Futbol Americas: Pepi Injured + CONCACAF Impact in Madrid Derby + Liga MX Check-In

25:15We can save the stamp conference because the history of the game is here. They are two red lights, and clear. Simeone, under the challenge of Alton. And he points to the spot. There was no attempt at the ball at all. Atletico lead. And now Real are down to ten. I told you there would be drama, there always is. Cut back right across, goal! And there's David! And it's 2-0! And Real Madrid are foiled again at Atleti. I thought I'd find a different league from the league that I left.

26:19going in for a ball. The referee goes to the monitor because he had originally thought Jude Bellingham was at fault as he went in pretty fast. But in the end, he says, uh-uh, Christian Romero. I don't have as big a problem with this tackle. It's just two guys going in for a hard tackle. And I would have no, I don't think Bellingham should have got a yellow card, but I don't think Romero should have got a red card. 45th minute, well, this one's a little different. Oh, yeah. I mean, that's ouch. He just fully just stomps all over the ankle, heel of Valverde. Kangin Lee, very fortunate to still be on the field, and we keep playing.

27:00Yeah, Lee Kangin definitely thanking his lucky stars he was still on the field. But in the spirit of cards, eventually we would get ascending off in the 49th minute. Dean Hausen here bringing down Giuliano Simeone in the box. He first is given a yellow card, but the referee checks the monitor and is upgraded to a red. I get why it's a red. I still don't like the double jeopardy thing where, yes, I know he didn't play, but he brought him down. And, yes, I get the rule of the law is red. But you have two tough challenges, no red. And then a little bit of a red. And then Mao is just kind of hanging out there.

27:37Mao posted that video on his social immediately after. Grimaldo scored that penalty there. 54th minute. Vinny Jr. taken off. And Yan Diomande coming on to replace him. 59th minute, Simeone playing a low cross here to Hercules Gomez's first or favorite CONCACAF striker, Jonathan David, who puts it in the back of the net as he's been doing lately. Bad to worse. Good combination play. Giuliano straight across and Jonathan David, third consecutive goal. First Canadian in the Madrid Derby to score a goal. That's three goals, one assist in the last three games. He on fire. He on fire. He would eventually be taken off.

28:17And Conmebols, Julian Alvarez brought on. But you can bet the whistles would ring out. El Nino, Fernando Torres in the crowd there. 65th minute. Romero heading it. And what a save from Thibaut Courtois. Yeah. I mean, it's really two saves. You know, it's first Courtois. Conate, right? And then Courtois slides back on the line. This is 3-0. This is over. Game over. And finally, I don't know if that was the situation that woke up Real Madrid. Well, speaking of great saves, here's a great one as well from Jan Oblak. Yeah, I believe that's the only shot on goal all game for Real Madrid. But because of the mix-up, Oblak's in a position he does not want to be in.

28:58And Macca said it in the match. Just lift it over him. You know the keeper's in no man's land. Yeah, yeah. Well, eventually a goal would come for Real Madrid off a free kick. Antonio Rudiger manages to head it in, and they pull one back. And I tell you what, for a split second you're thinking here, Real Madrid have this in him. Where's Espy? Where's Espy? Where's Espy? Jose Mourinho saying, vamos, vamos, let's keep this going. But in the end, they could not. Cholo Simeone celebrating fist pumps and all going down the tunnel because Atlético de Madrid once again getting the better of their crosstown rivals, Real Madrid at the Metropolitano.

29:38But Jonathan David definitely making headlines there for this one. As you can see, first player to score in his first three appearances. in La Liga for Atlético de Madrid in the 21st century. First CONCACAF International to score in La Liga's edition of El Derby. Since Hugo Sánchez back in 1988 for Real Madrid, I wasn't even born. Neither was Jonathan David. And four goal contributions this season for the Canadian. All right, well, let's get some post-match reaction now.

30:14He's a very determined player for what the club needs and what the club wants. And we're going to work on him as a result. And very happy for Jonathan, who came back to make a goal. Three games, three goals. That's why it puts the internal competition in a very important place. And we need everything to compete until we can. All right, Cholio Simeone, they're weighing in on a number of things, but let's start off with this man. This man right here, Herc. You know him. You love him. Jonathan David, kind of just proving everything you've said about him, right? Listen, we talk about exceptions to the rule.

30:59I would argue Jonathan David at Juventus was the exception to his career. Everywhere he goes, he scores goals. He was in Belgium at Genk as an 18-year-old, scored a bunch of goals, secured a move to Lille. Became Leo's all-time leading goal scorer. The year that he left Leo, that last season, he was scoring Champions League goals against the likes of Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid, Juventus, Liverpool, anybody and everybody. And gets his big move to Serie A with Juventus. By the way, everybody suffered. Blachowicz suffered as well. All the strikers suffered. And they're still suffering today. They're still suffering.

31:37gets a move to a team that I think suits him because of the play that's very much kind of like where he plays his national team football for Jesse Marsh in Atletico. Same principles in terms of how they press, how they work, how they defend, and the chances they take. Nothing new to him. Jonathan David is the best nine in CONCACAF and has been the best nine in CONCACAF for quite some time. And now he's doing it in one of the top setups in the world, in a top two league in the world. Casey knows what La Liga is like. You don't just step into a team like this and do what he's doing. Three straight games.

32:16Julián Alvarez right now is getting booed as there's a standing ovation for Jonathan David as he comes out. The opportunity to cement that and make that yours, as difficult as that may be right now, it's Jonathan David's position to lose. He has everything going for himself right now. I feel he's the premier nine in this region. And maybe Foller and Balogun will have a say. Maybe the likes of Armando Gonzalez or Santi Jimenez one day. It looks like Raul is on his way out because of the age. Maybe Ricardo Pepe. But right now, with the intangibles and the moment, if we're doing a power ranking today, it's Jonathan David.

