Now that he is properly hydrated hanging out with us from Colony Square. What is up, my friend?
Uh? Not too much, man.
Uh A nice fun week that hopefully we can move quickly on from the weekend because Uh, a little fella, I guess I'm actually accidentally.
Wearing a little like inner Miami colors.
That's that's just should you have alluded to that on the air?
Uh?
Why not?
Okayy shirt? And that's the thing is it is? It is just a shirt, sir, there is I don't I believe that there is no immediate bearing to the team that is coming here in the midweek Messi and friends
and MESSI got to play on the weekend. But uh, I know that going into the match that obviously you're looking at a team in Nashville that hadn't been scoring goals, has been a team in transition under BJ Callahan, and they get to jump on it Lane United early on, you know, only a handful of minutes in, and so then you're you're fighting uphill from that moment. Rob Valentino after the match, and I do have some sound that I'll probably end up playing somewhere here in the show.
Rob Valentino said it was unacceptable, and you got a team that was off for two weeks and they come out just flat and it showed.
Yeah.
I mean you could tell from Rob Valentino's post game that this performance completely caught him off guard.
And I think sometimes in.
Training you might be able to get the feeling that, like, man like, it doesn't feel like these guys are gonna bring it on the weekend, And it sounded from his comments that he didn't have any knowledge of that. He didn't get that feeling at all. He expected a better performance, and look, you would always expect a better performance, but I think sometimes you can kind of see it coming. This one certainly blindsided him, and you could tell by the way he was reacting in the post game discussion
that he was incredibly frustrated. Kinda alluded to maybe not having an answer in regards to the performance. Promised it wouldn't happen again, but kind of kind of walked back that promise, because like, if you feel like everything's trending in the right way and then they show up on Saturday night at home to a winnable game and then do throw that performance out there, Like, why would you be able to confirm that it'll never look like that again.
And this was one that it sounded without putting anyone's name directly out there. He wanted to put directly on the players, and to an extent, he did without doing it directly, and that's a cause for concern in regards to the playoff chase. I mean, this was probably your best case scenario for three points. Right, You're fully rested, you're at home. This is the worst team in the Eastern Conference, at least at that time according to the
table Nashville was. Everything was working in your favor, and then you throw out a performance that is essentially wholly non competitive, and from the start too. I mean, you give up a goal in the fifth minute and it's pretty much over from there. You didn't rebound, right, You didn't respond to that goal. And that's the thing we at least have seen in some instances where Landy United has gone down early. I think we have sometimes seen a response. We just didn't get that today or excuse me,
on Saturday. And quite frankly, all the hopes of Alexi Moronchuk being an impactful player, and I'm not gonna say that he's not. It's a one game sample size. Right we're not calling for the heads of Raheem Morris. We're not gonna call for the head of Alexi Moroonchuk right now. But it was a very disappointing home debut for Mornchuk because in LA against the Galaxy, when he was on the road, he made his first career start for Landy United.
It did not lead directly to a goal, but I thought you saw how dangerous he could be and the vision that he's working with in some of the things. And I do want to make this point because a lot of people are talking about, oh, he had all these trainings and the chemistry with teammates is going to be so much better than it was with the squad out in LA. Just remember it's not just about learning his teammates. It's also about learning this league and learning
the opponents. And you have to go through it and see how each team defends different aspects of what you're trying to do, and so the learning curve may be a little bit steeper for Moron Chuck. Then we maybe want to give credit to or maybe initially thought because he's a different style of player than a guy like Almana. It doesn't just come in the realm of takeover because I can beat this man one on one. It manifests itself differently. But it was a disappointing home debut for
Alexi Moronchuk. Hopefully he can be a little bit more impactful in the midweek game. But now you've got some real issues because Ronald Hernandez is potentially dealing with an ankle injury he picked up in training.
Pedro Amador got crushed.
And it might be sent into concussion protocol or who knows if he's gonna be ready, and so are You are short staffed a little bit on that back end now, which anytime you're going against Miami probably not the place you'd want to be a little bit short staffed. But the moral of the story here, John, is incredibly frustrating to see this performance because you had the potential of making a move in the standings on the table and if it was gonna happen, it felt like it was gonna happen in this game.
It didn't. There's still some time, not a lot of it, but there's still some time.
But now you've got to find a couple of wins, and at least one of them is probably gonna have to come on the road.
One of them is probably gonna have to.
Come against teams that are higher than you in the table, and so you've you've got to find your way up another spot in the standings, and it would have been a lot easier to do that with three points against Nashville.
