 to 13:38
Hosts critique FIFA's governance and Gianni Infantino's leadership amidst the proposed changes.
“But then to say, come to the second thing that I don't really know about and give it the same attention that you gave the World Cup.”
Infantino's Caribbean Visit
13:41 to 14:03
Discussion about Infantino's recent visit to the Dominican Republic and its implications.
“especially if Herc is entering in the equation.”
Awkward FIFA Exchange
14:03 to 14:41
A reporter's challenging questions reveal tension in FIFA.
“And while he was there, he also had a bit of an awkward exchange with a reporter.”
FIFA Lobbying and Politics
14:42 to 15:47
Discussion on the political maneuvering within FIFA and CONCACAF.
“Just what do you think about that, Herc?”
MLS Playoff Overhaul Discussion
15:48 to 17:11
Exploring proposed changes to MLS playoff format and its implications.
“Can he sway Central American, Caribbean nations and probably some smaller European nations?”
Concerns Over Playoff System
17:12 to 18:58
Critique of the current MLS playoff system and its impact on the league.
“So I want to know, guys, are you cool with it?”
Desired Changes for MLS
18:59 to 22:38
What changes are necessary for MLS to have meaningful regular season games?
“It's the intensity, the this, it's there.”
Show all 22 chapters
Role of Don Garber in MLS
22:39 to 23:27
Discussion on Don Garber's position and the influence of team owners.
“Where do you think this idea is coming from?”
Consequences of Poor Performance
23:28 to 25:05
Debate on how to ensure poor-performing teams do not profit over successful teams.
“They're going to say promotion relegation.”
Yunus Moussa's Performance at AC Milan
27:40 to 28:06
Highlighting Yunus Moussa's significant playing time and potential future.
“Just like a good football team sticks to the fundamentals, the best work trips start with a solid routine.”
Yunus Moussa's Performance and Future
28:12 to 30:28
Discussion on Yunus Moussa's recent performance at AC Milan and his potential future with the U.S. Men's National Team.
“Well, AC Milan kicked off their Serie A season with a win over Torino.”
Ricardo Pepi and Serginio Dest: Update from PSV
30:28 to 36:29
Analysis of Ricardo Pepi and Serginio Dest's performances at PSV and their future prospects.
“But to immediately discard this player and say he can't get back on the radar of the U.S.”
Brendan Aronson's Contract Extension
36:29 to 42:01
Insight into Brendan Aronson's contract extension with Leeds United and his journey in the Premier League.
“There was always a little bit of question when he had to defend in the right back spot.”
Brendan Aronson's Progress in the Premier League
42:01 to 45:56
Discussion on Brendan Aronson's performance and potential in the Premier League.
“It's not the same situation as Weston McKinney where you're saying Weston's easily been for the last three years one of the best players for Juventus, and he constantly gets disrespected.”
Messi's Fine and Inter-Miami's Struggles
46:06 to 53:01
Analysis of Messi's recent actions and Inter-Miami's current challenges in MLS.
“This also had two sending-offs, but Messi, of course, was not one of them.”
League's Cup Quarterfinal Predictions
55:42 to 56:00
Predictions and insights regarding the upcoming League's Cup quarterfinals.
Quarterfinal Predictions Kickoff
56:00 to 56:11
The hosts set the stage for discussing predictions for the League's Cup quarterfinals.
League's Cup Quarterfinal Predictions
56:11 to 1:03:09
The hosts share their predictions for various matchups in the League's Cup quarterfinals.
“your way midweek, especially because we're down to the quarterfinals in the League's Cup.”
In Case You Missed It Highlights
1:03:09 to 1:07:46
The hosts share amusing highlights and incidents from recent soccer games.
“And this one coming in the game between San Jose and Minnesota.”
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00Ken Marcotti here for Gusto. In football, we spend a lot of time on what happens on the pitch. But any successful operation also depends on the behind-the-scenes work. For small business owners, that often means payroll, hiring, onboarding, benefits, all the essential things that need to get done, even if they're not the reason you started the business in the first place. That's where Gusto can help. Gusto is online payroll and benefit software built for small businesses. It's all-in-one, remote-friendly, and incredibly easy to use, so you can pay, hire, onboard, and support your team from anywhere.
0:38It's quick and simple to switch to Gusto. Just transfer your existing data to get up and running fast. Plus, don't pay a cent until you run your first payroll and get direct access to certified HR experts to help support you through any tough HR situation. There's a reason Gusto is ranked number one on G2's highest satisfaction products list for 2026. and trusted by over 500 ,000 small businesses. Try Gusto today at gusto.com slash football and get three months free when you run your first payroll. That's three months of free payroll at gusto.com slash football. One more time, gusto.com slash football.
1:30Hello, hello, everyone. We are back with the perfect way to start your week, a fresh helping of football. America's Hercules Gomez is back from his sickbed. Casey Keller has flown in on first class to join us. What a reunion, guys. Yeah, I'm ready. How are you feeling? Feeling good. Of course. Only the best for our legends. Only the best for our legends. Speaking of legends, the Lionel Messi magic continues in MLS, but the misery continues for Inter Miami. What is going on there? We're going to try and make some sense of it. Plus, Yunus Moussa, guys. Remember him? When was the last time we talked about Yunus?
2:04Well, he's gotten some game time. So can he make his way back on Mauricio Pochettino's radar? We're going to also talk about that, too. But first and foremost, we're going to start off with a very piece of interesting news that you may have heard about. And that's that CONCACAF and UEFA are discussing a combined Nations League that would feature all 96 member nations. And if we're talking a timeline, when can we even expect something like this? Well, it would probably start in the fall of 2028 after the Euros. Simply no time before that. But a combined Nations League, guys, are you cool with it?
2:42CONCACAF and UEFA, I mean, for us from the CONCACAF region, it sounds pretty exciting. So, Casey, what do you think? Yeah, I'm really cool with it because I think it gives... I don't take a whole bunch of merit into Nations League. But it actually gives you matches against teams that the U.S. national team needs to be playing against in a match that means something. Does it mean everything? No, but it means something. How many friendlies have we lost out on of big matches because Europe's playing Europe and Nations League, CONCACAF's playing CONCACAF? I love the idea of giving teams those opportunities.
3:20And look, I think we even saw in this World Cup, European teams coming to CONCACAF to play isn't the dunk that it used to be. It's a different experience for them. It's a great experience for our players to be able to go to Europe, play a match that matters. And I think for the development, it's huge. All right. I feel like we're burying the lead here. and it's such a loaded question. We talk about this UEFA and CONCACAF Nations League. They want to combat Gianni Infantino and what he's done with the Fast Forward Initiative with that program. He was trying to do a cash grab. 20 % marketing arm, selling off the World Cup rights to private equity.
4:03And what do you do to combat Gianni Infantino's cash grab? You make your own cash grab. And here's this cash grab. You see how it can benefit CONCACAF. Here's the thing. You see this? You can benefit Europe as well. This is where I'm going to get to it. It's for everybody in this equation something that works. If you are, you wait for, you're saying, hold on a second. We're coming off the most lucrative World Cup in the history of World Cups, the most lucrative sporting event in the history of sporting events on North American soil. When everybody said these stadiums would not sell out, when everybody said this is a bad idea, it won't happen, it won't be successful, it was more than financially successful.