32:55He's the best nine in CONCACAF, and he's proven it at the highest of levels. Is he the top nine for Atletico Madrid now? Because the fact that he did this with Alexander Sorloth watching, though, Casey. He's ahead of Sorloth. He's ahead of Sorloth. But not Yuland Alvarez. So the question mark is when we talked about it with Ricardo Pepe. Sometimes opportunities fall your way because of other circumstances. So you've got this craziness with Alvarez. Then you've got Sorloth being injured. You know, they bring Jonathan David in and you say, all you can do is take advantage of the opportunity you're given.

33:32And he has absolutely done tremendous. And the crazy thing about Jonathan David, he is such an old school number nine where it's. He's going to get 20 touches, 30 touches a match, but score a goal and get an assist. He's not coming back, going into midfield, going, hey, I need my touches. No, but he can't do that. Like, he's got quality. I understand what you're saying. But he's got quality to his game where I actually think his best position is next to Julian. I actually think the way he'll thrive is next to Julian. I call Atletico a ton. And they have never been able to get Sorlot and Alvarez to play together.

34:12No, no. And Sorlot plays a lot. But I'm not talking about Sorlot. I'm talking about Griezmann and Julian. Yeah. This is the position. Like, I would expect Julian to be Griezmann. That's exactly the duo that I see there. That's exactly because I think Julian has that quality about him. Julian does, and Julian will drop back into midfield more than Jonathan David or at least the style that we've seen, either how Simeone has asked him to play as he's come in.

34:40Simeone will go to a 4-4-2 if he has to. Oh, yes. And so I agree with you. I would love to see a situation like that. And we wanted to see that with Sorlot and Alvarez for the last two years. And it never quite happened. So, yeah, we'll see. We will see indeed. But I love the start. Yeah. I mean, great, great start. Brilliant stuff indeed from Jonathan David. By the way,$25 million. That's the buy. $25 million right now. It's a purchase. And the way he's playing, that's a bargain for Atletico. Well, was it a bargain for Johnny Cardoso? Because he has been pretty strong as well for Cholo Simeone and Atletico de Madrid.

35:18Our ESPN FC, the Portes crew, was out there pitch side after the Madrid derby and they managed to catch up with the American.

35:48independent of the situation and of the game, because we all face a different idea. And of course, it was the last day. If I leave a little more freedom, I have this chance that I can also contribute. But today was a game that I had to stay more fixed, and to me it was the same. because I'm fighting for my team and if I'm out or not, you know what. All smiles there for Johnny Cardoso. Here's a look at his heat map against Real Madrid. Herc, how would you rate his performance? Listen, for what he was asked to do, I thought it was a good performance. He said it to himself. Sometimes I have the liberty to attack a little bit more.

36:33Today I was asked to be that defensive midfielder and stay more. I really thought Jude Bellingham had a hard time advancing because of the lanes Johnny Cardoso would cover. And Johnny is so simple on the ball. He's your traditional defensive midfielder. You give him the ball, he's got the ability of the long-range pass that we saw a few weeks ago with his assist that he had against Osasuna. But he keeps it simple. And he's so simple in what he does, he's hard to keep track of. And he covers so much ground defensively. The lanes he was tracking. I really think Jude Bellingham had a tough time because of Johnny Cardoso.

37:07All of Real Madrid had a tough time. Yes, yes. Look at this. That's Vinny Jr. trying to pass right there. That's Johnny Cardoso in a lane. Very simple. Look, Johnny, really from the Christmas break last year onward. Yeah. Truly established himself at Atletico Madrid as a starter when he's fit and in his form. And that's in a very good squad. Yes. So when he got injured at the end of the season and tried to play through it and then realized that if I went to the World Cup, he probably would not be fit until Christmas again. And it probably made the very, very difficult decision to say, you know what, I have to have surgery.

37:50I got to miss the World Cup. I need to get my club career right first. Now, it was probably a little bit easier because he never really established himself with the national team like we know he's capable of doing. But if he continues to be the player that you're seeing him to be for Atletico Madrid, I mean, he could be a huge benefit to the U.S. come World Cup qualifying. Listen, there's something that Cholo Simeone knows. It's defensive stability. And in Cardoso, he's found that guy in the center of the midfield that can be that anchor. It's not an easy system to play in for Cholo Simeone. You've seen the types of players that have played in the center midfield, whether it's in an eight position or as a six.

38:30You got Coque, Pablo Barrios. You need a certain type of engine about you. Johnny has that, and he's got it with a calming presence. The question we all have is can you now translate that at the international level? Maybe the two managers need to have a little chat. They're both from the same country. I'm sure they have. I'm sure they have. I'm sure they are indeed. All right. So it was joy and bragging rights for one side of Madrid, but for the other side of Madrid, and that's Jose Mourinho's. They left a lot to be desired. Just have a look at this. This is a game where Real Madrid were held to the worst expected goal since 2015, And that is absolutely wild to think of when you look at the talent that they have in that attack, especially of Vinny Jr.

39:12Just a one goal now, Casey, in seven games. How concerned are we? Well, this is a conversation that has been ongoing since Mbappe came to Real Madrid. We just finished a conversation talking about Julian Alvarez and Charlotte playing together. we've yet to really see Mbappe and Vinny Jr. gel. We haven't seen a situation where there's so much talent. What's still not clicking? Are they in the same space? Are they frustrated that Vinny was frustrated that Mbappe was making more money than him? Was it egos? Is it whatever? I don't know. But they should be able to play together. Yeah, just take a look at this, for example.