Yeah, the numbers on Alexi Mironchuk, according to our friends at the Sofa, Scory funched a six point nine forty nine touches in ninety minutes, thirty one to thirty seven, passing eighty four percent, had the one cross, had two long balls that were successful, one shot on target, one off, was two for two on his duels, fouled once, had a clearance, and had a tackle on the day. So that's what you're staring at from Alexi midon Chuk. You
mentioned the possible injuries. Obviously, Shonda's dealing with something that he's been dealing with for quite some time with the foot. I'm still trying to figure out, since you mentioned Pedro Amador, how Sam Surage did not get a card of any color when he cleared Amador out. When you look at the replay and you see Surage climb the ladder and take his and I know it was his right but
I'm left handed. Where he takes his forearm and basically cleans Amador out on the climb up, and Amador ends up landing face first on the turf because of getting cleaned out by surage. No card, no foul, no nothing, And Pemador was down for quite some time and obviously they had to treat a head injury and you end up with a concussion sub I believe at the time
as he was getting checked out. So yeah, there was this was, you know, the opportunity I think Capital t capital O when it came to trying to get north of the playoff bar.
And you would have been in.
You would have been within touching distance of possibly even the seven depending on what Orlando would have done. But right now, as you say, it is still outside looking in. It is eight wins on the board and DC is two points ahead of you. But once again, you're getting chased by the uh, the the neighbor's dog if you're the postman, because you got all the neighbors dogs that
are chasing after you when you hit the neighborhood. Because Atlanta's at thirty one, Philadelphia is at thirty identical record to Montreal, well ahead of Montreal, and this is what may just absolutely wipe Montreal off the map with any kind of consideration, a goal difference of minus twenty two and Atlanta's got that coming to town in the next month. But Montreal at thirty points and seven wins, Chicago's seven wins and twenty nine points, and they are one goal
ahead of Nashville in goal difference. And then really New England is still not out of it completely and totally, but they've got twenty seven points in twenty seven matches. So dogs are barking behind you. You're trying to take care of business with six to go, and you're trying to be two points better than DC to hop into the playoff picture. That's what you're staring at right now.
Well, the good news about that, in what's right behind you is that you play both of those teams. You play Philadelphia, you play Montreal quite frankly, and we came close to calling Nashville a must win. I think those two are must win. I mean, you're just not gonna hold them off if they take the points from you.
And it's an opportunity against teams that are theoretically worse than you at least based on the current standings, to take all three and including one of those being at home that game against Montreal, So those become integral, and then you got to find a way to either beat Miami Red Bulls either here or there, Orlando City in the final game of the season. And so there's still opportunity.
I mean, there's still three, maybe four wins potentially out there, but you just cannot look the way you did on Saturday night, lifeless and listless. You weren't up for the game from the start, and that's the biggest issue. And I would imagine Wednesday, with Miami and the top team in the Eastern Conference, you'll be up for it and
you'll have a little bit better performance. I would think whether or not Messi comes and plays the crowd, you know who had bought tickets hoping he would be, we'll be there in full four and hopefully can energize the squad. But it's still there. That's what's kind of crazy is you got another weekend of results that really didn't kill you in terms of what's ahead of you, and it's there. I mean, you've got the games that you need right there.
You've also got a game in hand on some of the teams that are directly above you in that eight and nine spot, so you're gonna have to put use of that game in hand and deal with it on that front. But yeah, it's concerning, because let's go back beyond just Nashville, right You go back to that Charlotte game, and you you put in a pretty strong effort over the course of ninety minutes in Charlotte, and you feel
like you're trending up. You feel like you've got something going there, and and then you come back home after rest and recovery and a game plan kind of gearing up for this final seven game push. Now six games and it just wasn't there. And now the flip side is you've also seen Charlotte and they had another poor performance this weekend, and you start to ask yourself how much of that was even Atlanta trending upwards or is it just a massive.
Downward turn for Charlotte.
And I think you can make your arguments for the downward turn from Charlotte, and then you combine that with what we saw from Atlanta United. It does give you some concern, But you've got to find a way to pick up some points in games that maybe you don't expect to and that includes Wednesday against Miami. I mean, at this point, you'll take anything. Even a draw at home would be huge based on the rest of the schedule.
And again it makes that Philly and that Montreal game, I mean, those are unless you plan on beating Red Bulls twice and taking it to Miami on Wednesday, Like, those two games are just absolutely must wins, like we're not gonna make We're not gonna kind of gloss over it as oh, you know, the season's not over if you don't win. No, Like those are must win games, like if you're gonna jump into that spot, those are must win games.