4:38Ten times over. And now we're hearing murmurs of CONCACAF is against Johnny Infantino, except Mexico is not against Johnny Infantino because all of a sudden there is a promise from Johnny Infantino to Mexico. I can probably get you to come to the ball. I can get you what you want. Well, why does Mexico or why would Mexico want to go to come to the ball? Is it sporting? OK, it's sporting. Let's say it's sporting. Is it more beneficial from a sporting landscape to play against Bolivia, to play against Venezuela, to play against Peru, Chile, to play against Colombia? And then I go up to the teams that matter, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, etc.
5:18Or would you rather play against the World Cup champions in Spain? Would you rather play against France? Would you rather play against a team like England, Portugal, Holland, etc.? This makes sense. And if you're CONCACAF, you are taking Johnny Infantino's carrot out of the equation and you're dangling something else. This is a win on all fronts for the teams involved here for what they want to do, which is take away Johnny Infantino out of the equation. It's one cash grab. For another. Substitute it for another. Casey, how much is it that? And how much is it actually trying to improve the level of football in our region?
5:57There has to be both because it has to be it has to financially make sense for everybody. But then it also has to be competitive. And I think the one good part about Nations League is when you get seeded into different groups. Yes, there's promotion and relegation. So you can move up and play against better competition. But it isn't the case of then Spain playing against San Marino. Yeah. It's Spain playing against a good nation. But then it's also, but if San Marino has a great 10-year run, then they're up playing against the teams that they would deserve to play against. So I like it from a competitive standpoint.
6:38I also like it from a financial standpoint because I think the U.S. having an opportunity to host big teams, also the U.S. having the opportunity to go to Europe and play against big teams, I think it's a win-win across the board. Yes. Is there a little bit of a let's stick it to FIFA? Yeah, I'm sure there's a little bit of that. But at the same time, I think everybody benefits both competitively and financially. I'll believe it when I see it. Well, there is that too. I feel this is just a power play. This is the powers that be that are against Gianni Infantino right now trying to flex their muscle and saying, we don't need you.
7:18and you could be Gianni Infantino and say all votes are equal. I will take my negotiating power and leverage to the Caribbean, to the smaller nations around the world and see what I can do and get my votes. But if the biggest of confederations, your European confederations, your financial juggernauts in a CONCACAF, Asia are now against you. Where does that leave you standing? And I think this is more posturing than anything from you away from CONCACAF. This is them flexing their muscle here. I hope not, because I think I love the concept of it. I like the flag, yeah, the concept. I don't think there's any way around it, Case, because if you're trying to tell me that it's going to be competitively balanced and you're going to have CONCACAF and UEFA actually traveling to each venue, you can't just focus on League A, which would be a U.S., Mexico, Canada, Panama.
8:07You can't just focus on those teams and then say, well, what about B and C? How are these smaller Caribbean nations, Central American nations, CONCACAF nations going to realistically have the resources, funds to go out there to Europe and play these games? It's almost going to have to be like a qualifying event. Yeah. That you're not. A preliminary round. Yeah. You're not going to be able to do the full 90 plus teams. You know what's going to happen, Case? My worry for something like this is your wife is like, hey, we'll just do it in the United States. we'll just do regional we'll do regions and we'll do and what we'll do is we'll host many tournaments in the United States.
8:47You saw what the World Cup drew in numbers. Let's just do it in the US. That is my fear for this. But I'm also afraid that the World Cup is the World Cup. And you went to games and I went to games where I'm hearing people behind me that have no clue what they're watching. They know they needed to go to a tournament and that's awesome. If they became new fans and they are now watching more and getting more involved. I'm all for it. But then to say, come to the second thing that I don't really know about and give it the same attention that you gave the World Cup. I don't know if that happens to the same level that maybe Europe thinks it could.
9:27Well, these, of course, will be in a different window, a much smaller window. So if we're looking at it now, regardless of what happens to Gianni Infantino, whether he stays or if he goes, who do you see probably saying no to this and not making it happen? Because as we said, I think from the idea. FIFA would be your first. Yeah, of course. They have to sign off on anything. Certainly from a negotiating power standpoint in terms of leverage, it behooves everybody, UEFA, CONCACAF. I've even heard red rumblings of the Asian Confederation joining forces to be involved in something like this. Negotiating power.
10:05In fact, they actually might need to be just for the quality numbers. So if you can get Korea, Japan, that helps be a more balanced side than when you start bringing in some lower CONCACAF teams. Let's not pretend there's a greater good happening here. And I think that's where people are getting confused. There's an altruistic motive in football. Some of the smaller nations who get exposure of playing against the Spains or the English. No, that's not going to happen in the Nations League because you're teared. And fast forward, they were against this. They were like, you cannot sell the World Cup.
10:35You cannot sell off the private equity. Hey, but they might give you a commentable. Do it! Do it! But you'll get Brazil. You'll get Argentina. So you're not a fan of it because you still think that the intention behind it is not as wholesome as we would hope. I see a necessary evil getting or replacing Johnny Infantino. But if we, for any reason, assume that Johnny Infantino is out of power, out of that seat, and the next person who comes in will be some saint, we're girls from the Staken. And to your point about the fans who come to the games who don't know any better, there are lots of people who don't understand that FIFA is supposed to be a non-profit and that it's not supposed to be governed the way it's being governed.
11:19It's not a business. All right. Well, what about the smaller nations then, especially in CONCACAF, Casey? Do you see them being harmed by this? Like even the Cura Sows. No, because they don't, they don't very, we used to have a qualifying round in, in before the first round of qualifying for a World Cup. And that was built so the smaller team could get exposure. But they still, even that smaller team had to go through a qualifying process to even get to that qualifying round before they even got into a group stage playing against a team that they were never going to beat. So any, I think, besides Europe, where you do have these groups where you'll have England, Croatia, maybe like a Scandinavian country, and then you'll have Liechtenstein.
12:12You'll have San Marino. You'll have Malta. You know, so that's most other regions to get into your stage. You have to kind of go through a little bit of a process first. So it doesn't surprise me that the smaller because it's how many. Why did Australia move from Oceania into Asia? Well, first of all, because there wasn't a direct qualifier. But they were also beating teams 25 nothing. And they were like, okay, this does not make any sense. Because you're saying, hey, we're beating teams, but we don't have direct qualification. So that makes sense. So we need to move to get direct qualification and be in a more competitive bracket.
12:57Because what would they do? They would end up getting in a playoff against the number five team or the number four team from South America. And it just didn't seem fair. So, look, small countries understand. They don't just get to say, hey, let's go play Spain and get beat by 20. It just doesn't work that way. Man, I don't know. I'm a fan of this. Just very quickly, if this was an actual, as they're proposing it, tournament Nations League with actual funds that are being funneled down to the second league, B or C, these smaller nations would benefit from the money being trinkled down, which is supposed to be what FIFA does anyways.
13:33The problem is you can't trace the money. You can't prove the money goes where it's supposed to go. You can before a vote. That's the problem. Right. Well, obviously Gianni Infantino and FIFA have a lot to answer for, especially if Herc is entering in the equation. But what's Gianni Infantino been up to, guys? We need to check in on him because despite being advised not to go to the Caribbean, Gianni Infantino went to the Dominican Republic to take in some football in a Caribbean Football Union youth tournament. And while he was there, he also had a bit of an awkward exchange with a reporter. Have a listen.