40:02Look how many red striped jerseys are around Vinny Jr. when he touches the ball. Any given moment, you've got Marcovil, Kuti Romero, you've got Llorente, you've got Julian Simeone, you've got Kang Inley. He's surrounded a player that thrives in isolation, never had isolation, a 1v1 moment. There were always multiple players. And Real Madrid could never associate with each other because they don't have those players in the midfield. They are very transitional. They are very root one. They are very vertical. They are not associating with each other. They don't have that presence. So when you have this type of defensive presence, as Atletico did, you saw the expected goals and how low it was.

40:44The last time it was that low, 11 years ago when they played Atletico, Cholo Simeone, he knows how to stifle this type of player. Our expectations of Vinny Jr. are too high. That's what it is. Our expectations of Vinny Jr. are the Ballon d 'Or Vinny Jr. who lost to Rodri. That's our expectation. That's not Vinny Jr. That's not. He had an exceptional year where they won everything. And he was the best player on a team that won everything. Champions League, I should say. Not everything. And in doing so, you thought he's at the level of the best in the world. Where he's clearly not. He's at a very good level, a very dangerous player, but he's not the most talented player on the team.

41:32That's Mbappe. He's not the best winger on earth. That's probably Ulisse or Cavaschelli at PSG. He's a step down from those guys. And we keep expecting so much from Vinny that when he gives us something like this, we say, well, what's going on with Vinny? What's up with Vinny? You mean the first question with Vinny was when he first kind of broke through, was he just needed to be a little bit more clinical in the final third. So then he has the breakout season like Herc was talking about, and everyone thought, okay, that's the step. And now we want to see that next step where he becomes one of the top players in the world.

42:08But everything's a fight. It's always a fight with fans. It's a fight with the referee. It's a fight with rivalry. And sometimes I think just concentrate on playing, being the best teammate you can and the best player you can for your team and put everything else aside. I don't know if he can, but I think he has a chance to get back to the heights. You mentioned, I don't know if he and Mbappe are just in the same place. There's this famous image right now, a heat map of both players and the starting positions that they took. They overlap each other. It's an eclipse of Vinny Jr. and Mbappe. And Mbappe has the freedom to Rome as a 10.

42:49But when you're constantly choosing that space for a player that thrives in isolation, you're no longer isolating. You're attracting defenders. These players don't associate. They're 1v1 specialists. That's what Vinny Jr. is. So if you don't have the 1v1, if it's no longer 1v1, if it's Atletico 1v3 or 4 or 5, he's not going to be effective for you. But then you have to have the unselfishness when you do attract two and three players to find the open players. And it's not then, look, now I'm going to dribble three guys, which happens once every 10, 20 matches. Or try a wild shot. Yeah, or try, yeah.

43:26But it is that idea. But look, you know how you'll create more space for yourself? When you get double and triple teamed, you quickly find your teammates. And then that team can no longer double and triple team you because the other teammates are punishing you. But while you keep dribbling up a hole and three guys close in on you and win the ball and dribble down the other way, guess what? they're going to keep doing it. Right. Well, I don't know what you guys were doing last week, but I got to hang out in New York last week with our producer Beto, but some other big names too, including Marcelo, Luis Figo, Rivaldo.

44:00And as you can tell, there's a lot of questions about Vinny Jr. and Real Madrid. So, you know, I had to ask them about it at the EA Sports FC World Premiere. Have a listen. If you compare the Jose, you know, to the Jose now, He almost seems a little calmer. Do you see a different person? Well, I think through the years you get more relaxed, more chill probably. Even Jose? Yeah, I know. It looks like he's more calm now, but we're just in the beginning. So we have to wait a little bit to see how the season gets more into the middle and, of course, the end part of the season. and if it's not too much polemic cases, that makes you get more excited.

44:48They say that you can't have so many big names and work in harmony, but you played in a Real Madrid that had so many big names and became one of the most successful eras as well. So what do you think about that? What's key? Well, I think everything can happen. Nothing is impossible. like to make together or put together so big names. I think the most important is to each one to know the role that they can have and the importance that they can have too in the team. And in the end, you have to put your talent to the service of the team, the coach and the club. He's talking about Vinny now. He only has one goal in his first six games at Real Madrid.

45:32Do you feel like he only has the one goal in his first six games at Real Madrid now? Jose Mourinho says the goals will come. Exactly. No worries. You think you'll come? And? No worries. No, of course not.

46:06and it will surely be very good in Madrid. It's been a lot of good in the season. It's going to be. Now it's just the Champions League. The Champions League, the League, it's all about now. So you have a lot of time.

46:36much of it was how Carlo Ancelotti was kind of that Vinny Jr. whisperer. Now you have Jose Mourinho. How much of it now is on the manager to get that out of Vinny? Or Casey, do you think what Herc says, he just doesn't have that next level? Only one person can find out if we're going to see that next level again, and that's Vinny. But I always feel that if you can do it one year, you can do it more often. Not maybe to the same standard. You know, I think we've seen that with a few players that will score 30 goals, but then normally the average 20. It's not like you score 30 goals and then you score five.

47:15Yeah. And so I think Vinny has more than enough ability to be a very, very good player for Real Madrid for a long time. Will he become Kylian Mbappe? Will he become, take your pick of some of the, you know, Raul or whoever? No, probably not. Benzema? No, yeah. But yeah. But can he be very, very serviceable for a long time for Real Madrid? Sure. Attitude has to change, though, in my opinion. Champions League winning season, who was the best player on that team? There's two players that come to mind. There's three players that come to mind. One is the goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois, who's always the standard every Champions League that Real Madrid has had.