But the performance is certainly concerning.
And back to how we opened the discussion, like Rob Valentino is not gonna have very much patience in this one.
The dude dropped an F bomb well in the post game press conference. I don't know how well that went over on We try not.
To bring too much attention to that because it was aired live on on the air, but yeah, the frustration was very clear. I mean, he blew off Jarrett for what was supposed to be a post game discussion down on the field, I would also blow off Jarrett. If we're gonna be honest, Yeah, I.
Blow him off as much as possible the press box.
I certainly would blow him off in the in the field, but no, I mean, look, he was working his way through it, incredibly frustrated, trying to gather his thoughts, and something tells me it's not going to be a fun week or half week of sessions leading up to this game on Wednesday, And all I can say is, and
we talked about this. Mike Connie was the one to pointed out really in the full time report, if there's anything you're holding on to the one thing that Atlanti because I said, the one that Atlanta and iited just hasn't found consistency. They've never really stretched out the rags and hit a rhythm. And Mike Conti said, actually, they have found consistency in one thing, and that is playing to the level of their opponent, whether it be up
or unfortunately, whether it be down. And we've seen them compete with some of the best teams in the MLS. We've also seen them drop points to some of the worst teams in the MLS and so if there is like a big glimmer of hope and it's like maybe once again they can rise to the level of competition and play on evil even terms with Miami or potentially
find a winner. And so that's kind of what I'm holding onto at this point, because there's nothing from the performance on Saturday that leads me to believe that they're gonna be able to beat Miami on Wednesday. But again, it just hasn't seemed like one performance to the next, you've been able to carry over momentum, and that includes momentum that has gone backwards. Like it doesn't necessarily mean they're gonna have a stinker on Wednesday.
They might, but just because they didn't look good Saturday, it does not.
Over the course of this season has not meant that they're not gonna bring it on Wednesday. And so hope springs, eternal optimism remains, and we'll see what they've got for the little guy if he's brave enough to step out onto the pitch.
Well, let's see Abe Gordon nineteen nine in the game. At Abe Gordon at nineteen nine in the game. On the two hundred and eighty character app, I was looking at the minutes played from the individuals of our resident
Philadelphia Union fan. Rich Ransom is in the timeline this morning and he mentions that with Messi and friends getting the duke, Messi played ninety minutes, Luis Suarez played ninety minutes, Diego Gomez, who's heading to Brighton at some point, played eighty one minutes, where Dondo in the midfield played eighty nine minutes. So you're getting a lot of folks that
logged a lot of minutes. Busquettes played ninety. Julian Gressel, as I'm scanning, he also played eighty one minutes, so you're front seven that you're used to seeing, and the Gulf Stream Galacticos Jeordi Alba played ninety minutes. They all went the distance or most of it getting ready for this particular matchup that we have here in the midweek. So the palace intrigue does exist as to how many minutes if any, those individuals will play in the midweek going up against Atlanta United.
Yeah, the thing that's been kind of crazy about my is it doesn't seem to matter who's in there, like like they have produced and obviously Messi returned this past week. Uh oh, look who's joining uh Messi. Messi returned this past week. Now, he obviously didn't have to knock the rust off. It didn't take long. Two goals and an assist for him. But even without him in the time that he's missed an injury, like, they've just been cruising along.
They've already clinched a playoff spot. They're still cruising along and uh, it just hasn't seemed to matter that. That's what's honestly been most impressive is everyone who when Messi came to the MLS. Everyone was like, all right, we know he's not gonna play forty five games this season or whatever the number may be. How many points do they drop in the games that he's not playing. It has not been much. Uh, they are just cruising along. I mean, what was it a three to one victory?
I think over this past weekend, they're still scoring goals without him, and it's not just him at Jordi Alba and Suarez and SCT like they're they're still doing damage even when he's not the maestro on the field there. So it's really really impressive to see what they've been able to do without Messi, and then quite frankly a little bit scary to see what they can do with him.
But again, this is a Landy United squad that has already dealt with them one time this season and come out victorious and one of the more surprising results in the moment, And so hopefully they can they can rise to that occasion and do it again on Wednesday.
Jared, I will give you the last question for Abe Gordon and his weekly Monday visit. Except when the Falcons come to come to town.
Oh god, without knowing what you guys have discussed already.
Oh that's good.
Yeah, I know, that's always the best. The disappointment not was standing from that from Saturday night. Uh, Rob Valentino's words, clearly doing a lot of lifting. What change you look at it? What changes would you make going into Wednesday night? And would he even be Hey, I'm for me personally it is a I need people who are willing to fight, and I didn't always get that sense Saturday night. So any changes you're making for Wednesday, Well, there's a.