14:13Have you betrayed the game of football? Have you betrayed the game of football, sir? Why won't you resign? Why won't you resign? Fans, FIFA associations want you to step down. Why won't you? Sorry, sorry. Have you betrayed the trust of FIFA, sir? I see you at the hairdresser. He said, I'll see you at the hairdresser. That just so happens to be the same hairdresser that Casey goes. When I run into the two guys next time I'm there, I'll get the answer for you. and I'll come back on the show. Exactly, exactly. Just what do you think about that, Herc? I have got zero thoughts on this, but the fact that there is a youth tournament, a U14 boys youth soccer tournament in the Dominican Republic, and he's invited by the Federation of the Dominican Republic, and this is what I was getting to about each vote is similar.
15:04So if you put the Dominican Republic to the United States or to Canada or to Mexico, in terms of resources, you cannot compare. But in terms of what the vote matters and means, they're exactly the same. So he goes because he's lobbying. Well, CONCACAF sends a note advising him to stay away. Now, this isn't them saying, don't go to this boys' tournament. This is them saying, stay out of our region. Yeah. Stay out of our pockets. Yep. So there's already warning shots being sent to Johnny Infantino, Seferin from UEFA, the president of CONCACAF. The line in the sand has been drawn. And there is clearly opposition in Johnny Infantino's way.
15:46If it goes to a vote of confidence, does he have the necessary votes to survive that? It's what he's doing right now. He's lobbying. It's exactly what he's doing. He's got Africa already. He's got Cominable. Can he sway Central American, Caribbean nations and probably some smaller European nations? Yes, he can, which is why we're seeing the divisions in the sand. But here's the other part is if you get invited somewhere and you're the president of FIFA. You don't get told by one of the vice president. Don't come here. No, I'm going to go where I want to go. I've been invited. I'm the president of FIFA.
16:21I'm going to go where I want to go. So now you have to weigh that and think, OK, what's the benefit for doing this? But yeah, if I was the president of FIFA, I would not be getting bullied by a confederation. Casey gets bullied by no one. All right. Let's talk some MLS now, too, because it looks like MLS are considering quite the overhaul. Just have a look at these proposed changes. Now, this is proposed changes for their current playoffs format. And they're proposing to make it more like what we kind of see in Europe. Now, it would include a 20-team double elimination playoff tournament to potentially debut when the calendar changes in 2028 to fall to spring season.
17:08There you see a number of the changes that are proposed. So I want to know, guys, are you cool with it? Is this the right format, Herc, for MLS? No. Herc's not liking anything today, Matt. Two-thirds go in the playoffs? Forget about it. There are 30 teams in Major League Soccer, and you have to be one of the worst 10 teams. You've got to be D.C. United levels of bad to not go to a postseason. Everybody gets invited. And once you're invited, you get two chances. You can lose twice, and then you're finally out. It cheapens the product. It cheapens the sport. It cheapens the regular season. The regular season means nothing, basically.
17:50You could say you want games of consequence, And that's why they are arguing that you have to get in the postseason. And that's when it really matters. That's not games of consequence. If the regular season means nothing, you can string along three, four wins at the end of the season and be one of the best, best 20 teams to make the playoffs. You're cheapening your product. And we're at the stage where we've already seen a best of three series in Major League Soccer and people are over it. We're at the stage where over 66 percent of the teams were already in it case. And people were over it. And you're in that where it's like, then we go to penalties when it's the first game.
18:28And then we go, what am I watching here? And then we stop play because there's people pictures. Then we go back to resume play two weeks later. Which again goes back to the point why we're finally getting on the world schedule. Yeah. But I don't understand this at all. I want to get to a situation in MLS where every game matters. Yes. Where results matter, where getting your points on the first day is important as getting your points on the last day. And until that happens, it's really difficult to tell fans, come to the game. Come here. It's the intensity, the this, it's there. Where they're watching a game in Europe and you're going, wow, Aston Villa now might not qualify for Europe because they had Spurs, might be in another religion.
19:17Because they got crushed in their first game. I mean, we've seen it. We've seen, you know, and I want to get to that point where, yes, that's what cups are for. Cups are for, and now we have enough cups in MLS, where cups are for, okay, we had a bad start. We figured it out. Now we go on a good cup run, and it makes everybody feel good. And hopefully next season we can be consistently good enough to win a title. I'm not naive to the fact that in America we love the playoff system. And that's not going to go anywhere. So is the current system perfect? I'm for the playoff system. But you really want games of consequence.
19:54You really want the regular season to mean something. There are 30 teams in Major League Soccer. Only 10 get into the postseason. I would be much more in favor of a baseball, football playoff than an NBA playoff. Correct. Where, yes, your top two teams get into the playoffs. Your top three may be a wild card team that then gets a good run. But not more or less everybody gets in. It's got to be something just very simple. you want gains of consequence. It's 10 teams in the playoff. I'm just throwing a number out there. Yeah. Or eight. In the top two teams, they get bypassed on an automatic round already.
20:30And then you go from there. If that's what you really wanted to do. But when you say, well, almost 70 % of the league gets into the playoff structure. Yeah. It's just, you're telling the fan what you're watching for almost seven, eight months. Doesn't matter. Doesn't matter. But what I would then love to see is. is a home and away. Take all these other silly things out of the way. Just go home and away. Now, if you want to do away with away goals, I'm okay with that. Have the team that goes. Then maybe you go into a penalty if things are tied. But home and away. You play home. We play home. And let's see who wins like the rest of the world.
21:09Well, obviously, this is being considered at the moment. Do you see a world where this is going to go through? Yes. Yeah, it's more games. Nothing is by chance. And I don't for one second refute or make less of the reporting of the Guardian. But this gets out because somebody wants it. It's already gone through three committees to get to this point where it gets leaked. So you think this is going to be a go-ahead? The one thing that MLS is not afraid to do is throw something against a wall, see if it sticks. When it falls off, do something different. Go back to what you already did. Go back to something different.
21:45Go back to the they're not afraid to completely blow stuff up. I mean, I wouldn't be surprised in when this fails that we go back to the NASL shootout at the end of a game. Let's try that again. You know, there's a point when you have to just say. There's a reason why the rest of the world does it one way, maybe, maybe we could just echo that. But again, as Americans, we love to invent a sport, be the only ones who play it and call ourselves world champions. So we have to try to figure out our own little piece to say this is American. And I think the problem is right now, so many fans in America watch the game everywhere else and go, well, why don't they do it like that?
22:38And we still have this little piece that's just afraid to go, let's just do it like everybody else. Where do you think this idea is coming from? Is it probably last big move from Don Garber? Don Garber has nothing to do with this. No, this is an owner thing. People love to put Don Garber in this light of he is all that is wrong with American soccer. Don Garber is a commissioner. He works for the owners. Roger Goodell works for the owners. He's supposed to be the bad guy. Guess why? So the owners aren't the bad guys. This has been approved by ownership groups. This has gone through one, two, three filters through a sporting committee.
23:16This is beyond Don Garber. If you want to say Don Garber is the root of everything evil in American soccer, you're an idiot. You don't know nothing about it. He just represents these ownership groups. That's his job. Now, if you really want to get to the root of it, people are going to be like, they're going to say pro-rel. They're going to say promotion relegation. They're going to give you the ins and outs of why that should be instituted. And then the game will mean something in their eyes. Just have the regular season mean something. And if the regular season means something, and then you still want to go through the pro-rail route and you want to go through all these different avenues, that's fine.
