All right, all right, so now it is time for BWP to drop by. And thanks, first off for coming in on a Friday. I know that you're getting prepped for everything. What I what I wanted to do here on SDHAM other than welcome you properly and give you golden ticket status blocked, So to come in on any Friday from ten until whenever, because this is traditionally the hour of chaos where folks can come in and crash and say their piece two minutes, string minutes and they
can go I like that. So Parky kind of took one of my questions, okay about you know no, but no, it's all good. That's what we're here for. So what's it like for you sitting at the table and doing the gig that you've got now where you get to put up with our buddy Kevin Egan on First of all.
Kevin or a guy I'll show three sixty. You need to have energy, you need a good host, and keV is you know, perfect. He's the perfect person for it because he doesn't take a moment off, does the research, does these homework. He's enthusiastic. I sit right next to him, so that energy just just fools onto me. You know, I'm tired of moody. I want to be a bit you know, just relaxing. Care it's just like punching me. You know, he's amazing.
What a guy.
Yeah, but it's very different obviously being an analyst now and being in the studio, because I was the guy on the pitch, you know, trying to ignore these headlines, trying to ignore the media and what they thought, you know, trying to get my head down this. The transition was tough. I found it hard talking about players. I knew, you don't, you know, you have to you have to get over
that because you don't want to offend anyone. But I got some advice from my dad and it was just, you know, anything you would say to someone's face, then you can you can say it on TV, you know. And that stuck with me. And now I find it easier to talk. I find it easier being myself. And that's that's like it's obviously to the staff and then the crew.
I have with me two big topics that I do want to borrow you on here this morning over the next fifteen minutes. Basically the good, the bad, and the ugly. Here at the quarter pole, and I do want to ask specifically about what you think about it, Landy, and iighted, what direction do you want to go? First?
Good, the bad and the ugly?
All right, so good, the bad, and the ugly at the quarter pole? Well, who's the good?
The good are Vancouver obviously, m Yeah, Vancouver have been brilliant. Sorroson has done a great job. Even if you watched them last night in the CONKAKF Champions Cup. This is not luck. This is a well coached team with very good players that you know us in this league because they're not superstars and you know they weren't playing at big clubs abroad.
We almost don't.
Want to give these Brian White's and Ryan Golds and these players, Takahoka the keeper, Vesselinovich blackman. These guys are stars right now this season they are stars, and depending how this season goes, they they should be recognized as that.
All right. So that's good in the Western Conference, good in the Eastern Conference. Outside of Messi and friends, I have.
To say I'm torn between three teams.
Obviously, the three teams, but because I think Columbus, you know, this is a team I love dearly. I only spent a year in Columbus, but the way they treat me there, the football they played, it's just a great place to play football. And wilfriend Nanty's gone in there to Caleb and done a great job. I just think I thought at the beginning of the season they would struggle a bit. No Coucha, you know, they lose Ramirez, that was a player that could come off the bench or start and
get you goals. And I thought maybe this, you know, maybe that last little bit that xract is going to be tough. But they're still up there. You know, they're still up there. They're still coach world. Wilfrid nunc is a very good coach, so I have to put him in. I think that's a very good season start to this season for him. Then Cincinnati, you know, looking at them, they haven't blown me away with performances. But again it's a team that's built on some real like defensive foundations.
They work for each other, real team, real team like efic around that squad. They're getting players back now. Vanderser is a he's a very very top player, top top player. Yeah, they're getting him going and with players to come back I just think they just get stronger and stronger. And then Charlotte, because Charlotte, if you ask me, I'm not you know this early in the season. I know it's what ten games coming up now, I'm not putting them.
You know, where are they're in the league now? Second?
Yeah, I mean they're they're right there part of that gaggle.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. So credit to Dean Smith and the boys. They still got to get Wilfrid Dhago. Imagine when he starts playing really well. Again, you're looking at a strong team. So I'd say that's the good in the.
East, all right, So bad East or West, take your pick.
I'll go I'll go West first.