Couple things with the limitations I expect limitations on Hernandez and Amador.
Potentially I would say likely.
Out I would go back to the whether you want to call it three center backs or five in the back, whatever you did, this is what you did the first time in Miami. Maybe not by choice now but by personnel. I think you have to go back to that. Insert Noah cob back into the lineup and Brooks Lennon and I don't know what you do on the left side right now, if we're gonna be honest at yeah, well, but I thought.
He was maybe banged up.
I thought he maybe had some some limitations too, So we'll see what's going on there again with I know, in theory you could have maybe pulled most Scare back there, but if Sean by Silva is limited, I mean, it's a mess. It's kind of a maybe maybe Tyler Wolf goes up top and most scare. However you're going to do it, but I would probably go back to three center backs in this one. I think the question is fair, Uh,
who is gonna lay it on the line? And I just don't know who you have in the reserves that I would make a change for. I think maybe you can ask more of guys that are gonna be out there. But I mean, quite frankly, you're in the midst of a final six game playoff push. It's a little late to be making like desperation moves because of mindset of players. And I think it's a fair question, by the way, Jared, like, guys,
we're not fighting. And I think the biggest like instance of that was, as we mentioned here, John, when when Pedromdor got clocked and it was like, no one's running through the fence except for a good Well you weren't on the field though, Jared, You're not.
He was on the field.
You were, but you somehow I didn't make it in between the lines there. I don't think you were gonna go I mean, look, i've seen you play. Maybe you were gonna go double foot inside studs up in the surge you.
If I went into drug double foot somebody, I'm gonna blow both a cls in the process.
Well maybe you nick him at least in.
Part of that.
No, No, but I mean all drunking aside, Like.
It was like, dude, is no one gonna coke crack him the next time there's a ball in the air or whatever, And it just didn't happen. And no one was really even overly animated, except for Goose, who was incredibly frustrated and had the right.
To do so.
And so I I do think what you're asking is fair, but it's just like, I don't know right now if they have them to make. I mean, you've thrown, not thrown, but you've had so many guys exit the club. I think your depth is really being tested, even more so by the injuries. And so I mean, what about you a guy that you're looking for that you would wish I had singled out here? Jared, that was like, I can't believe you didn't bring up so and so because I just don't know.
You know, maybe you.
Bring Moyam bab back into the starting lineup, but like, I don't think starting Dax McCarty's gonna have some sort of dramatic change. I'd like to see Jay Fortune stay in there. I think he's performed well. You're not gonna benchmarn Chuck. So it's just like, what are the changes to be had?
And no, I it's a tricky I agree, it's a tricky question. I ask you genuinely because I think it is very tricky that you can't just you can't just empty everybody out. And this isn't FIFA, you know, we talk about this isn't This isn't a video game where you can just throw guys in there.
And it works.
I think for me personally, I think Rob's in a really tricky spot because, look, Rob's gonna get Rob is gonna be considered for this job full time now, whether or not you think he should get it. Notwithstanding, they're gonna treat him like a real candidate. And I've said this before, but they're going to talk about him like a real candidate because he deserves that respect. He's been a steward of the club for years. He's been through multiple staffs. He has stepped up when you've needed him
to to be the interim. He slid back into Gonzo staff, he stepped up in a really tough time. Again, you treat him with respect. You're gonna interview him, You're gonna show him that respect. You're not gonna dismiss him. But whether or not he's coaching here next year, or whether he's coaching somewhere else, this is a long ass audition for him for his career. If he wants to be a head guy, maybe not an MLS right now, but somewhere else. And I think you want to trust the
veteran guys who can get a job done. It's easy for me to say, play the kids. It's a really easy thing for me to say that because I'm not the one with my job on the line and my future on the line. Because instinctively, it's, hey, put the kids out there, man, Let let uh Let Luke Brennan go out there and try and start a fight again
like he did last time he played. But it's it's so it's so much easier for me to say that sitting here than a guy who is trying to trust a team around him not only to win games, but also again he's auditioning for his future. So I mean, I don't know what changes you would make. You're gonna have to probably make some because I would imagine Omadors. There's no way he wasn't concussed to oblivion and back. You know, you had a Stone, took a knock, Derek took a knock, Sean Day was banged up and had
to come off. You're gonna have to get really creative how you put this together Wednesday night. I don't know what changes you would make just for the sake of you know, five in Brimstone. But yeah, we were standing on the field waiting postgame and the hit on amador I was the same way like Brad went to the Brad went to the referee, which is the captain. Good move. I mean that's the rugby move too, for the captain to go to the ref. But the fact I was
disappointed that. I'm not saying somebody needs to go get sent off, but I'm disappointed that no one went up there and put Surage back on the ground. Yep, you don't have to punch him. You don't have to cheap shot him. You you needed someone in that moment. The game's over, it's done, you're not doing anything, and then you have the team that's beating your ass to nothing in your house in a rivalry match, laying a cheap shot on your left back, and you don't do shit. No, No,
somebody needs to go. You always say, like I said, you don't have to cheap shot him. You don't have to. You don't have to pertusie him. I'm not saying that now, but somebody go up there and put a shoulder in his ass, put him on the g and stand over him and create a mass confrontation because you can't let somebody disrespect you or your team or your badge like that. That's right, I am.
