And so what that means is that I'm going to punch the clock a little early. Well maybe yeah, thirty seconds or so, I don't know, but properly hydrated as always, and adjusting to life as it is with us here with a restream and our and our new platforms and everything. A Gordon, ladies and gentlemen. So a busting out the us A jersey this morning, out a boy.
Yeah, Nike had a sale a couple months back, so I bought a couple of pieces at severe discounts and uh yeah, popped one on today. Why not?
Nothing nothing wrong with the severe discount. Man right here is the king of a severe discount. So I'm right there with you. So welcome to twenty twenty five, my friend. How was the time away from us?
It was pretty good, obviously. I spent some time on a cruise vacation that was very fun, and then just just been taken into new year making sure we're staying healthy and happy and really also just counting down the clock. I mean, I know I was talking with you over the weekend and due to the weather that we just had here in Atlanta, United did delay some of the things necessary to start their media portions of practice. They
couldn't do all the physicals essentially, is what happened. And so we were hoping to be at United for their first training session that got delayed. But like, it is crazy that it's here. I mean, we knew it was a short offseason when it started. We're like, man, it's like seven weeks away, and they had a lot to do and they still have a lot to do, right, I mean, they hired a new technical director, they hired a new manager, they put a couple pieces in place.
They've made a move here or they're more so on the fringe, but there's obviously some rumors heating up that could be more central to this team. And so very excited to see. And we're counting down right as much as we're counting down from everything else. We're what twelve days from the opening preseason match against Chattanooga, and the preseason gets fast and furious from there. You essentially are playing five matches or some sort of competitive environments there
in essentially thirty days. So really looking forward to covering that and then yeah, getting the season going. Man, Like it's pretty much here. So very excited.
Well, and that's the thing. It's like, oh, seven weeks, What are we gonna talk about for seven weeks? Trust me, there's plenty to talk about in seven weeks, and seven weeks turns into like five and a half and you're just you know, you're off and running, and it's halfway there already, so we haven't had the chance to catch up. What have you thought about the pickups of Chris Henderson and Ronnie Dila in the front office and being a head coach?
Yeah, I mean, by all accounts, I'm excited, and everyone has kind of generally said you should be excited about this. I mean, it's a formula that has worked before with Loggerway and Henderson, and they're also coming into situation where you have a pretty good team right now compiled, you have a pretty good amount of money to go, and you also have flexibility in your roster with what you want to do and openings and designated player and stuff like that. So it's not like you're bringing in guys
to rebuild. You already have a really strong base, but now you do have an opportunity to make your stamp and to add to that, and I think that's probably
very exciting. From the Henderson side of things, and then with Ronnie Dila, I mean, just very excited to see what he's able to do to take again the talent that's already here, the talent that Henderson's going to add, hopefully in the next week or two, because you want to deal with all the issues and visas and make sure he's getting with the team and all that stuff that always frustrates fans when we have a guy but we don't really have that guy for three more months whatever.
Just very excited to see in action again. You didn't win last year, right, I mean, ultimately you did get eliminated, but there were some really good things that you did at the end of the season, and now just time to try and build all that, not not take steps back as you rebuild, but continue to move forward. I'm excited to see if they can do that.
And obviously as a part of the show this morning, we are going to discuss the names that are being floated out there that kind of hit pretty hard.
On the weekend.
And once again at Landy United not afraid to sit there and say, oh, eighteen to twenty million, sure, all right, we'll cut that check, you know.
So it's the.
Pursuit is not the issue. It is the desires of the agents and the player and the teams that are on the inbound that are always going to be a part of the discussion. And I think that that's something that we always have to remember here, is that, yeah, you can chase after all guys in the world, but the desires got to be there. The agent's got to sit there and look out for what's best for his client. All of these different little machinations that we have to
kind of keep an eye on. That's always going to be a part of the discussion.
Well, and I think the other thing you have to understand is the status of the league as a whole. And I think you're seeing and not just Atlanta United, but in recent years you've seen teams, top tier teams in the MLS, but even middle or bottom tier teams going after guys that they quite frankly, would have never had an opportunity to try and attract in previous years.
And I think you've seen the shift of and look, there was a time where like those were the guys who were on their last legs, kind of being retired, and they wanted to wrap up in the US, and to an extent, Lionel Messi is still that but also at the top of his game at the same time somehow, not really sure how that happens. My athletic prime was years ago and I never recovered. He somehow's kept his prime.