23:52But have there actually be games of consequence. Have the regular season matter. So when you're playing on a Wednesday night, back-to-back games, we have to win this game because we're going to drop off points. We're going to be out of the race and we could be gone before, you know, September, October. Oh, well, I'm going to go back to the old. But when there's before the season even ends, that's when you know it means something. Yep. And it is. It is a situation where I want us. You know, we've been talking about this forever. Relegation won't work in America, unfortunately. We don't know. Unless it's MLS tier one, MLS tier two, and they're basically the same thing.
24:34Because you're not going to sell that final two expansion for half a billion, 600 million, 700 million, and say, oh, by the way, in your expansion year, you have a bad season. You're no longer an MLS. It's just not going to happen. It's one of those things that you just would destroy your investment. But you can get to a point where the team that finished last doesn't make more money than the team that finished first. Right. You don't reward the team for being terrible. You reward the team for doing well. You reward the team for winning. You reward the team for winning more of their regular. You force bad owners to lower the floor.
25:18Correct. To raise the floor, excuse me. Correct. Instead, MLS is catered to the least common denominator as opposed to catering to those. Now, it's changed. And that's changed with the mechanisms that we've seen in MLS. What I would love to see is a little bit more open in your salary cap. Get rid of all these mechanisms. Let some owners, not to the point where you spend yourself into insolvency, but to where you have some freedom to build the team the way you want to build your team. And go try to win. Winning has to be paramount. And that hasn't been the case in MLS. Oh, I vote for Hurkin Casey to go on the board, man.
25:57No, they don't want that. They don't want that. They don't want former players? Come on. All right. Well, just a reminder that we have another show going on all about football. ESPN FC, that is it. A new episode dropped today where everyone's reacting to quite the thriller in West London as Fulham played Chelsea.
26:18Ken Marcotti here for Gusto. In football, we spend a lot of time on what happens on the pitch. But any successful operation also depends on the behind-the-scenes work. For small business owners, that often means payroll, hiring, onboarding, benefits, all the essential things that need to get done, even if they're not the reason you started the business in the first place. That's where Gusto can help. Gusto is online payroll and benefit software built for small businesses. It's all-in-one, remote-friendly, and incredibly easy to use, so you can pay, hire, onboard, and support your team from anywhere.
Read the full transcript
26:57It's quick and simple to switch to Gusto. Just transfer your existing data to get up and running fast. Plus, don't pay a cent until you run your first payroll and get direct access to certified HR experts to help support you through any tough HR situation. There's a reason Gusto is ranked number one on G2's highest satisfaction products list for 2026 and trusted by over 500 ,000 small businesses. Try Gusto today at gusto.com slash football and get three months free when you run your first payroll. That's three months of free payroll at gusto.com slash football. One more time, gusto.com slash football.
27:38This is Buster Olney for La Quinta by Wyndham. Just like a good football team sticks to the fundamentals, the best work trips start with a solid routine. At La Quinta by Wyndham, a full-size fitness center helps you keep that routine going while you're on the road. Get in a workout, wrap up the workday, then kick back and enjoy football all evening long. Plus, earn Wyndham Rewards points with every qualified stay. Tonight, La Quinta, tomorrow you shine. Book your next trip at LaQuinta.com. Terms and conditions apply. Right, remember I mentioned Yunus Moussa at the top of the show. Well, AC Milan kicked off their Serie A season with a win over Torino.
28:19And guess what? We're not talking about Christian Pulisic in terms of Americans. Instead, it's Yunus Moussa who played the full 90 for Ruben Amarim. And that's massive considering in the last two years, he's only managed a full 90 in a game just six times. So this feels big. Reports suggested that AC Milan and Ruben Amarim have blocked a number of moves, potential moves for Yunus Moussa. They had interest from a number of different clubs, but they didn't even allow him to engage in early talks, which shows that he obviously is a part of Amarim's plans at Milan. So how much now until he gets back on Mauricio Pochettino's radar?
28:57This is good for him. I mean, it's good for him personally. I don't know about Mauricio Pochettino's radar, and I'll get to that in a second. But Yunus Moussa needs to get back on track with playing. Sometimes we forget how young Eunice Moussa is. He's 23 years of age. He was playing his first World Cup in Qatar as a 19-year-old. And he was part of that famous MMA with Tyler Adams, with Weston McKinney, and himself along that midfield. He's a very good central midfield player at what he does. I once got in some hot water with fans and other pundits when I said he was a poor man's darling to Nagby.
29:30And if you've never seen Darling Tanagbi play or you just equate that he plays in Major League Soccer, you have no idea what I'm talking about. He is so good between the lines, but he's not going to be the guy that comes in with a bone crunching tackle. He's not going to be the guy that comes in with a fluid pass that's an assist to the goal. And he's not going to be the guy, rarely, that shows up in the score sheet. But he's going to be the link in between the lines, in between the boxes that connects from point A, B to C. He's going to be the pass before the danger pass, before the danger play that leads to the goal.
30:03He's going to be that connection. He's almost a luxury piece. But if you, for one second, think you can get the ball off this luxury piece, you are grossly mistaken. Now, what happened in Atalanta, it's Atalanta post Gasperini, which is a different Atalanta. Things didn't go well for him. He was a newly minted father, new change in his world. He got excommunicated from the U.S. men's national team. It was a difficult setting for him. But to immediately discard this player and say he can't get back on the radar of the U.S. Men's National Team, now that's up to Mauricio Pochettino because he's going to be starting right now at AC Milan.
30:38Mauricio Pochettino has shown us in the past he doesn't care if you start for Milan or if you start for Rouseau Lake or if you start for Vancouver Whitecaps. He's going to go with who he sees. So can he get back on the radar of the U.S. Men's National Team? Absolutely. He's got time on his side and he's in a quality setting. and he brings something different that you don't have. He's unique in skill set to the rest of the pool. And here's the tricky part to Herc's point is, unfortunately for Eunice, the only two areas that actually matter in a match are the defensive third and the attacking third.
31:14And if you're really good in the middle third and you are nonexistent in either end, that's where Eunice has to figure out what that role is for him. Is he a guy that can help in the defensive third? And then they'll say, okay, that's fine. Win the ball, turn, keep possession and go. But be that block for us. Be that little shield. Or are you the guy that makes the later runs, gets into the box, has a key pass and all that? The problem is if you get caught in the middle and you're neither. Yeah. Once AC Milan finds the guy that can do one or the other, you get replaced. So if Eunice can figure out and he's young enough to do that, maybe he's gone through.
32:01He's had the coming to Jesus moment and said, what am I? OK, I can be that guy for you that can be the shield and then keep the ball and link going forward. and if he consistently plays for AC Milan 100 % he'll be back and get a chance with the national team yeah if he's consistently playing for 90s for AC Milan it's going to be hard to ignore him but Casey just spoke about him kind of having that man in the mirror moment where it's like okay what kind of guy do I need to be to get back in to any club's good books and consistently for Mauricio Pochettino what do you want to see if you're him I know it's hard for us to get into Pochettino's mind but Herc what do you feel he'll be looking for in Yunus Musa to bring him back in does he need an apology a written apology no you don't need an apology I think uh Marisa Pochettino for taking him at his word he doesn't expect apologies from anybody expects you to work hard he expects you to show your hunger I think that's where you're at with Yunus Musa and it's not just Marisa Pochettino there's still plenty of fans who feel slighted or some type of way by Yunus Moussa because he denied a call-up in the summer.