47:54He'll be up there. But in terms of talent, in terms of that flag bear, the only guy that rivaled Vinny was an up-and-coming Jude Bellingham. Up and coming because he's still a young guy, not at the level he is today. That's it. The other nine that you had helping you win games there was Joselu. Now you've got Kylian Mbappe, who as he referred to himself as the chosen one. He's been referred to as the chosen one from an early age. It's very different being in that type of locker room, thinking you're the alpha when a real alpha walks in. Well, and the real alpha continued to show it. Yeah. And continues to score goals week in and week out.

48:32So, yeah, that's the and it is that's what I meant about ego is can you set that aside and say, I'm not going to be him, but I can still be Kareem Benzema. I can still be very important for this team. All right. Well, like we said, it's an international break. So no La Liga right now. But when we come back, Real Madrid will be hosting Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu. It could be a tricky game for Jose Mourinho. We'll see if they're able to bounce back. That's on October 10th, 3 p.m. Eastern time on ESPN. Rich Eisen here. Running a small business means every hire matters. A bad hire costs time and money, but the right one helps your business grow.

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49:50It's injected under your skin subcutaneously. It means I can inject in my space on my time. It's my treatment, my way. Visit vivgartmyway.com. That's V-Y-V-G-A-R-T myway.com. And talk to your doctor about Vivgart Hattrulo. Brought to you by Argenics. Right, well, I'm sure Barcelona enjoyed what they saw at the weekend in El Derby Madrileño. But here they are up against Sevilla. Barcelona, remember, undefeated so far in La Liga, 19th minute. it's actually Sevilla though that surprised the Catalan Giants as they take the lead yeah I have no idea what Eric Garcia is doing here he gets absolutely skin and Fofana right in front of us at Cuarazzi better open goal yeah all right well they didn't enjoy that lead for very long because just about four minutes later yep it's that man with his weaker foot too Rafinha makes it 1-1 yeah Rafinha makes an excellent run look it's a good pass to Rafinha it's just a little bit slow which Which means he then lets the defender come across.

50:51But what a chop. Yeah. To come back on and open up and then just slide it in. I'd have to walk it off and take a cold drink after that. Into the second half we go now because, yep, it's going to be that man again. Rafinha gets his second. Yeah, Lamin with some nifty footwork. He's going to keep the play alive. And then with his right foot, it's a good ball in. But look at the anticipation from Rafinha, who's not a nine, just plays like a nine. Not a nine, but plays like a nine. Indeed. 69th minute. It's LaMini Amel once again finding Rafinha. And another perfectly timed run, perfectly timed pass, perfectly weighted pass.

51:27And Rafinha in that kind of form. Goalkeeper comes out, Vlacadimus, and then just the nasty chip. Absolutely nasty. With his left foot. With his left foot, indeed. To make it the perfect hat trick. The right foot, the left foot, and the header. He can do it all. Just have a look at the absolute form he is in. 14 goals in eight games. He's the first to score two hat-tricks in the span of four days in La Liga since Antoine Griezmann did it in 2018. 12 goals in the opening seven games of La Liga season. That's the second most this century since a certain man called Cristiano Ronaldo. Pretty good company to be in.

52:08Speaking of great company, Jemmo Saler got to catch up with Rodri after this win. I need to ask you about Rafinha it's impressive, almost unbelievable that he never played as a number 9 you met him on the Premier League of course at Leeds, what do you think about him and this transformation? Well it talks about how this player has developed through the years in his mindset, in his leadership in the way he understands football I think right now he's the guy who's scoring, the guy who's pressing, the guy who's doing kind of everything and is a bit the soul of the team in this way. So, yeah, now we have the break.

52:47We need him back and rest as much as he can.

52:54Rafinha. Herc, what more can we say? What more can we say? Listen, when you think of Rafinha and the story of Barcelona, he was this close to being sold because they needed to make room to register Danny Olmo. And they wanted Nico Williams. They wanted Nico Williams, but they were selling him. Danny Olmo was in. You've got to leave. They couldn't register him, and he stays. And Hansi Flick, in having him stay, gets to see a player who he value and entrusts so much, who's one of the leaders. And Rodri said it. Rodri called him the soul of this team. I liked that a lot more than what I was going to say.

53:29I was going to call him the heartbeat. But he really is the soul of this team. He does everything. He's a guy that was playing on the right, got moved to the left, to allow Laminya Mal to play on the right. And he's a guy that now plays in the center as a starting nine, even though he's not a nine, but makes all the movements like a nine, finishes like a nine. But he's not just a nine. And we can say today he's the best nine in the world, but I don't think that does him justice. Today he's the best player in the world. That's the way he is playing. He's on pace right now. He's one behind Cristiano Ronaldo, 13.

54:03I would argue Cristiano Ronaldo isn't the correct comparison here. he's on pace to do what Messi did in 2012, I believe, the 90-plus goals he scored. That's his pace right now, and he doesn't seem to slow down. Casey called it a perfect hat trick. He's been doing everything perfectly, all the right things. And what's more impressive isn't the goal-scoring powers. It's a little bit of what Rodri mentioned about his leadership and what he does. He seems to do all the correct things. He's the only player I see that Hansi Flick trusts to be his captain in the way where if he wasn't there, he would be running the show.

54:44He seems to be doing all the right things. And I've got no doubt, if healthy, he's going to break records this year. It amazes me that pretty soon we will know who the Ballon d 'Or winner is. And you have Rafinha playing like this, and he didn't make the shortlist of the 30 best players last season. He's been consistently good for both league and Champions League. And today, he's not the best nine in the world. He's the best player in the world. Casey, you spoke so much about the attitude when it comes to Vinny Jr. And I know we were on ESPN FC yesterday with Stevie Nicola. And he said that's what gets him the most.