I do think related to that is you're seeing an opportunity to get a different style and level of player in terms of drawing from Europe or even from from Africa and South America than maybe you would have, and you're able to find a couple of guys that you you at least feel are a little bit more proven.
And that excites me when I look at like some of the numbers of the guys that they're talking about, be it from Asia, be it from from Europe, whatever, And you go back and look at like we were excited for Yakabacas and like he wasn't in like a top top tier necessarily league, but here is his games played and here's his goals scored, and you look at the guys that they're chasing, and it's very similar, if
not better, in terms of goals per matches. So and it's also like very apparent the type of guy they're trying to bring in, Like they're looking for goal scorers, and there's no more secret about what are they going to do with their DP spots? Could they find it? And they're like no, man, like they're they're doing what we all want them to do, which is find someone to score goals. And so excited for the possibilities of
the names that are being chattered about. But but again, like you said, sometimes we see names get hot and then it just kind of goes cold. That's already happened once this offseason for United. And and so we'll see if the names that are hot right now, the names that are trending, if you will ultimately make their way here to the four oh four.
Yeah, and there's always the Starbucks joke that has happened with Emmanuel la Teila and his time with the Middlesbrough currently and odd soun Edward. Those are the two names that are out there, and obviously we'll get into the more about those two as we go this morning. But you're you're chasing after players that are in the the EFL Championship. You're chasing after players that have Premier League experience.
I mean, shoot, the team up the road that claimed itself, that claims itself to be Atlanta United's number one rival from Absolute Jump, decided that they want to chase after Miguel Almo.
So no league, No league.
Is safe from Major League Soccer anymore, Abe Gordon, this is how this is. It's like you want to dance, let's dance. Look with Major League Soccer. The checks will not bounce. That is the biggest thing. You want a player, We'll cut you a check. Everything's gonna be fine. Direct deposit's gonna work for the player. Direct deposit's gonna work for the agent and the league. Check will not bounce. One less thing that folks have to worry about these days.
Yeah, And look like I don't want to sound like elitist or anything. I'm not trying to put down other countries, but like, I think living in America is a pretty cool thing. And you look at some of the countries people are from, some of the countries people are currently playing in, and like there's also now a JA all towards playing in America, and there's just there's just something fun about that. In the league, I mean, it's kind
of crazy. And John, you've been, i mean where the league was at the very start, and to see like there obviously there were dreams and there were hopes of like what this league could eventually become, and look, they're not. This isn't the end of the road for the MLS. They haven't reached their ultimate goals yet. But to see what the league was in the conversations that they've entered now in terms of across the world, it's pretty wild.
It's pretty wild. And just the level of respect that this league has gained from players, from fans and then from yet from the business makers is pretty impressive. So look that there's a reason that these names are being bandied about, that these are legitimate targets and legitimate names and quite frank, legitimate players. You look at some of the numbers on these guys, Uh, it is really impressive, and so I'm exc I did to see what they're
gonna do. But it's nice to know that despite some of the seasons that Landing United has had, and I think we can all be fair it's been disappointing since they won the title, they're they're still working, They're still among the highest spenders in MLS, they still are attracting
some of the biggest names in MLS. They're still viewed from outside America as the team in MLS, and I think that is really important to have put them in this situation where where they can go after some of the names that they're they're they're chasing down right now.
So when it comes to players that have carried them year to year from last years at Lanty United to this year's at Land United, who are who's in the Abe Gordon spot shadow? Who is who? Who are you looking forward to seeing the most? When it comes to player development, hitting the next stage whatever that entails and air quotes and yes I did just use air quotes on a Monday as we're getting ready for training camp. Who are you looking forward to seeing in the development stage?
Hit those next strides? When it comes to being a part of this roster, well.