Okay, I have to throw the Galaxy in there, because they are the Galaxy, probably the biggest team, you know, the most famous team in the MLS, and when you see them in the deposition they are it's got to be tough for Great Valley. Obviously they've had their issues, but yeah, I gotta throw that in. Bad the West as world is. I'll just leave it with that. Actually,
bad in the East and this ain't the worst. And I'm with you guys, now, this is more because you know the frustration when I want to say Atlanta, because yeah, when you spend the money you did, especially on the attack. Me as an avid football fan, I was excited to watch Atlanta, you know, howm an coming back. I've played against this team. I've played against Atlanta when they are the top team at the bench. It is a horrible
place to play, daunted. Honestly, if you don't get a good start, forget about it, you're going to feel like you're getting run over for a day and a half. Is a very tough place to play, it is, so I thought those days were coming back, you know, with this new front line, and I've been a little bit disappointing because I know the talent that's there. I know it can be put together. Just they just look a bit indecisive. The balance is off and I'm not sure
what they're trying to do. So for me, that's bad, and it it's because what I expected. I wanted to see more from that.
Side, all right, So bookmarke Atlanta and push them to the back. Ugly in the East and the West.
Oh yeah, sorry, Ugly in the East and the West.
Ugly Montreal.
It's tough to say.
Montreal is ugly because the fixtures, you know, the schedule wasn't kind to the beginning of season. They have to play seven or eight what is it? Seven games away from home? Yeah, I don't know if I'm in that locker room if you know what I mean, if I enjoyed that, I don't know how, you know, you get through a stretch like that.
So it's it's tough to say.
You put the roof back on the Big O and turn that into a functioning place.
Probably, Yeah, it's true, it's tough for me. Have you got any suggestions for me?
Well, I mean I was thinking, you know, for me specifically, man, allergies are killed.
Dave been kicking my eye this morning, So I.
Mean I would have said, obviously Montreal with their rough start. Yeah, you know, and you look at the bottom. I would have initially said somebody like New England, but then Caleb Porter something found something. See, I don't know how. I don't know how folks made it off the tarmac in San Jose after what happened for the ride home. I really.
D C is a good shout because while they do have a great goalscoring DC is, they've been tough to watch early in this season. You know, they've been really tough to watch Troyla say, and that I know spent a little bit of Troy when I was at Red Bull, and he understands the game. I know what he's trying to do. Wants to play a decent side of football.
Also with that counterpress thrown in there, and it's you know, it hasn't looked pretty, but they did get a good result at Red Bull, which is not an easy place to go to. So I didn't put them in the ugly because I'm a fan of seeing teams turning around, turning that corner. As soon as I see a little demor of hope, I look out for that, you know. So I don't really have ugly right now.
And then ugly in the West since you had Lag as a bad Yeah, ugly, Yeah, I mean.
On Kansas City. Yeah yeah, yeah, Kansas City.
Again, similar to the Galaxy, it's a team that we expect, you know, like to be playing a good style of football, a team that we always expect to be competing in the playoffs. And when you see them as low as they are not stringing together some good results, you know, more often than not, yeah, you may have to put them in that bad category, all.
Right, so ugly Now, yeah, that's all good. The man who has three business cards with or actually four if you just want to separate them all out. Analyst MLS counting down, Analyst MLS three sixty, Analyst MLS wrap up MLS Season Pass. Bradley Wright Phillips. We are now at halftime, turning into the second half, and I want to break
things down with you. You mentioned it Landa United in the bad, So I asked Parky, I said, if you were in that locker room, because he now does He and Greg Garza do a lot of work with their mentoring aspect. Now they've got I think two hundred and fifty the student athletes that they mentor with beyond goals mentoring. And I said, okay, with your history with this franchise,
and you are now mentoring currency that you have. If you were to wander into that locker room and talk to these guys, even though you weren't necessarily a talker all the time, but you had to stand up and
say the stuff. What would you say? And so you know it's like, look, it's going to turn around and the you know, the conversation is going to be there, but you know, just keep pushing and pushing in the moments will come and then it will snowball and the positive from there, unlike the snowballing that's been going on the car when you see Atlanta mentioned obviously putting them
in the bad because of the expectations. But what else have you noticed about at Land United this year in twenty twenty five?
I mentioned it a little bit earlier.
It's just that I don't know if they It's like the defense is trying to play one way and the attack is is doing another thing. I don't know what they're trying to do. I can only imagine that if I was, you know, coaching that side, and by no means a great coach. It just looks at me like it's a team that you know, they should have played, like Columbus or San Diego. A team that looks like
they're suited more in transition moments. When I think of Saba on the right, he's great running into space, He's great getting on the end of the passes Latin that has paced to Spare. I would like to see him more, you know, out on the run, getting onto through balls and being set free running in behind Alma Ron when he plays on the right. I don't think it's been as effective because I think he's lost a couple of yards.
