10-21-25 Lance with Chris Albright

Still Amander takes a left footage shot.

That's seek.

He's been the best on the pitch off season and the next clamation point on the regular season for the Brazilian All right, let's talk MLS Cup playoffs. Buckle up, it'll be hell is Real in a best of three series. Two seed FC Cincinnati will take on seven seed Columbus. The Orange and Blue will have home field advantage, hosting game one next Monday, kickoff schedule for six forty five from TQL Stadium. For more on that, let's go straight to the source, the general manager of the Orange and Blue.

I'm doing great, Lass, Thanks for having me on.

It is great hearing your voice. Congratulations you guys finish off the regular season with a three goal victory on Saturday, a five game unbeaten streak. How do you feel this club is positioned heading into the playoffs?

Position well, I think we have positive momentum, really strong season to finish only a point out of the Supporter Shield, you know, one of the major trophies in our sport. Really proud of the job the players and the coaches did to position us to you know, potentially only have to go to Philadelphia if we have to leave TQL Stadium on the road time LS Cup. So great opportunity, ahead of the ahead of the club, and I think everybody understands that.

Fourth straight playoff appearance, twenty wins for the second time in three years. Man the journey included injuries, in additions and international call ups and more injuries. This club navigated a lot. How big was the depth you built up along the way.

I got a great team behind me when we talk about player identification, scouting, recruiting. This is the deepest group I think we've had since I've been here in Cincinnati, one of the deeper groups that I've you know, my probably over twenty five years in the league have been around. So I think we were ready to be able to

Now, Chris to back all of that, what does it mean to have an ownership group that's been all in in pursuit of an MLS Cup?

Oh, it's it's unique, is what I will tell you.

It doesn't exist in a lot of places in MLS. You know, Carl Lindner and the group of owners have given us incredible support resources to be able to go out and and build a perennial winner. You know, obviously we have one trophy under our belt, but are looking to capture MLS Cup and again the local support from from this ownership group is unlike any other in MLS.

We saw Brenner's brilliance on display again Saturday. I think his fourth goal in six games, six matches on loan back here, is it safe to say he's fit in quite nicely in his return.

He's fitting great.

You know, look at he's He's matured a lot in his time away. I think he's got better as a player. He clearly under the system and the things that the coaching staff had asked of him in the past. So I think that was a really nice transition for him to kind of tactically be clued.

In right away and know how we want to play.

And he's a special player, and he's scored some important goals to put us in at the two seed, and we'll expect more of that in the playoffs.

Speaking of a special player, Evander sets a club record with his twenty second goal across all competition on Saturday. Man, old man, what a season he turned in for you guys.

He's he's been incredible. You know, his to be able to acclimate that quickly to a group obviously replace you know, a big player in Lucho Acosta. He has this ability to make the game slow down when everything around him is going a million miles an hour.

He looks like he's playing a different sport. His ability to.

To strike a ball and score goals set up other players.

It's really remarkable.

If you haven't if you're a neutral and you haven't been tql to come see a special player.

He certainly wanted to come see boy.

And what a Moment's Saturday Night for the Cincinnati kid. Nick Haglan, who suffered a really scary injury early in the season in May, hospitalized ten days in Atlanta. I talked with him during that process on the show. Was amazing. It was so scary to hear what he went through, made it back, played, scored Saturday Night. What a moment for him in this club.

That's great.

Nick is so deserving of all the success accolades, the way that people talk about him. He's an integral part to the culture, the kind of heartbeat of the club, A player that when I first talked to when I arrived about four years ago, I knew he was going to be a part of our plans. And he really is an extension of myself, the coaches down there in the locker room, you know, helps helps get across exactly

Chris, I don't want to leave out for someone who has had his finger on the pulse of everything this club has been through. I don't want to leave out Pat Noon and tell me about the job Pat has done in navigating all that's come his way this season.

Yeah. Look, he's a former Coach of the Year for a reason.

I mean, there's not you know, many coaches that are in you know, in Pat's you know, at Pat's level as far as to be able to lead men and tactically do the right things on the field.

And he's going to continue to be.

Challenged with with a really big matchup against against Columbus over the next hopefully too, but perhaps three games.

But yeah, of course, can't.

Say enough about the job that Pat and staff have done to position us with a real big opportunity.

Your goalkeeper, Roman Cellentito made his return from a leg injury suffered in early September, and US national team camp produced a clean sheet Saturday night. You've got depth again at that spot. How do you proceed at that spot versus Columbus.

Yeah, look, Romans, Evan did an incredible job while Roman was out. Roman was, like you said, picked up a knock in national team camp.

It was an honor for him to get called up. Unfortunate he got the injury. Uh. Roman's been our number one for a long time.

But but we're certainly confident in the job that Evan can do.

Uh.

We have a young goalkeeper named Paul Walters, a who's a Cincinnati kid. So I think we have an abundance of talent and depth at that position, and anybody that's asked to do the job, I think we'll be ready.

Let's look ahead to Monday. Here we go again, FC Cincinnati and Columbus Crew. When I say FC Cincinnati and Columbus crew, what do you think of.

A lot of anxiety for myself sitting up in the booth now it's uh. Look, I think it's great for our league.

The rivalry that you know pre dated myself arriving, but that has only grown with the success of both clubs. I think it's a wonderful product for MLS. And if you are a you know, just a sports fan and haven't been out to TQL Monday night, that our stadium experience in in game is as good as there is in any sport. I'm a fan of all of them.

We certainly are going to.

Need it, and you should really come be a part of something special, no doubt.

No doubt.

Very well said Game one Monday TQ tickets available now Fccincinnati dot com slash tickets. Hey, I know you're incredibly busy getting ready for this. I really appreciate you making time. I enjoyed the conversation and best.

Of luck, Lance. Thanks a lot.

I would just say one more thing six thirty tomorrow night at Madtree Parks and Rec and Blue Ash. We're gonna be getting fans together, players myself, giveaways, prizes a little like Playoff launch party. So encourage everyone six thirty tomorrow night, Mada Tree Parks and Rec.

To kind of fit. This week started on the right foot.

Love it, love it not bad at all. Hey, thanks again Chris, and best of luck.

Thanks last all right, take care there you go.

Chris Albright, general manager of the architect behind It and the journey. I mean you talk about a thirty for thirty and what they've been through from injuries to the additions and then the international call ups, mass number of call ups and then more injuries and navigating through all of it to the number two seed and hosting the Columbus Crew after clinching a fourth consecutive playoff appearance and