55:16The fact that nothing Ravinia does is selfish. It's all for the team. When you look at, there's an article, I think, that Hansi Flick said. What were all the pundits talking about Barcelona in the preseason? Yeah. They don't have a number nine. What are they going to do? They don't have a goal scorer. What's going to happen? Julian, Julian. Yeah. Hansi Flick has this conversation. Hey, what about playing number nine? He said it was a 30-second conversation. Yeah, cool. I'll play number nine. Sounds good. Let's go for it. Now, we also said that, and you referred to it, this isn't a normal number nine.

55:53Right. Because this isn't a normal team. The way this team interacts, the unselfishness of this team, the way that somebody goes wide, somebody comes central, somebody drops back. There is no. No, I'm not doing that. No, it's like, oh, you go there. I'll go there. You'll pass it to me. I'll pass it to you. There isn't any of that issue. And because of that, it allows a non number nine. To be able to flourish as a number nine, because it's not. We talked about Jonathan David. I'm going to get my touches here. I'm going to be central. Well, that's not how Barcelona plays. Now, it's not saying Barcelona couldn't play with somebody like that.

56:31But right now, they play in this level of fluidity, which doesn't mean I need this point guy here to pivot, to turn, to play, to run off of. No, it's just you're there. I'll cover. You go there. Yeah. And because of that, they will concede the odd goal because they'll be a little out of shape. It was very much in this game. Yeah. Oh, 100%. But they will outscore you. like no tomorrow. Yeah, well, like I said, just to continue my humble brag, I did get to catch up with even more legends at the EAFC World Premier in New York, and I had to ask them about Rafinha, especially I threw in an Argentinian who was very complimentary, Javier Mascherano, about the Brazilian.

57:13It was a Barcelona guy too, though, so that helps. Let's have a listen. When you look at someone like Lamin Yamal and how he's been able to handle it, what do you think of him as a player? What impresses you the most? Well, I think his talent and his performance, I think his quality, the maturity that he shows in the pitch. But I think when you are so young, you don't think too much. So you just play football. But yeah, I think at his age, he won already so much. and he always tries to make the difference, probably because of his talent, but because he's playing with so much passion too. Well, a very good player right now, of course, is Rafinha.

58:06We're seeing him in very good form right now for Barcelona. Do you think this is the best of Rafinha? I don't know. I think Rafinha is a very good player, and I think with Barcelona and with the national team, he can do more and learn more and enjoy more. So for me, Rafinha is a very good player, but for us, like a player, we have to learn every day. So never stop.

58:47I think it's all to be a gold ball. This season I think it's not between the 30. It's difficult for Rafinha, but it's a good season. And it's going to be a lot of goals. He's a player who has a very good admiration. He's a player who has a lot of quality, who shoots very well, who makes a lot of goals. He's doing a very good job in Barcelona. And you obviously admire Rodri. What do you think makes him a good fit for Barcelona? And what does he need to probably be one of the best there? Yeah, I think it's a great sign for the team because Rodri, he was doing really, really well in the last five, six years in Manchester City, in the national team.

59:37but the style of play Barcelona for him is perfect. So I think he will be very, very successful in the team. In Spanish, speaking of the Barca, they have been successful for years, but they have not had that official front. Do you think they really need it or are they good for Rafinha? Well, I think the Barca has done very good contracts and has managed to build a great team. But the season is also very long, has many competitions. He has made a fichage like Gabriel Jesus, which will surely contribute to many things.

1:00:48Give me Jude Belegham and then Rafinha. Of course, he's Madrileño through and through. But thoughts of guys of what they had to say. Happy Barca men, ex-Barca men. Yeah. Well, yeah, I could see. How could you not be right now? Winning everything. Listen, in terms of Mascherano, talking about Rodri and how important he is, it's interesting to see him talk about a player who played his position but could be nowhere close to the way he played. Two very different positions. Well, same position, two very different profiles of how they played. One was hard-nosed. One was covering ground. One was very utility.

1:01:28One was a destroyer. Yes, destroyer. And the other one is very much maestro anticipation, much more in the vein of a Sergio Busquets. But to see the appreciation he has for a player like Rodri makes you just realize how good Rodri's been throughout these years. Yeah, but to me it was like back in the day when you had a 6 and an 8. the two of them, I think, would have played so well together because they could have shifted, right? Yeah, you defend together, but then the one slides in front of the other. The pistons. But yeah, just very, very impressive. Obviously, they were all very happy with the way things were going for Barcelona.

1:02:03Very impressive. Just like my interviewing, right, guys? Right? Going to give me a pat on the back? A little pat on the back? Just out there just bringing all this content for us. And more La Liga is coming your way after this international break. October 10th is a Saturday, and that's when Barcelona hosts Getap at 12.30 p.m. Eastern time kickoff.

1:02:43apply 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. Ethos 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 E-T-H-O-S dot com slash sports. Application times may vary. Rates may vary. Trust Pilot rating as of June 1st, 2025. Buster Olney here for La Quinta by Wyndham.

1:03:24Cooler weather, changing leaves, and scenic road trips are even better when your best friend comes along. At La Quinta by Wyndham, many locations are pet friendly, so there's no need to leave your furry travel companion behind. Whether you're hiking a new trail, exploring a charming small town, or simply enjoying a relaxing fall weekend, everyone in the family is welcome and earn win and rewards points with every qualified stay. Tonight La Quinta, tomorrow you shine. Book your next trip at LaQuinta.com. Terms and conditions apply. From the English Premier League to Germany to Spain, the four World Cups, Keller became one of the most dominant keepers in the game.

1:04:03The way he played was unreal. You just saw this aura of confidence. What a save by Casey Keller. It was impossible to ever stop fighting, but you can get beat down enough where you finally quit. The one piece that I kind of left out, I was actually fighting for my life. Now the coaches knew, none of my teammates knew, and I didn't know how much longer I could go. You don't want that to be the end. This isn't just your career ending. This is potentially your life ending.