It kind of partlays itself two ways, because you've got the players that maybe took some steps last year, or maybe even if they underachieved last year and you think there's more to them. What can they do in their
second year or in another year or whatever. But there's also the aspect of Ronnie Daila and the impact that he's gonna have it maybe if they're asked to do something differently or he's asking them to play differently, and quite frankly, I'm not gonna pretend to know how he's gonna use or what the expectations are for certain players in a new system. So I'm gonna speak on the pure basis of the question what we saw last year, what I'm looking forward to coming up this year, and
I think I'll just go from the back forward. I think you start with Pedro Amador. I think what you got from him, especially in the postseason run, but even before that, and that just happened to be like a link of games where things worked out. Even before that, right you could tell like something was going on differently
for him. I don't know if it was communication with the guys up ahead of him or whatever it was, but just to me, even with some of the left backs at Lanta United has had, it still felt like the attack had to come from the right side. With Brooks Lennon, I think with Pedro now adding on the left side, especially considering the issues you had up top on the left side, I'm excited to see maybe a full year's worth of can he continue and look, he's not gonna have an assist every single game. I think
we have to. I know, I know it's tough to hear, but I mean, look, maybe if a Lani United is the highest scoring offense in the MLS, which quite frankly was with some of the expectations to open last year, and that quickly died down. But i've Paigo is the first name you look at, I think you moved to the next level. And it continues to be Jay Fortune.
Just how good is this kid gonna be? And obviously he didn't play a ton in the first half of the season, a couple us open whatever, but by a variety of different factors, he finds himself in the regular rotation. But it was up to him to cement himself there right like, he was given the opportunity to prove it,
and he did prove it. And now the next question is, as we've had this question with a number of guys that have been young and kind of upstarts, and the quote next guy at this position, or the next guy at that position for the US national team, for Atlanta United, for youth squad, whatever it may be, it's now up to him to build off of what seems like a cemented role for him. Again, Ronnie Diler could come in feel differently and he may have to fight again. I
think everyone's gonna have to fight for the roles. That's just how it works with new coaches. But at this point you do maybe expect him to be a little higher in that consideration. So based on what he saw last year, like that wasn't his apex right, Like he's still trending upwards, He's still climbing that mountain to reach
his peak. And so certainly him and then the other thing for me again not knowing who is being brought in up top, but Saba, it just so much of it was on him last year, the idea that he might have some help up there. What sort of a player does he become? How different does he look when he's got help, Maybe when he doesn't feel the need to be the primary goal scorer. We can help set
guys up. You know, hopefully the goal scoring numbers don't come down for Saba, but you'd like to see maybe the assist numbers go up a little bit and maybe just a slightly different type of player for him. And then again just you know, just try and figure out who the playmakers are and who's gonna be in the middle and so just looking forward to that. But again it's all gonna be about Dlah and how he wants to set things up, who they pulled in to work up top. So very interested in that too.
But yeah, yeah, and I mean you you mentioned Saba, and it will be it will be interesting to see how Saba is when he is a guy and not the guy. And I think that there's there's nothing wrong with being a guy, but I think that Saba at times looked like he shouldered the burden internally, you know, maybe just a little too much. And you know, here's a guy who is going to lay it all out there for you. I mean, he's gonna run the ninety
eight miles and not think twice about it. He's gonna on a Monday, I apologize, he's gonna run his ass off. And there goes the explicit rating already fifteen minutes into a new week, five minutes into a new wig. But yeah, he's gonna run his ass off. He's gonna give you everything. And now to your point, you're anticipating Saba getting help, and I think that in whatever form that is at the nine mid Anchuk wherever he fits into the midfield, if it does do he move Moranchuk to the left.
These kinds of factors, you now have that opportunity for Saba to still be the dude, to be a dude and not be the dude, and that's never a bad thing.
Yeah, And I want to pick up on Moranchuk too, because it was such a tough ass for him to come in mid season and we're all like, this is a guy, uh, you know, that's replacing Almana. It didn't really feel comfortable for him. It didn't really feel natural for him, and you'd see moments where he kind of settle in and look like a lot more in the flow, and then other moments where it was kind of disconnected.