33:09People think it was just Christian Pulisic who was too tired, who was dealing with an injury and said, I can't play. Eunice Moussa was part of that. Only one of those players, one of these two players, got excommunicated from the U.S. Men's National team. It wasn't Christian Pulisic. It was Eunice Moussa. And during that time, he had zero contact, Casey, with the U.S. Men's National coaching staff. When he was struggling, when he was trying to play more at Atalanta, there wasn't a phone call. Nobody picked it up. Hey, Eunice, how are you doing? Hey, don't worry. Keep working hard. You're still in our plans.
33:37It's out of sight, out of mind. So if I'm Marisa Pochettino, I have to assume what you want to see out of a player like that is hunger. Luka Modric is a name that we've not mentioned yet. Who is starting over? You could say Luka Modric one more year, longer in the tooth. That's Luka Modric. Yep. So if you can be under the wing of Luka Modric and learn under the mentorship of Luka Modric and understand what it takes to be a top quality central midfielder on a team like AC Milan, I'm sure Mauricio Pochettino, in some way, shape, form, or fashion, if you have good moments, is going to see good things in you to bring you back.
34:13Look, Eunice got excommunicated because, yes, he didn't start the way he should have. But then he wasn't playing. Right. I guarantee you, if he had started 30 matches for AC Milan last season, he would have been part of the World Cup. You think so? Yeah, 100%. No question. And when he did play in Atalanta last season, Case, there was Champions League moments where he was getting red card. There were moments where he was getting on the wrong. And we've said forever, your club career gives you the opportunity to go with the national team, not the other way around. And so, yes, if I'm a manager, yes, I'm going to hold it against a player if he doesn't come in when I call him in.
35:00If he says something, of course I'm going to do that. But I still don't have the option to go buy somebody. I'm a national team manager. I have what I have. If I have, I'm not going to sabotage my own results. I have to bring in the best players. And that's what we saw in the end in the World Cup. We saw all these changes, all these different players getting opportunities. And in the end, it was more or less the same lineup for every game because he needed to try to get the best results he could. And that is now the difference is club wise in the rest of the world. Your result on the first day, it could be the difference between you winning the title or not.
35:42You don't have the luxury to be like, well, let's try this guy out and let's try this guy out and let's do this. And then that's it. No, you don't. You have to get the result. Because, by the way, if you had the results that Marcio Pochettino had in his first six months as a U.S. National Team Manager, he would have no longer been the U.S. National Team Manager in the rest of the world. So he had some luxuries to do that. All right. Well, shall we catch up with some other U.S. men's national team players abroad? Specifically, Ricardo Pepe and Serginio Dest. They've been in action for PSV over in the Erie Divisie.
36:14And guess what? Both of them found the back of the net. Yeah, a little penalty kick for Ricardo Pepe. Sends goalkeeper down the wrong way, back to his goal-scoring ways, even if from the spot. And then in transition case, there are a few better players in the U.S. men's national team, Serginio Dest. And that's obviously why Pochettino played him in that wingback role or that almost right midfield role, because we all knew that Sergino has the ability to get forward. There was always a little bit of question when he had to defend in the right back spot. So this does not surprise me at all, because I think Sergino is so good going forward in that circumstance.
36:49And you saw it right there. When it comes to Ricardo Pepe, we know that he, of course, was heavily linked with moves away from PSV, specifically to Fulham. So ultimately now is staying at PSV the best outcome for him? To me, I have always wanted Ricardo to stay at PSV until he becomes that starter. That guy that then they count on week in and week out. And then take your game to the next step. And clearly with Fulham, Gonzalo Garcia for$40 million, that kind of, that was who Ricardo was supposed to be when it all fell through. Scored a day, by the way. Who did? I'm on his debut. But no, I like this scenario for Ricardo.
37:35Just that little bit longer, that little bit more development. And then if you're banging goals in, the move will come. I mean, he scored 19 goals last season. He's going to score more than 20 goals this season. And when he scores more than 20 goals this season. If he stays fit. Even if he doesn't stay fit because he didn't stay fit last season. True. And he still finished very strong. What then? What has Ricardo Pepe shown me that's different from the last year or the year before that, besides just being a starter and scoring the goals in a platform where you're supposed to score the goals because PSV is going to route 95 % of the teams they play against.
38:09You're a center forward in an attacking league that's going to be constantly put in positions. And you have triple, quadruple the budget. You have to put away, K. So I understand what you're saying, that you want to see him as a full-fledged starter. I don't know what else he can show me in the Eredivisie that I don't really know. So you want to see him in the Premier League? No, not just the Premier League. It doesn't have to be the Premier League. No, it could be the Bundesliga. It could be that next step up. Where he's already failed in the Bundesliga. Well, but we've seen enough players. But what I'm saying is.
38:39I can point you to Kevin De Bruyne or whoever who failed left and came back. We're already talking about it has to be the Premier League. No, it just has to be a different league besides the Eredivisie. Just be one of the big four, I think, that he needs to go to to then take that next step forward. And it also has to be somewhere where he fights because you mentioned it. You've got quadruple the spending power as the rest of the teams. You're put in positions to score goals constantly in the Eredivisie. How is that going to be different from when you play with the U.S. men's national team? It's fine when you're playing against Guatemala.
39:10These new proposed nations, and now you're playing against France. So who can you be? Sorry, Guatemala. I didn't know. And when you go to a different team, when you go to a different setting, sometimes you find out exactly who you are. I want to see who Ricardo Pepe is. He's 23 years of age. He's by no means a finished product. The Eredivisie, while I respect it, there's a certain tax that comes with it. And it doesn't just mean Ricardo Pepe. Serginio just has outgrown PSV. You know, the two players that I think have outgrown their settings that I would love to see in a different type of atmosphere.
39:42Well, and we might see that because I think both of them probably have ambition. Yeah. I think, I mean, we've heard Serginio say that he would love another opportunity to prove himself like a Barcelona again. That he didn't feel like he was able to do what he knew he was capable of doing. Obviously, Ricardo, I'm sure after the difficulty in Germany, getting the lifeline, rebuilding. I wouldn't say rebuild, more as like starting his career in Holland. and being successful, I'm sure there's a little bit of mental unfinished business for both of them. All right. Well, let's talk about another U.S.
40:26men's national team player who is very much in the Premier League and doing quite well, especially after signing a new contract. Brendan Aronson has extended his contract with Leeds United by three years. He has played in Leeds' Premier League opener, which was a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest. Casey, that's on this extension. We were talking about it off camera the other day. Absolutely love it because I love that Brendan ate the humble pie, came back, had to win the fans back over, and has done enough to warrant this. And I have a lot of respect for that. I have a lot of respect for somebody that could have easily just said, oh, no, it's too difficult.
41:19They don't like me. Nope, I'm going to come back and I'm going to prove myself. And with that, I have a lot of respect. I can't think of a U.S. men's national team player that's had to fight more in the last year, year and a half. Weston's right there. Weston, too. But that's fighting disrespect because we always knew how good he was because he would constantly prove himself. This was – I don't know if Brendan's cut out for the Premier League. I don't know if he's put out for Leeds, you know? And he proved himself and he endeared himself to the fans. And he left in bad and then had to come back.
41:51And that's another ball game. But if we think about platforms for a player, am I naive enough to think there's a bigger platform for Brendan Aronson? I don't think so. No, Leeds is a big club. Leeds is a big club. It's the Premier League. He's constantly being tested. It's not the same situation as Weston McKinney where you're saying Weston's easily been for the last three years one of the best players for Juventus, and he constantly gets disrespected. There's something bigger there for him. I want to see him in a bigger setting, as crazy as that sounds when you speak of Juventus. I don't think there's a realistic bigger setting for Brendan Aronson.