1:04:54Right. The Greatest Save, a documentary that features our one and only Casey Keller, is live now, streaming live now over on the ESPN app. If you haven't watched it yet, definitely watch it. Casey, just tell us a quick synopsis of what we can expect from it, because it was definitely a very challenging time in your life. Yeah, to say the least. But it's not a long documentary. It's only about a little over 30 minutes. But it basically kind of starts at the starting point, kind of in Washington, choosing to be this player to go to Europe. and being one of the first players to establish myself at Millwall, having the opportunity to come home to the Seattle Sounders to finish my career, thinking that what could go better?

1:05:3919 years, 17 in Europe, back home, the Sounders flying. And then as I was in the process of signing a year's extension, I was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Um, didn't know if I was going to be able to play that final year. Didn't know if I was going to be able to finish that final year. Um, was able to go, uh, several years, eight years. In fact, after the diagnosis, before I had to start, um, treatment. And then basically the treatment just did not take. And it was treatment after treatment after treatment. And then finally, on my 13th different cancer treatment, it was the one that saved me.

1:06:25And that's kind of where the documentary finishes is with the treatment and then the relationship I have now with Bristol-Myers Squibb to talk about CAR-T cell therapy and the drug Brionzi that got me to this point. You mentioned in the quick little preview that we saw that nobody knew, not your teammates. Yeah, I didn't. Look, my parents didn't know. My kids didn't know. You didn't want to tell them. Why didn't you, if memory serves me correct, you weren't MLS All-Star that year. I was Best 11, All-Star, yeah. And nobody knew you were? Nobody knew. One of the reasons was I didn't know when I had to have treatment.

1:07:08So it would have, Casey, are you okay? What I didn't want to do is play my 20th season as a pro and have everything be asterisked. Well, you know, he got diagnosed with cancer, right? No, I wanted to go out on my terms and play with people thinking that's Casey Keller, not that's Casey Keller who has cancer. And so and then the hard part was is then as it kind of continued and I went year after year, I also, my parents, my kids were able to go eight years without worrying about their dad. Eight years. Worrying about their, yeah, I was diagnosed in 2010. I didn't have treatment until 2018. Because I was diagnosed, so basically what happened was I had a hip problem.

1:07:57And at the end of my second season before I re-signed, and I didn't want to re-sign a contract and spend that 20th season as a pro on the treatment table. So I went in for an MRI. I said to the club, let me get an MRI first. And, you know, I talked to the club doc. Club doc says, your hip looks fine. You know, looks like a, I was almost at my 41st birthday. He said, almost a 41-year-old who had 700 plus games under his belt. you know but we saw something else and we need you to come into the hospital to get a biopsy and that was when it was confirmed case for anybody who watches this documentary that maybe isn't a soccer fan what's the one thing you want them to take away from this documentary and you don't have to be a soccer fan to watch this documentary it doesn't it there's some fun stuff that you'll see with the craziness with mill wall and all this kind of stuff but really what it comes down to is there's always something on the horizon.

1:08:57There's always something happening and give yourself the opportunity to be the advocate for yourself. Talk to your doctors, question your doctors. If you're not happy with what you're hearing, find a different doctor, talk to a different doctor. They might be telling you the truth. They might not or not the truth. That's not fair, but just continue to be your own biggest advocate. And the fact that we all know somebody that's going through this, has gone through this, a friend, a family, a somebody. Keep asking questions and keep seeing what else is available. Yeah, well, we're definitely happy that you did make that greatest save.

1:09:35Thank you. Well, I didn't make it. It was teamwork, wasn't it? I helped. It was teamwork indeed. You kept fighting. Well, The Greatest Save featuring our one and only Casey Keller is out now on the ESPN app as well as Disney+. Definitely want to check it out. And don't forget that the Women's Champions League is officially back. A whole host of games kicking off on Wednesday on ESPN Deportes.

1:10:04As promised, time to dive into some Liga MX action because the Estadio Azteca was the place to be. over 80 ,000 packing into the iconic stadium. 80 ,000? To see over 80 ,000. Wow. I think it was about 85 to see El Clásico Nacional and 32 minutes in. Chivas take the lead over Club America. El Cotorro with a beautiful finish here. This is right back to left back. It's a beautiful finish. And Rodolfo Cota can only see it go by. Not an easy finish. And talk about trying to get some momentum right before the break. That's exactly what Chivas do as they go 2-0 up before the halftime whistle. Yeah, man, you know, there's a celebration like Bufo Bautista.

1:10:44He's not Bufo Bautista. Brilliant save, but right there, open net, never going to miss. All right, so you're going 2-0 up. Smooth sailing. How about this for a golazo from Miguel Borja? Miguel Borja, this still looks like it's not a great cross. Miguel Borja doesn't care out of nothing. This is a golazo. Busca's worthy. Goal of the year. And guess what? America's back in this. They've got no business being in here. They're back. Oh, he knows it. Caliente. Herky could do that, right? I don't know. 74th minute, though. Yeah, give Henry Martin a lot of credit here. This is terrible play from Chivas trying to play out of the back.

1:11:24Henry Martin, he can offer goal right here. He keeps his composure and finds Borja one of the easier goals Borja will ever score. Five minutes. Everything changed. How many? Borja says two. Borja says two on the match would end. 2-2. Let's have a look at some of the notes from El Clásico Nacional. Miguel Borja, that is the name everyone's been talking about after that golazo. He's the only America player with two-plus goals off of the bench in a Clásico Nacional since at least the apertura back in 2012. And Club America, an eight-game winless run against Chivas, Cruz Azul, and Pumas. It's its worst such streak since 2004.