And I'm interested to see if he can get a little more connected on both sides, the offense and the defense and kind of figure that out, because that would also be a huge benefit to Atlanta United, is if the guy that they brought in to be one of the playmakers can do a little bit more of that. And look, again, it's tough to just grade him on what last year was. I think you do need to give him a little bit of more time to develop
within the system. And now you have to give everyone a little bit of time because you're probably looking at a slightly new system, and that's what happened. I mean, look, we're not gonna we're not gonna, you know, tear the tent down if they get off to a little bit of a slow start. You got to understand, as we learned last year, it's not how you start to an extent, it's how you finish. But you have to give a
little bit of leeway with the new stuff. But again, you have a good enough team here that you would hope that there's some stuff you can do. And again, I think that's probably why you scheduled as many either competitive environments, matches, whatever you want to say there in the preseason. What do we say five or six of these things in thirty days before you really kick the season off, something like that. So I think they're trying
to get up and run in pretty quickly. But I think if Moranchuck can get a little more comfortable and a little bit more calm and what he's being asked to do, that's gonna help Saba, That's gonna help the other midfielders. It's certainly gonna help whoever they pull in in strikers, so there's a lot of options for this team to move forward and improved. Like as good as they finished, there were still things you could look at and say, well, Moronchuck could have done better. If he's
better next year, the team will be better. You didn't have the striking, and so there's as pleased as we were towards the finish, even though ultimately it ended, there's still some steps forward this team can take pretty immediately. So I'm excited about that.
Yeah, because you're looking at games against Chattanooga, FC Birmingham Leagie and the two matches at IMG Academy and then wrapping up with FC Dallas the week before the kickoff of the regular season on February fifteenth, and so yeah, next in the next thirty two days. The thirty days has September April June and that's ends and all the
rest of thirty one, so eighteen thirty three days. So thirty three days, you got five matches to get you ready for the twenty twenty five season before I let you go in the Eastern Conference outside of Messi and Friends, and you can include Messi and Friends if you want. Who else are you looking forward to seeing the most in twenty twenty five.
Uh boy, In general, the Eastern Conferences is not like my biggest Like it's just so much more fun. I think to watch the West even though they're they're late at night. Like I know, like I get the Columbus thing, I get the Cincinnati thing, but like I don't know, boring, like just boring like whatever. I'm interested to see some of the teams that were previously powers and if they
can get back there. I'm interested in Philly and Nashville and what they have left, what sort of step back was this past year, because Philly for a while was, you know, running third or fourth in the league. They just completely fell apart. In Nashville obviously has been among the contenders for a long time, and they've taken their major steps back as well. So I'm interested to see if some of those bottom teams from last year can
jump back up to the top. And certainly I feel like a Lady United is in that possibility as well.
All right, So what are the plans for ninety two nine in the game Off the top of your head, to head up to the Children's South Caro Atlanta training ground, weather permitting and physicals permitting, you know, off the top of your head.
Yeah, I don't know about that. I do know we're gonna be broadcasting the Chattanooga game, and quite frankly, I haven't even looked at the schedule beyond that, but you will be able to hear the Chattanooga exhibition or preseason, whatever you want to call it on ninety two nine. So so certainly looking forward to Mike and Jason and getting back into booth and and hearing the sweet sounds of Atlanta United Soccer back on the airwaves.
So and do you guys, do you get to go up and party for the morning show at any point?
Do you know?
Off the top of your head.
I don't think so. I'm not sure, Uh, broad broadcast restrictions. I don't know if we're actually doing pre and post on that one, but we'll definitely have the broadcast of the game.
So oh no, I was just talking like going up to practice and going to hang out and going.
It's it's possible. Last week obviously the plan was going to be today, uh, and then it got delayed and it's probably gonna be a little bit tough to reschedule. Obviously, we've got I know, it's a different type of football. But but there is a national championship game coming into town in a couple of days, and so we've got some coverage of that that'll be on site. So I try not to be drawn tooth in. I think I.
Don't know what you're talking about, sir. This that game the game where Hey.
Those are two good soccer schools, Yes they are. As a matter of let's be on, these are two very good soccer schools.
Yep, it is ACC and B one G heading to heading to Mercedes Benz to play American football coming up in a week's time. My friend, it's great to see you, Glad to have you on this side of twenty twenty five. Great to have you back for your weekly Monday visits when time and scheduling allow. And hey, look, I'm right there with you when it comes to the super discount shopping. Look if it's if it's seventy percent off and I can get it a year or two behind, I'm right
there with you, my friend. I'm the absolute same kind of shopper that you are.
If you ever see me buying something at a full price anywhere outside of a restaurant, just know that I've been replaced with some sort of clone.
Okay, that's your tell, that's your absolutely no doubt about it. It's great to see my friend. We'll catch it Jip soon. Stay hydrated and congratulations on working backward in the Peachtree road Racer Day.
Yeah, that had a good one. Appreciate it.