Yeah, Well, a couple of things in regards to the Rob Valentino.
Job audition, stuff like that.
I actually think that it would be wise to not make a lot of changes. I don't think you can show emotion as a manager, and you're incredibly frustrated at performancy. It feels like it would be an emotional decision, maybe not a well thought out analytic decision if you just make a bunch of changes because you're not happy with
the way guys played on Saturday. And as we talked about previously too, for whatever reason, how guys play or perform and either individually or as a team one game to the next just doesn't seem to carry over, and you just don't know who is or isn't going to
have it on a given night. And so I think trying to make and approach the roster, the lineup, the starting eleven, the reserves from from a more level headed mindset versus the emotions of what we saw Saturday is probably the only way to go for Rob Valentino.
I mean, you're no longer in a timeline.
And this is why I like the Luke Brennan discussion to me as a non starter, and I like Luke Brennan. It's got nothing to do with him. But you're not in a timeline where you can send a message to the team. You're in a timeline where you have to
find a way to get points. And if you truly thought agreed that he was the way and best method to get points, then by all means, after thinking about it and considering it and calming down from Saturday, if you still think that's the best way to get points, then yes, make that change.
But if you think it's sending a message to some of the.
Other guys, some of the more veteran guys, or whatever you want it to be, you just don't have the time to do that. You don't have a game to throw away, certainly not one at home, and so you've kind of got to gauge what you're doing with your subs is it. Is it a message to guys or
is it the best way to get points? I think right now the best way to get points is still to go with the guys that, for better or worse, have gotten you where you are still fighting for a playoff spot, although I guess like everyone in the Eastern Conference is kind of still fighting for. But but yeah, I think you do have to approach it a little bit more anekal analytically and a little bit less emotionally.
And so that's why you might see a new formation, as we mentioned, maybe five in the back of three center backs, stuff like that to cover up some things. But in terms of like mass changes or like a hockey substitute, I just I just don't see that happening because you don't have the time or the points to play around with it anymore.
I know we kept you way past the fourth official hold up the lightboard, my friend.
Well they gave nine minutes. They gave nine minutes on Saturday. We get ten here to what's the difference?
Okay, just checking. I didn't want you to get in any kind of trouble down there at Coliny Square, you know, as you're getting ready for your day and trying to stay properly hydrated. What's the plan between now and Wednesday?
Just gear up, man, I mean we're really excited for Wednesday.
Look, I don't know if the little man Lionel Messi is gonna be playing or not, but the potential of him playing has got me very excited. I've obviously never seen him play live in person, I've watch plenty of it, but very excited for that. And so we're gonna bring it on Wednesday at six point thirty with the Five Stripes count Dawn.
We're certainly gonna bring.
It, hopefully with some good news after with the full time report, and really just looking forward to getting the Mercedes Benz Stadium, just seeing how juiced up the fans are on Wednesday, Mike and Jason, I imagine they're gonna be juiced up as well, and then hopefully it's not just a total let down either by performance of Atlanta or by Lionel Messi not stepping onto the field at all. I'd like to see him get out there at least for a little bit, maybe if it's even as a sub.
But really excited about the potential of Wednesday. So we're just gonna build towards it and hopefully it'll help us move on from what potentially could happen tonight with the Atlanta Falcons.
Yeah, and as like I said, Rich Ransom our resident Philadelphia, and he's like yep, saw Messi and friends knock off his union, but now he's going to be watching the Eagles and the Falcons. Thanks, as always, my friend, for staying a little extra this morning, and we will catch up with you. We will see you Wednesday. We'll hear you Wednesday, and we'll catch up with you soon.
Yep, sounds good. Appreciate you having me. We'll see you guys next week.
Always, that's a