1:12:02But Chivas, we know they've been looking good. We're going to talk more about it because they are unbeaten in their last eight Clásicos Nacionales in Liga Mexicans when they have scored first. Well, they scored first and they scored again and they were leading 2-0 and it was going all good, Herc. But then Club America fought their way back. So who should feel worse after this? Chivas. Chivas should feel worse because this was a game where Club America didn't belong. They were being battered on the field. There was one team out there, one team playing or trying to play that good football, and that was Chivas.

1:12:372-0 is the scoreline, and out of nowhere, a goal from the heavens. A golazo from Borja. And Borja scores this golazo, and I kid you not, I was dozing out because this game was going on like a 1.30 a.m. in the morning, and this woke me up. I said, wait a second. What did I just witness? And I'm not the only one who felt this way. I felt shell-shocked, sit in my bed, at home, 1.30 a.m. in the morning. I could only imagine how Gabriel Milito and the Chivas players felt. And then when this goal came in about four and a half, five minutes later of their own doing, it's 2-2. You started thinking to yourself, oh, my God.

1:13:17Not only did they blow this, they could blow right now the game. A Club America team that not only in this game had no business, but hadn't won in the last three games. were all of a sudden for the first time in this losing streak. And one could argue, and I am one of those, that the regular season they had started wasn't against the toughest competition and that the tougher competition would present difficulties. And then we're going to see the real Club America. And they went the last three games, the real Club America, not being able to win. And Guillermo Almada and his system not being able to pull off what they did before.

1:13:54And here comes Chivas, who had been unbeaten the last seven games against America. and you're thinking to yourself, this is going to be easy. And they were making it look easy until that goal. This is why you should feel worse if you're a Chivas fan. Gabriel Milito, the head manager, the coach, was asked about this. You let points escape, and he got defensive with the reporter. What do you mean escape? You've got to give respect to the opponent. I am down for giving respect to the opponent. But it is what it is. If you're Chivas right now, this doesn't feel like a win. because it doesn't feel like a draw.

1:14:29It feels like a loss. It feels like you left something bigger on the board, and they know that. But if you're Club America, it's not rosy. You can't just say, look what we did. Great Clasico. We didn't lose. Look at the character. Look at the heart. You've got to take into account what happened. 70 minutes, you were outplayed. And this wasn't the only game. You played four games, the last four games. You've not been able to win. And in those four games, you let in eight goals. That's two per game. Guillermo Almada is defensively sound. He's pragmatic. He presses. He prioritizes these things. This is not the Guillermo Almada teams of old.

1:15:07This was, for Club America, something to build on. But if you look at it as a whole, you've got to be thinking to yourself, for Club America, something's going on here. I wonder how much the Miguel Borja shirts are going for right now. Maybe we could ask Hermosio Pedrosa to get me one. I have never felt that way. It's been quite a while since I've watched something. And the goals made me come up, lift me up. I was in bed. It woke me up. 1.30 a.m. I'm thinking to myself, why is this game on so late? I'm an old man now. And this game woke me up. This goal. And when they asked Melito about this, he referenced the goal.

1:15:42This is the type of goal that shell shocks you. It's going to be a Puskas nominee. I've got no doubts. Absolutely. We can watch it on repeat. But now if you're looking at Chivas, and as we saw the stats, I mean, no panic stations just yet. If you do look at their unbeaten streak, Herc. are they still just the best team now in the competition? They're the team that's playing the best in the competition. They're well-coached. Gabriel Milito has this team playing in a way that I've not seen in quite some time. And you've got to give Chivas credit because Chivas is a team that can't go out and spend big dollars on a foreign player.

1:16:11They've got to produce. And they've got in this player, Santiago Sandoval, a homegrown academy player who's scoring and doing big things. So much so that he's getting called up to the Mexican Nation. Cotorro on the left-hand side. They've got players they've brought up the right way. And I tell you what, they produce players every season. Last season, it was Brian Gutierrez, Efrain Alvarez. Efrain Alvarez comes on as a sub in this game. Brian Gutierrez doesn't even get on the field in this game. It feels like Milito is challenging players in a way that they've not been challenged before. And you've got to be at your best to get on the field.

1:16:46And that competition you can see day in, day out, week in, week out in Liga MX. I don't know if they're the best team, if they'll be the best team at the end. What I can tell you right now is there is no team playing as good football as Chivas. All right. Well, no panic stations then yet if you are Chivas. But let's have a look at some more action from Liga MX because there was plenty going on. Atlas hosting Pumas in this one. We pick things up in the 23rd minute for a corner for Pumas. And here's where they'll take the lead. What is that? Is it the back-heal goal? Yay! What is it? He just scorpion kicks the goal?

1:17:23Yeah, scorpion kick. We'll love that. Come on. That's from Moreno range, but Gomez style. That's a little far out from Moreno range. Respectfully, respectfully. But you'll take that all day, every day, and he loves it. Camilo Vargas does not like that at all. No, he does not. Right before halftime, now Luis Estevez hits it the first time, and it goes into the back of the net. Atlas get their equalizer. Yeah, it's a rebound back at the top of the box, because Steves gets it on the half bounce, and he finishes it off really well. Nothing much Kehler Unabas can do from that distance, but see it go in.

1:17:55Yeah, he's complaining. All the goalies are complaining. We should have gotten Casey in to defend him or not. Oh, oh, oh! Carrasquilla, direct red. Oh, no. This is just a... Yeah, studs up to the knee. It's a nasty challenge. Oh, that's not what you want to see. Carrasquilla, one of the more important players of Unab. He gone. All right, well, we saw a draw in El Clásico Nacional, and we see a draw right here. 1-1 as they share the spoils. Let's go over now to Rayados against Cruz Azul. Seven minutes in. Oh, my days. Shackostrophic moments lead to Rayados' first goal. Okay, hear me out for a second.