42:28I think Brendan Aronson's been thrown into the deep end, and he's – Well, he threw himself into the deep end, which didn't help. But he was in the deep end, and he didn't just float. He swam, and he proved himself. And maybe he's not putting up the numbers that many would think are necessary for Premier League winger. Excuse me. But he's a good player that's trusted and playing in a massive platform. I think this is a win for Brendan Anderson. What kind of progression do you see for him, Casey, then in the Premier League, considering he is in the right league, as you guys feel, to consistently be challenged?
42:59But what kind of progression do you want to see from him, at least this season? I think the final product has to continue to improve. If you can get, you know, double digits, assists, if you can get, you know, eight goals, ten goals, couple cup games, couple, you know, if you can just, you know, you understand what you're right now, who leads are. There's not going to be 20 anything. right so but if you can just continue to be a player that they can count on and there's enough finished product that they're happy with it because we know he's going to work his socks off he's going to he's going to give you the the work rate the the pressing the you know the kid making runs but just they'll just improve those numbers that little bit okay so you're right he's not a kid anymore he's 25 years of age that's the perfect time league team you've got massive amounts of money to work with to find players at 25 years of age if you're in the Premier League as a winger you should be putting up some type of numbers it can't just be you work hard you're good for the group yeah you've got to accompany that with productivity um he's not had that at Leeds and you could be good for the group as much as you want with a certain coach next coach comes in he's like hey I like the way he works but I need productivity at the end of that that's the next step.
44:22That's the evolution of Brendan Aronson with Leeds is you've got to accompany those numbers with it. Yeah, if Brendan wants to be a starting 11 every week, be that guy and not just a guy that yeah, we love to have in the squad. That will be the factor. All right. Well, that's Brendan Aronson in the Premier League, but there's some La Liga action coming your way over on ESPN. Look at that. Pellegrino Matarazzo and Real Sociedad up against Jose Mourinho and Real Madrid. That game is 3 p.m. Eastern time on Wednesday, but our coverage begins 30 minutes earlier over on the ESPN app and ESPN Deportes.
45:05As you know, managing maintenance, repair, and operations is never easy. But for the ones who always rise to the challenge, Granger has your back. From professional-grade products you can count on to fast, dependable delivery, they're there to help you keep things running smoothly. Plus, their technical product specialists are here to help answer your toughest questions. And because Grainger knows safety is always a priority, they're committed to being your partner in protecting both your people and your facilities. Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click grainger.com, or just stop by. I like things my way.
45:37My coffee, my schedule, and my treatment. So I talked to my doctor about self-injecting with the Vivgard Hytrulo Pre-Filled Syringe, which contains F-Gartigamide Alpha and Hyaluronidase QVFC. It's injected under your skin subcutaneously. It means I can inject in my space on my time. It's my treatment, my way. Visit VivGuardMyWay.com. That's V-Y-V-G-A-R-T MyWay.com. And talk to your doctor about VivGuard Hytrulo. Brought to you by Argenics.
46:09Right, let's talk about Lionel Messi as promised because the big man has been fined an undisclosed fee for slapping Philadelphia Union's Quinn Sullivan during what was quite a heated 2-2 draw between the two MLS sides last week Wednesday. This also had two sending-offs, but Messi, of course, was not one of them. Is that a slap? He shouldn't have done it. He shouldn't have done it, guys. He ruffled his hair. He shouldn't have done it. He shouldn't have done it, but yeah. Let's be honest. All right, well, Inter-Miami, we're in action this time against Toronto FC. Josh Sargent with a beautiful left-footed finisher.
46:48Dane St. Clair gets screened, can't see it. Unlucky. Into the second half we go now with Inter-Miami still trailing. Could they get one back? No. Yeah, Derek Etienne with a good finish there. I mean, it's an empty goal. Derek Etienne is going to get the finish here. It's an easy one, K. Yeah, just had to miss the defenders all. And then into Lazer in the second half. Uh-oh. Uh-oh. Just mess around with the ball at the back. Come on, Bertrami. Finish it. Oh, no, Bertrami. He doesn't finish it, and he knows it. Yeah, back from injury, Bertramo, who had a long layoff because of a head injury. He tries catching the goalkeeper near post, but hits it right at him.
47:22Twice.
47:26And then Inter-Miami still on the hunt to get something back. And, of course, it falls to Lionel Messi, who does get yet another goal for Inter-Miami. A really, really nice pass. And Messi timed the run perfectly to come through and got the consolation goal in the end. Well, like I said, Messi magic, but Inter-Miami misery because now their winless streak reaches five games, despite Messi doing what we expect Messi to do. So last week we had Jeff Carlisle, we had Shaka trying to make sense of what's going on with Inter-Miami. Herc, you're back now with the latest thoughts now. What is going on there?
48:03This to me is very simple. Major League Soccer is a very top-heavy league, And it's a league where if you're missing certain players, it's very hard to dig yourself out of that hole because of the players you don't have. And Inter-Miami is not the exception. You look at the League's Cup. Well, Luis Suarez was serving six-match suspension for spitting on a coach for the Seattle Sounders. Not a coach. Oh, sorry. Security. Come on. Don't give Gene some good. Come on, Gene. We got you. For spitting on Gene Ramirez, he gets six games. He's serving that. I think Gene wishes he was a coach. Yeah, there you go.
48:36And then you have the likes of Mikael, the center back who gets injured. You have Tadeo Allende who's on crutches. You've got Lionel Messi who misses games because he went, unfortunately, to the wake of his father, his service. You've got other players who are injured, who can't be on the field to help this team out. And you're saying, well, if it's not Messi, then who is it? They've got glaring holes, massive gaps within this team. And teams have figured Inter-Miami out. They've figured the midfield out of Casemiro, of Segovia, of Rodrigo DePaul. They've figured the likes of Messi out. That Messi's going to be Messi.
49:16And you can't hope to stop Messi, just contain Messi. But let Messi be because the majority of the time, he's going to be one less player defensively. Because Inter-Miami doesn't expect him to defend. But there's just so many holes in this lineup. They don't have legs that when you get to these dog days in the summer case, and you know what this league is like. You're just overwhelmed. A lot of travel, a lot of humidity, a lot of heat. You not just have Messi at his age who's going to give you nothing on the defensive side. And that's okay. You don't want him there. You don't want him. I mean, you would like something there.
49:53But you understand you're willing to accept that it's not going to be there anymore. But then you have to set things up around. and not everybody else is going to do the work that the rest of the team in Argentina does for Messi. And then you go to the point that Herc made. You don't have the squad depth that you have in the rest of the world. You have a commitment of finances for seven to ten players and you're making up the numbers and you're hoping you can get some young kids developed that can do a role for you. You're hoping you can bring somebody in and take a piece that can help. But then when you have of those, let's say, 10 players that you've committed finances to, and if five of them are out, you're done.
50:40You've got no chance. You spend$15 million on a striker and he gets a head injury and he's not there for the majority of the regular season and then all leagues cup. And when he comes back, it's going to take him time to get going. You spent money on a goalkeeper and Dane St. Clair and he wasn't good to start off the season. And when he goes to the World Cup and comes back, he loses his starting position to Rios Rocco. And Rios Rocco's not been good at all. So you're going back and forth. And those are the guys you committed money to. Now imagine the guys you haven't committed money to saying you've got to play to this level for us.