But I do think he can still do that central ten roll ways, dropping into pockets, turning and creating from there, and Evan breaking lines. Yeah, I just don't see a real way of them playing. I don't see, you know, the things that make them dangerous, the things that I just said. I don't see them doing that enough. So I think if I walked into that locker room while I'll be trying to, you know, get the boys all
playing one way. You know, if I'm like a lot, I'll be talking to the center back to or the midfielders. You know, when you see me in this place, just run, Just play me in behind, you know, play me behind it. Even if I don't get it, we're up the field and we're attacking in their half. I think they're in a place now where it can't just be relyed. You can't just rely on dialogue or obviously is his responsibility. But the senior players in that locker room have to
they have to come together. I remember whenever we were going through hard times, especially at Red bull. We start from the beginning again, we start from the begin the basics. First fifteen minutes, maybe we're playing their half, don't concede. Then we get to that fifty past that fifteen minutes, it's a different task, and before you know it's halftime. The results better than it was last weekend, and there's
something to build off. I think they have to go back to basics and forget talent for a minute together, be hard to beat, and then take steps from there.
What about somebody like an Alexi Midnchuk, who we know his artistry and we know what he is capable of, almost like that point guard that you see in basketball, who knows where folks need the ball. But it's like we talk about positional gravity, and it's something that you know a lot about, considering that when you had the ball, you had like nine dudes just come and collapse upon you. But that also means that eight other guys are open
at that particular moment. When you see someone like Midanchuk with his artistry and he played a little deeper against NYC at times because they were trying to come back, and you saw what he's capable of. What about somebody like Midunchuk and yeah.
You hit a nail on the head.
When I look at Morantu like, there's been a couple of times where he's had to go in that sixth row and build the game for Atlanta if they are going to build, if they do want to play that way, he has to be in that six role because he's really good on the half turn, and I think him playing in the six takes a lot of responsibility. I don't want to put you know, I don't want to say that he's a man that is not built for
that moment. But I think when you play him in a ten, we will look at him and be like, okay, make something happen. We look at him in that Evander row, you know, in what Almaron is coming here to do, and I think it's a little bit unfair on him. So if you play him in a six, I think he's really good, like I said, at getting on the half tend then he can find those players. When you put him in the ten, I don't think he's a
man for the big moments. You know, in every game, I think you see more of his qualities playing deeper on the field. Deeper down the field and I think that will help at landa.
A little bit more.
And you know, in this system that Ronnie currently has formationally it's a four two three one. You're dealing with two sixes. You have guys like Bart Slash, who he's got a bit of a mean streak to him. But you're also seeing younger players like Jay Fortune step up. You see him atteas Click, who was brought in from d C for a pack of Pall Mall's, some Hostess Twinkies and a box of matches. And you know, when he gets healthy, I know what he can bring to
the table as well. When you look at the rest of this roster outside of that attacking for what else do you see?
I see good players, especially if he get the right ones on the field. I see good players. I see a team that can play both ways. I see a team that could play in transition, and I see a team that could build if the right players in the right spots. This is why I put them in the bad because I don't get why I'm not seeing it.
There's no excuse. It's a good roster.
I'm seeing teams with If you take Austin for example, I don't that Ross is not bad than Atlanta's, but they they've got some kind of togetherness. They're hard to beat, and they're somehow right now up the table, but.
They can't score. It's like you bringing all this hot you bring in all this heavyweight talent and what Basquez has to what it's Uh.
Yeah, it hasn't been good enough.
You're right, that's what I'm saying for them in attacking for it hasn't been good enough. But they can still be at the top of the table. So for me, why is Atlanta not doing something similar? I'm not saying play that style of football. I'm saying, you know, at least putting these performances where okay, the attack's not going well, but you don't just come to the bends and beat us. You know, they is a difficult team. This should be a difficult team to play against.
Then you dropped a whole lot of am to bring in Robert Taylor away from Messi and friends to help out with your offense. Three minute warning, I know I'm keeping you to a clock. No good, all right, So this weekend it is Atlanta and the Purple team in Central Florida. See, yeah, the thing is the only way that we can mention. The O word here is if we if we sing it like Book of Mormon, literally, we have to say Orlando. We're going to say that. Otherwise they're just the Purple team.