1:18:31This is a terrible ball to Kevin Mier. I'm hearing a lot of hate for Kevin Mier in this play. This is little to do with the goalkeeper. And what are you doing playing this ball back that way to your goalkeeper? It's not all on him. It's not a Kevin Mier special. This is a doozy. Wow, I love that. I love you sticking up for goalkeepers, Herc. Love that. Just a couple of minutes later, Fernandez played through, but his shot saved. Yeah, Toro Fernandez with a good opportunity. Aldrada stays big. And then they got a chance. Uh-uh. Not going to happen. Andrada, again, he was good all game long. Luca Romero can't get the best of it right there.

1:19:05That was it. In the end, Raelos, hold on for the narrow 1-0 win. Let's go on now to Toluca hosting Santos. 25th minute from a corner. Federico Vines heading home here as Toluca take the lead. Yeah, he's been in impressive form for Toluca. He's already doubled his output from Ralo Olviedo in La Liga last season. He had more red cards than goals there. Someone asked him. 43rd minute, Paulinho will make it 2-0 with a nice little cheeky finish there. Yeah, they are a different team when Paulinho is on the field. He recovered from his injury. This is a slick left-footed taquito, if you will. Alexis Vega didn't get called up.

1:19:43Good assist here, but what a goal. They missed a high five, though, in the celebration. Anyways, right before halftime, Santos would get one back. I don't know. You tell me if there's a slight push here. Tell me if you think there's a slight push. Watch the hand on the back to the defender. You got to get the other one. Is there another angle? No angle. No angle. We'll let it go. Oh, no! Oh, my days. Everardo Lopez. He just got called up to the Mexican national team. You cannot do this as a young center back. No need. He catches him on the heel. He gone. He gone, indeed. because no card was shown originally, but VAR had to review that, and it's a straight card for Lopez Toluca down to 10 men.

1:20:2286-minute Kevin Palacios, plenty of time there at the top of the box, and he smacks in an equalizer. Santos hasn't won all year, and now they got a chance to get a draw in one of the most complicated venues in all Liga, but wait, it won't be just a draw, Alexis. No, Aguirre takes the ball here, away, grabs the winner, you would think, for Santos. But VAR would bring the goal back because of a handball in the lead-up. And the right call. So if you're Toluca, you've already got a warning shot. You've already got something. So you just got to be good. Don't give anything stupid up. And take your draw.

1:20:57Take it. Go home. Point in hand. All right. Heading into the fifth minute of stoppage time now. Villalba grabs the winner. And Santos come back from the death to win this one. I don't know if we can put that one on the goalkeeper. I want to put it on the goalkeeper. That went crying in. Oh, celebrations indeed for Santos. All right, but still, Toluca, if you have a look at the standings at the top, ahead of Chivas de Guadalajara and Club America hanging on to that third spot.

1:21:33Let's head back, stay sorry, shall we? Inter Miami hosting San Diego FC. Lionel Messi, of course, involved in this one. 12 minutes in, a through ball played to Anders. It seemed a little easier than it should be. You've got to mark somebody at midfield. Falcone, Anders Dryers, and then a little cheeky chip. Oh, no. Messi can't believe it. He said, wow, did that just happen? Well, when you need a job done. Never seen that before. Yeah, never seen that one before. Listen, I know it's a complicated ball, but CJ Santos, the goalkeeper's No, no. Rule number one, you always have to play the ball first, and then if somebody wins the header, they win the header.

1:22:14Correct. So we're in agreement. I'm the keeper. 74th minute now. Robert Lewandowski's favorite, Rodrigo De Paz. This is a slick finish. Good ball, and look, the tight angle right there, and just whips the leg around that ball. Oh, beautiful goal. Inter Miami enjoying a lead up to this point, But the 82nd minute, San Diego would come roaring back, and yep, it's that man again. Well, you kind of didn't learn from midfield earlier that you just got to maybe not get caught square and disjointed and let somebody run in behind you so easily. One pass beats four guys. No. Leo Messi shooting from the edge of the box, but it is saved.

1:22:59It's a good save by Cigero Santos. The crazy thing is San Diego had one more chance and they almost pulled it off. All right. In the end, it's a 2-2 draw. And in case you missed it, and also speaking of Inter Miami, FIFA has announced that its new stadium will be hosting the final round of the Women's Champions Cup later on in January next year. Now, as far as CONCACAF representation, Mexico's Club America will be a part of it. And Barcelona, yes, the Barcelona, has qualified. as the UEFA representative. Well, there'll be plenty more talk about that on the next edition of Football W. It's coming your way on Tuesday, 8.30 p.m.

1:23:39Eastern Time on Disney +, as well as the ESPN app.

1:23:45All right, but that's going to do it now for this edition of Football Americas because it's past Herc's bedtime. He's been complaining about his back. He's saying he's being, and being an old man. And being an old man. He called himself old, his back. Every time he sits up, we're going to try to call a chiropractor for Herc. Any of you a chiropractor, hit him up. But he wants free business. Free business. Please. We'll see you guys again on Thursday, where we're going to look ahead to the USA's first friendly of this international break.

1:24:31Buster Olney here for La Quinta by Wyndham. Cooler weather, changing leaves, and scenic road trips are even better when your best friend comes along. At La Quinta by Wyndham, many locations are pet-friendly, so there's no need to leave your furry travel companion behind. Whether you're hiking a new trail, exploring a charming small town, or simply enjoying a relaxing fall weekend, everyone in the family is welcome and 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.