51:12In the elephant in the room is if Messi's not doing something for this club, then who is? And that's the problem here is that nobody is. Casemiro is a very serviceable center midfielder, but he's not going to be a game changer. But he also has to be a runner, which he's no longer a runner. And here's the other thing. Rodrigo De Paul is, in Major League Soccer, an average player. With Argentina, he's a great player. In Major League Soccer, he's an average player. And you're allowing an average player to go midweek to go see his girlfriend across the other side of the world. So you're already questioning the commitment to this player that you spent so much.
51:50How about just commitment to the league, commitment to the sport? So when we look at why Inter-Miami is struggling, I think it's a miracle, and I think it's Messi the reason that they're not struggling even more. Messi's the only positive thing out of this team. They're sitting behind second place to Nashville. If not for Messi, take away those 15-plus goals, where would this team be? Messi is Inter-Miami. And here's the other thing, too. Nothing has changed with Messi. Messi has been exactly the same the whole time he's been here. You've got to look at the other pieces that have changed, which we pointed out, and that's the reason why Miami is it.
52:27Yeah, Salveti, Allende, Mikael, Berterame, Luis Suarez, Rios Rocco, that can go to Dane St. Clair. There's so many just intangibles of who's not on the field and why they're not on the field. And in Major League Soccer, you can't have that. You can't afford that. Well, they still have over 10 games to go now before the playoffs, 13 to be exact. At what point does the concern become real? Or is it already? I don't think there's any concern because they're going to make the playoffs. They're going to make the playoffs and all they have to do, and we've seen this time and time again, get it right the last two or three games before the playoffs, stay healthy through the playoffs, get a little bit of form, and nothing else matters.
53:14We just did an MLS postseason segment, and we spoke about gains of consequence. In any other setting you go through a run like this, you might. You're out of it. You're not winning the league. You put yourself in a position where this could really hurt your chances. I don't think this hurts Inter-Miami's chances. No, not if they can get a couple people fit, get focused for what matters in MLS, no problem. All right. It doesn't mean they will, but it means they could. I'm betting they probably will. Better than they probably will. All right, so no concerns just yet for Lionel Messi and Inter Miami.
53:48Let's just remind you as well about more La Liga action coming your way this week. Barcelona, they opened their La Liga campaign with a big win. Oh, my Lord, how good did they look? Oh, what a great win it was indeed. They're up against Athletic Club, the Bilbao, Thursday, 3 p.m. Eastern time on ESPN Deportes and the app.
54:10Need parts fast? O 'Reilly Auto Parts as fast. Need them now? We've got now. No matter what you need, we have thousands of professional parts people doing their part to make sure you have it. We're O 'Reilly Fast. Just one part that makes O 'Reilly stand apart. The professional parts people. O, O, O, O 'Reilly. Auto Parts.
54:42Life insurance is one of those things that's easy to put off because it doesn't feel urgent today. But it's not just another financial box to check. It's about having a plan in place. So if life throws something unexpected at your family, they're not left dealing with the financial side without support. Ethos makes getting life insurance fast and easy. It's 100 % online, so you can get a quote in seconds, apply in minutes, and get same-day coverage. There's no medical exam. You just answer a few simple health questions online. You can get up to$3 million in coverage, and some policies start as low as$30 a month.
55:20Ethos has also earned strong customer feedback with a 4.8 out of 5-star rating on Trustpilot based on more than 4 ,000 reviews. Take 10 minutes to get covered today with life insurance through Ethos. Get your free quote at ethos.com slash sports. That's ethos.com slash sports. Application times may vary, rates may vary. Trustpilot rating as of June 1st, 2025.
56:11We'll be right back.
56:39your way midweek, especially because we're down to the quarterfinals in the League's Cup. And now it's up to these guys while we pay them the big bucks to see if they can give us the right predictions for the quarterfinals. Ready, boys? Sure. All right. First one. Monterrey, Chicago Fire, who's looking pretty good with Robert Levin Golski. See what I did there? See what I did there, guys. I'm here all night. All right. Who wants to go first? Her? Go for it. All right. Can you go to the Chicago Fire? because there's no way in hell on God's green earth that I am picking Monterrey. They are the perennial chokers of Liga MX.
57:15They do have a new coach. It had nothing to do with being a former Tigers player? No, no, no. I was going to say. Is that what your head or your heart is telling you? It has more to do with being former Santos. Yeah. Matias Almeida is a very good coach, and he's got some very interesting elements in Diego Rossi, ex-Columbus crew, and now Hugo Kuypers, which is a revenge game for him, and he's scoring lots of goals against Chicago Fire. But you mentioned it. Lewandowski, four goals in a little. under 600 minutes. He's just warming up. It's in Chicago. I like what Greg Berhalter has been doing with his team in transition late.
57:44I think they can pick Monterrey apart. Casey, what's for you? I like Chicago's form. I like what Berhalter's been able to do to bring in some players, so I am saying Chicago as well. Alright, so both of them going with Greg Berhalter, Robert Lewandowski, and the Chicago Fire in this one. Sorry, Monterrey. What about this one? Leon against Real Salt Lake Herc? So, Leon started out the season with like two losses, right? Javier Gandolfi, an ex-teamon of mine from Cholos, comes into León and you're like, wait, the ex-Cholos captain is now Leona. I thought they were supposed to be rivals that didn't exist and they've been on fire.
58:19They've been undefeated ever since. Gambino is a goal scorer. This is a team that went three for three, nine points in this competition, knocked out already Leo Messi and Inter Miami. I don't really trust Salt Lake. I don't really trust this Real team. I'm going to go with what I know works. I like Leon's form. It's a very well-worked team. I'm going to stick with Leon here. All right. Part going with Leon. Casey, will it be another MLS pick for you? No, I'm sorry. I mean, my former, obviously, national team teammate, Pablo Mastroianni, has done a good job at Salt Lake. But I think Leon, I think, is just in form.
58:57I think they're just that little bit more, and I think it will just tip it to Leon. All right. All right, so both of them going for Leon in this one. Okay, we're done. Trying to get it neatly done. Yes. What about this one now? Toluca up against Austin FC. All right, here's the interesting thing here. Toluca has hosting rights. Them in America have hosting rights, but the game's not going back to Mexico. What's more Toluca than Harrison in New Jersey? I don't know, but that's where the game's going to be played. It's going to be played in New Jersey. You take Austin out of that amazing setting, that amazing home crowd, and I don't think they'll have enough.
59:34I don't think Austin has the firepower to go against Toluca. They've lost their leading goal scorer, Paulinho, for the rest of the season. They still got very good footballers in all lines. I think they're a stronger team, and you take them away the comfy confines of Austin. I'm going Toluca here, Mohamed and his men. All right, so you're going for Toluca to get a home crowd win in Harrison, New Jersey. What's more choricero than New Jersey? Mexicanos travel well. I've played enough matches for the national team in New Jersey where I was the away team. Exactly. I truly believe that Toluca will have home field advantage.
1:00:13I mean, yes, Austin at home would be a different decision. But I think neutral site is going to go the way of Toluca. All right. So everybody on the same page so far. I don't like it. I don't like it. And we only have one more to go. So let's see if this could be the decider. Oh, come on. Club America against Columbus Crew, our Mauricio Pedrosa isn't here to choose Club America, but he is watching. It's the only reason why I wouldn't choose Club America. Remember, we also have a Columbus Crew legend in our Ale Moreno. There you go. There you go. Is he playing? No. No? Because they're probably going to need him.