Just good.
I used to do that when I played for the Rebel. I would call it the New York City the Blue Team.
So I get it.
I get it. So Atlanta United and the Purple Team coming up this weekend. When you see this kind of a rivalry match like you did with Red and Blue, what sticks to mind in this matchup for you?
So you talking about gameplay first of all? Yeah, I'll talk about gameplay first and war and I'll talk about how I would go into those games. So I think gameplay, the game's there for the take you for both teams. Both teams not in a great place. So if I'm in each locker room, I'll go into that game thinking we can win this if we just do ABC, we can win this game.
For Orlando at the.
Moment that that that front four that started off so well and not firing on all cylinders, they're struggling. That plays into your hands. I think if you can make the game difficult in the first half, first half of the half first half. Sorry, then you're looking at maybe getting a good result. Yeah, but I expect to see fireworks. These are the kind of games that can that can
turn your season. These kind of games for Atlanta. Now, if you get a big win here and build a meta from this place, you can look back come you know, October and whatever and say, you know what, when we played that game, when we beat one of our rivals. I think that's the way you can put, you know, a stamp where the season started to change for them.
All right, last question for you. Time to cut the promo because you are on MLS Countdown, MLS three sixty and MLS wrap up on MLS Season pass as MLS Bradley Right, Phillips. I feel like now MLS needs to be in front of every single aspect of your name, with everything that you're doing up there with Apple these days. What's going on this weekend? When do you go into production meetings? When do you get to see Kevin Egan? What cut the promo for me? What books should expect this weekend?
Okay, so I'll head up to Connecticut on Saturday morning. I'll get to the studio maybe two thirty, sit down gathering my thoughts, and that's when you start seeing the boys come in. First of all, Yeah, production meeting, Yeah, and we'll go on We'll go on air for the first tundown, maybe six point thirty, you know, after all the prep's done for those few hours, six point thirty, do an hour just building up the games, building some excitement,
letting you know our opinions. And then straight after that won't even move from the studio three sixty and that's when it gets hectic. And that's where your boy keV comes in and just gets that energy going. We've just got a bunch of games going on, a bunch of goals, bunch of key plays, just a lot of fun. It's a long time, but that's like the most fun you can have in five to six hours. Honestly, it's brilliant.
And after that, I was gonna say, what's it like flying without a net for six hours?
It's crazy because you're watching so the mon it will be to our right somewhere, so I want to focus on the show, but I also want to see what's happening in the game. So when we do go to that key play, I have some good feedback for you. I have some good analysis. There's been times where you get pull you might miss a goal, it comes up as a key play. We get to watch it obviously, but I haven't seen the build up, so I don't even know how this goals come about, you know what
I mean. So it's hard really focusing on the game that's on the screen, what you guys might be seeing, the focusing on getting little nuggets for you guys. So when you see that key play giving you the information, it's crazy, it's carnage, it is.
It's and then but the thing is you may not be able to see the build up, but then you get to see the build up on MLS wrap up right.
Facts, So that wrap up is like a It's probably the show where you get to really talk about what you saw in a game because we've seen them all on the Saturday and now we do the wrap up on Sunday night after Sunday Night soccer. So now I've seen all those goals, Now I've seen all those build ups. Now I've heard all the talks what people think and what my opinions are. So wrap up you can really have conversations. That's why you see it's a more laid
back ride. We're in the sofas you know, we're in the comfy seats, and we're talking and really dissecting these games and our thoughts on the weekend.
Especially if you're sitting in a hard share for six hours. As always, you are officially now golden ticket status. You have the garage door opener, you know where the spare key is, and so anytime you want to come in and crash in this hour of chaos as we get the weekend prepped, you know you can.
I like that. Thank you for that invitation. I'll be taking you up on that.
Golden ticket status is yours, Bradley Wright Phillips once again. Analyst MLS Countdown, Analyst MLS three sixty, Analyst MLS Wrap Up, Analyst MLS Season Pass, Analyst Sdham. There, I went ahead and said it ated you to the business card PWP. As always, thanks for dropping by, my friend. We'll see you soon.
I appreciate you, Joe, You're doing a great job.
I keep out all right, see because I know you're gonna come down and kick my ass. Sick