1:00:52Yeah. Okay. I like what I've seen from new additions like Columbus and the Spanish play they have in Perez. I really like what I've seen there. But this game is in Los Angeles, not in Columbus. And America, for as weak as I've seen them, because I think they're a very weak team, they're undefeated in the last eight games. The game they lost to Austin was in penalty kicks. It's not an official loss. That's 90 minutes. They lose one point off penalty kicks. That was in Austin where I told you Austin is very strong. They didn't lose this game. They may not have the names of the past, but this is a very well-worked team for Guillermo Almada.
1:01:30Henry Martin, their goal scorer is back to his goal-scoring ways. Every day they're regaining full strength. I like the way they play, and I don't think Columbus, who's not won in the last four games, has enough here. And let's be honest. Club America in L.A. is a very, very home game. Yes. And they'll have tremendous support. they'll be motivated for it. And as you mentioned, Columbus aren't in the form that they would need to be. Even though I agree with you, it's not necessarily the strongest Club America team we've ever seen. So, Herc's going Club America and unfortunately Alexis. I knew it!
1:02:06Oh, it burns him! As difficult as it is for me, but with Mau not here, if he was here, I don't think I could have made this decision. But with him not here, I have to go with what I believe is the right result. Dignity Health Sports Park, Los Angeles, pro-America crowd. This America team maybe doesn't have the names, but they are so well worked for Miguero Malmala. A bunch of young kids running around. And Columbus isn't exactly in a great moment. Correct. They have some new additions, sure. They've hit the ground running. No, they've not. All right. So for MLS, you better just throw all of your eggs in the Columbus.
1:02:42Not the Columbus, but the Chicago Fire basket. The Chicago Fire. Come on, Greg. Aw. How far can they go? We will find that out in a bit. But just a reminder that Football W is back on Tuesday. Make sure to join in at 1 p.m. Eastern time on ESPN+.
1:03:06All right, let's get into some In Case You Missed It now, because don't we have some gems? And this one coming in the game between San Jose and Minnesota. Yep, that was a pitch invader. And, yep, it's a baby, guys. He's a Millwall fan. He has to be. Start him young. He's coming on ready to throw down. I only have one question here. What is it? Did it happen on dad's watch? That definitely feels like Father of the Year awards right there. Come on. Listen, start him young. Start him young. At least he didn't get tackled. All right, how about this one now? Arrozarena, yes, in baseball, hitting the Cristiano Ronaldo Selly, the big old.
1:03:44Yeah, yeah, there you go. Arosarena, El Mexicano with the walk-off and it soon!
1:03:52We love it. The Mariners needed something to get excited about. There's been some tough results lately. Guys, I missed that because you know they watch crickets. Alright, how about this one now? A goalkeeper equalizer in Liga MX. Casey, we gotta love this. It's truly the worst thing ever for the strikers is when a goalkeeper comes up and says, really? Let me show you how it's done. No, I have not. But this is – All right, all right. But it's like, look, this is what you do. I come up once every 10 years and make you look bad. How many times have you gone up there for a corner kick or a free kick?
1:04:25Oh, like two or three times, yeah. I was never anywhere. Did you ever get close? I never got anywhere. Are you like, what am I doing right now? No, I mean, I understood why. It's just – How much do you practice it? At least a nice little header. I think in matches – we kind of did something the other day. I think I played 750, 800 matches, if you count, like caps. Okay. I think I probably headed the ball five times. You know, I mean. Fair. But why am I out there heading a ball? I mean. Sometimes you got to show the Ale Morenos of this world how to score a goal and not dive. Right? Well. All right.
1:05:00Fair enough. Sorry, Ale's catching straight. All right. Well, let's talk about Futbol Americas because this is where we go to Brazil because I tell you things in Brazil is just a gift that keeps on giving. Have a look at this one. Kaká snatching the shirt and ripping it during a celebration. Very sportsman-like. Well you know taking off the shirt is not very sportsman-like. You're supposed to get fined for that. Let the man have his celebration though. Come on. There's a point. There's a point. I mean Messi does that celebration. You just like the guys taking their shirts off. Let's just start with that.
1:05:34Hey all right well These are our colleagues from ESPN Brazil, and it just shows you that being a pitch side reporter has hazards. Get off your phone. Get off your phone. She's checking her stats. She shouldn't have been standing there. We don't have a choice. That's where our producers put us. Well, there you go. It's a good header. It's a great header. Really quickly, can you see the flight of the ball? She headed it right back to the assistant coach. Absolutely headed it right back to him. They're standing in touch. These guys are absolutely heartless. Do you see the flight of the ball? it's coming in like it's a corner kick.
1:06:05That's planned. Somebody wanted those people to get hit. I'm going to for somebody who's actually hit a few balls at some friends who were reporters when I was still playing, I definitely would have felt horrible if I had hit one of the girls and not one of my friends. I was going to say all of the guys there and of course the ball is going to hit the one lady on the pitch. I tell you what I've been hit by a couple. I've been hit by a couple when we're sat in La Liga behind the goal. Guys, get your goals on target. Alright, let's run it back. Maybe that was the target. Maybe that was the target.
1:06:43Alright, well we saw the ugly there. How about this for a nice little golazo? Oh, wow. That's not even planned to him. Yeah, cut it off. It's supposed to go not to him. And if you're the goalkeeper here, like, what do you do, Case? You're on your line. You go shake his hand. You're on your line. What are you going to do? Grow like 10 feet all of a sudden? I mean, it's a great goal. Okay, Hugo Adrian. What about this one now from Joaquin Pereira? This is a nice Rabona. I love me a Rabona. All right. Goalkeeper could have done. That's exactly what I was going to say. A bit better, though. I don't think he sees it.
1:07:14I think it comes past two guys. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. Of course you would. He doesn't see it. He's blocked. And then, yeah. But, yes, I agree. Be a little quicker on that. I would have been disappointed. Yoshida's goal, the back heel goal, is not in here? No. You've got to pick that up. LA Galaxy bias. Anti-LA Galaxy bias. Wow. Producer Beto. Not an LAFC man. He's still angry about the Chargers. He'll always be angry about that. Come on, guys. All right, well, that's going to be it for this edition of Football Americas. But join us again on Thursday because we're going to have an exclusive interview with the one and only Chris Richards ahead of what's going to be a very interesting season in the Premier League for Crystal Palace.
1:07:56You don't want to miss it. Until then, it's bye from us.
1:08:14This episode is brought to you by ChatGPT. Hey, it's Bill Simmons from the Bill Simmons Podcast. Have you guys heard about ChatGPT work? It's the new way to use ChatGPT for bigger multi-step projects. And when you need more than just answers, give ChatGPT work access to your apps and files, and it can create real work documents like spreadsheets, slides, and structured reports. Get started at chatgpt.com by selecting work mode available on Plus and Pro plans.
From the publisher
Futbol Americas is here on a Monday night to react to the news that UEFA and CONCACAF are discussing plans for an intercontinental nations league. Also, in the MLS, plans are reportedly underway to revamp the playoffs. What model do they want to follow? Later, Americans abroad are making moves. Including Brenden Aaronson signing a 3-year extension at Leeds United. Then, Messi has been fined by MLS for slapping Quinn Sullivan. How much worse can it get for Inter Miami? Later, we have Leagues Cup picks.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices