¶ Podcast Introduction and Offseason Kickoff
What is up, everybody? Welcome back to SoccerWise. A big day for a big show. We are into Tommy Scoop's season, and we are ready to rock and roll here. Tom. I had like nine analogies I wanted to use. I was going to use hot stove in the write-up. I was going to use silly season. And then I was like, we pull him out of the pen. He's warming up. He's ready to go. I'm just so excited for you. I'm ready for you to cook. I appreciate that. That's kind. It does feel nonstop.
before this and after this, and that's good. So it's definitely more now, but more pressure, more excitement, and yeah, fully into the offseason for all 30 teams. I mean, the way it was explained to me in your post-game press conference after the conference championship. Well, as you thrive on pressure, right? That's why you're excited to go to the rug. The rugs are us bowl in, uh, in Wichita, Kansas.
You see that Notre Dame, after taking the ball and going home and said, we don't want to play in a bowl game if we don't get to the playoffs. They're now doing a bit where they're going bowling like... Oh my God. No one cares. Get over yourself. There's so many things you could have said to me and I would have been like, yeah, okay, cool. And that is not one of them. That's the most noted anything you could possibly do. So boring.
¶ MLS Offseason Trade Market Overview
Okay, Joe Montana. Well, now that we're through that portion of the show, we have a lot to talk about. And it's just move after move after move. Some reports, some official, and some are openings and conversations that teams are having. having and we're going to dig through all of it we'll talk about some of the top free agents as well and then we've got a bracket conca champions baby it was an awkward draw which means conca cap is back i watched it off and on as it was going and uh
We are excited to see what it looks like next year. We can't have this conversation now, but it will be fascinating if the calendar flip actually happens. I'm only saying if, I'm not saying when. It's funny. Yeah. and we'll see if I'm right or wrong about that because that's the big excuse, right? If that thing goes away, what are MLS teams going to say anymore? Oh, as the excuse as to why MLS teams are winning. They've got to start winning, right?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, MLS has 10 teams in the tournament, something like that, give or take. Last year was 10, right? Maybe. Because of League's Cup dominance. Yeah, for sure. Which may have changed this time, but I can count if you want. That's okay. This is an uninteresting point for me to bring up. We can keep it moving.
No, I'm already counting. I've got seven, eight, nine, ten. Are you multitasking? I got ten. I had it right. We came all the way back around. They do. There is no route to a semifinal that doesn't go through a potential Liga MX team, if Liga MX teams.
went out in their opportunities, which hasn't been the case every year. I feel like there's been, you know, last year you had Vancouver went through league MX teams, but you had them eventually face off against Miami. So I feel like over the last few years, there's been sort of. one quadrant that's been a little bit more MLS beats up on MLS itself, but a little bit more friendly. And I think all of us are waiting to see how Forge takes on Tigress this time because Bobby Smirny on us.
Always has a plan up his sleeve, and it's all you ever want to talk about. Always. We've already got comments in the chat. Justin Hack to Orlando. Speak it into existence. Am I crazy? We are here for you, by the way. We enjoy doing this show live. We don't always get an opportunity to. So if you can pop in live, we will answer questions. We are going to do a special mailbag episode as well.
next week so when we do that we're going to pull everything out of the discord i promise you we're actually going to do that in the mailbag section of the discord so thank you to all of you who are paid subscribers have access to that part of our community we love chatting with all of you as much as possible And if you're not, you can go sign up and you can become a part of it and send us stuff. That way you can also send us stuff.
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new people find us. And we love having new people find us, especially this time of year when everyone's kind of hanging around trying to figure out how they're going to engage with soccer over the next few months as it's not live here in North America. Okay. Let's start with you, Tom. Let's start with some of the biggest topics of the day. We've got like this mainly split up by teams because there's so much going on for a lot of these teams. Yeah. Overall, the trade market.
it was slow heading into MLS Cup in the playoffs. Typically, there is moves that are agreed during the playoffs that just don't get announced. And even that time, it's difficult to find them out because teams usually try to wait until, you know, the games and stuff. That wasn't the case this year. It has been much slower, but I will say this week it is really starting to...
Things are really starting to move. There's a lot of offers. There's a lot of serious negotiations. There are a few moves that have been announced. There are a few moves that I've reported that are also done. But we're going to start to see that now. And rather than there being... things that are big, big ones that are done right now, those conversations are starting. Those conversations are ongoing. And with free agency as well, as teams are...
going after a really strong crop of free agents that's led by Christian Espinosa, Justin Hack, Dane St. Clair. That's the goalkeeper of the year, and that's San Jose Earthquake's all-time leading assist. in their primes all of a sudden like there's a lot a lot of options and now i think we're going to see things start to move so let's start with vancouver
¶ Vancouver Whitecaps Roster Changes
The Vancouver Whitecaps, magical season. They win the Canadian Championship. They get to the MLS Cup. They get to the CONCACAF Champions Cup. And now capitalism at its purest form. We're going to break you up for parts. The salary cap monster comes for everybody. I will say sources, particularly around the club, insist we don't need to do anything. And that is technically true, except for the fact that when you are a team that overperforms vastly, almost to a person.
There's a lot of guys calling for new contracts. So what I've been told is that there are all... firm offers, like official or verbal offers for seven of their players right now. Two of the names that I'm hearing the most about, particularly within the league, is Jaden Nelson and Matias Labordo. I'll start with Nelson. He's somebody that the Whitecaps like, but he's not. A starter at the moment and particularly...
less pathway to minutes when Ryan Gould is fit next season. Jaden Nelson wants to make the World Cup for Canada. He's not going to do that if he's on the bench for the Whitecaps. So Vancouver are very open to the right move for him because while they would love to keep him, they don't want to stand in his way.
at that chance at getting playing time. So Jaden Nelson is one name to watch. Another is Matias Laborda. Vancouver obviously loved him too. He's a key starter, constant starter this season. He can play in numerous different positions across the back line, which was really helpful for a team that dealt with a lot of injuries.
There's a lot of teams that like him as well. That's somebody who could generate a decent amount of allocation money that would help fund new contracts for other players. But they don't want to lose him, but everybody has a price and everything needs to be figured out. Two more.
Sebastian Berlter and Ali Ahmed. Both of those guys are out of contract in one year. There are negotiations for potential new deals with both of those players. The Whitecaps insist they want to keep, again, all of these guys. But particularly a couple of these dudes. But with one year left on your contract, teams are going to call. I know that teams are calling about both of these guys.
We'll see what exactly happens. Again, there's no agreement in contracts for either one yet. And as long as there's no agreement, there's going to be calls and offers. You are tearing my... heart out and you're putting it on the ground and you're stomping on it Tom you're gonna pull Ollie Oddman and Sebastian Berhalter out of this team that is absolutely brutal I will say so on all of this Jaden Nelson's the obvious one he is as I've said
I go through depth charts. Who do I think could be a starter that isn't a starter? And if I'm a team, I'm calling and seeing what it is. Jaden Nelson. Was a starter for half this year. I thought it was fantastic. Sabi's game elevated and he took it over. And I thought Nelson should have played more minutes in MLS Cup. I thought he could have across the playoffs.
That one makes sense, right? You said he wants to start for Canada. Not only that, I think for most MLS teams, he's a starter. He is clearly not 1-1 healthy right now when everyone's healthy for the Vancouver Whitecaps. So he's the obvious one to come out. Laborde is interesting because...
You could argue Laborde is not a starter if everyone's healthy across the back line. If Sam Adekube is healthy, if Veselinovich is healthy, if Blackman's there and Eddie Ocampo's there, you could argue he's not a starter. On the flip side, he plays all four of the spots.
And so the value in him is he can then play if anyone's missing where other guys take Johnson's alike for like change. He's not going to play a different position. Ocampo can't move around. And Laborda ended up being massive for them. In the playoff run, because he played center back and he played left back off and on when they needed to. But it's over a million dollars for a guy who, again, if we're fully healthy, is not a pendant starter. And that's the question where if you're telling me.
okay, you have to fund the rest of this. That would be the one that I'd say, okay, that's a luxury I cannot afford right now. That's why I structured the names as I did and breaking them as like Nelson and Laborda for... Slightly different reasons. My only, my only little bit of pushback there. That's again, unimportant, but I want to read to you Sam Atacugbe's year minutes total in MLS. 408, 752, 292.
You cannot count on him. And I hope that he's healthy. I hope everybody is, right? Injuries suck. But to suggest that you're planning around him, you simply can't. But you spent $960,000 on him. Sure. And Toronto spent $15 million on Lorenzo Insignia. Can't count on that guy either. Yes. Those two clubs are not the same. And two vastly different people. I want to be very clear.
So yeah, Vancouver, and the next team we're going to get to, but we have a little bit more of Vancouver. There are two teams that when I talk to people around the league, it's like, these are the two teams. One, the next one is open for business is the line I keep getting. And Vancouver, it's just like all teams are calling. Again, they know the contract situation.
They know the teams that get to the MLS Cup. It's difficult to keep everybody. So these are the two teams that I'm hearing the most about in not just one or two players, but a bunch of calls. And one of the things for Vancouver is...
They overperformed. They had a better year than expected. A lot of guys hit. They now need to solidify and say, okay, what's our core? Who are the guys under contract for the next five years that it's built around? And then who are the guys that we have to move on and bring assets in?
To do that. In saying all of that, you mentioned Berhalter and Ali Ahmed, who both have one year left on their contract. But Sebastian Berhalter has a... Oh, excuse me. Yeah. Berhalter has a player option next... Or a team option next year. For 27? No, 26.
Sorry, we're in 2026. That's already picked up. That's why I'm confused right now. Both of those players up 12 months left in the contract. And then Blackman has one more option year left, and a bunch of these other guys, Ryan Gould, Unders Koubas, their deals are up in 27 as well.
Starting with Tristan Blackman. You win Defender of the Year. You don't need to be an agent to think that you're going to answer a new contract. There's so many over-performing players that that's going to be a thing. I'm just assuming. I don't know that for a fact.
well he won defender of the year um and there's a lot of guys like that um sorry continue no so they are in a spot now where they have to figure out that planning for a lot of these guys and i think part of it is if you don't think you can get them under contract the most value you're going to get for them is right now because they have a longer time on their deal that the next team has time to figure it out and then also because they're coming off the seasons
they're coming off of. But it would be heartbreaking to see it happen. I could see literally any team go for a Nelson or a Laborda specifically. I would also see any team right now go for Ali Ahmed or Sebastian Borhalter. I would hope on the Ahmed side of things like your Canadian Vancouver gave you the shot. You're there. If you're not playing for them, I'd hope it's to go to Europe and take a risk and not sort of stay.
in MLS and try the same thing with someone else. But I also you never know. So I won't say anything there on the Vancouver money here on the Vancouver side of things. two notes one they're having an announcement alongside the city that's coming i think later today so we don't know what that is yet i'm sure it has something to do with the stadium it probably is going to be a bc place deal
just at least for the temporary. If they're lucky, it's a new stadium deal. My guess is it's probably a lot of nothing in the end. It's like, let's all come together and say a thing that we already said, but I don't work in government. So what the hell do I know? There has been local reporting that there was, I believe, a horse track that just shut down. And that's possibly land that could be the Whitecaps' new long-term.
To know that there's one less horse racing track in the world. That could be the announcement. And that would be much more than nothing. It would be. I'm kind of at the point now where it's like those announcements turns out become, you know, Denver NWSL. They announced their stadium, and now they're having a conversation about where the money's going to come from.
So announcements don't always mean anything is my point. And I'm excited to go to the revs new stadium under mayor Josh craft. Uh, when we get there over the next 13 years or whenever it is last note though, Fanny start teeny baby. The man loves Canada. He has accepted the role as the GM and head coach of the Halifax CPL team, which is not connected to the NSL team out there.
This is everything I need. So we're doing a trip next year. We're going to a Halifax game. Forget the World Cup. We're spending all our money to get to Halifax, to go to a game. The most I've actually learned about Halifax to name drop was actually from Landon Donovan. who had done a road trip up there and ended up in Halifax but didn't get to see a game. So he says it's a great town. That's delightful. Yeah.
He says, I'll take that. It's a great down. So huge recommendation there. The other club you want to talk about open for business. Talk to us about Walmart are us.
¶ New York Red Bulls Roster Overhaul
The New York Red Bulls. The New York Red Bulls, they're open for business because they're tweaking the game model. They're going to have a new head coach come in. Looks like Michael Bradley. They're going to be playing a 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1. They're going to play with wingers. It's something that they haven't done. They've had like inside. Sometimes they'll try the 4-3-2. That's not really wingers. So to make the incoming moves come.
is they have to have departures and they want to overturn the roster as best as they can to create more room for a new head coach. And again, Julian de Guzman, his first offseason as head of sport. First one, Peter Stroud. That deal is done. Peter Stroud is going to Minnesota United per sources. Deals worth $475,000 in allocation money. I'll stop there before going to the end. What do you think about that, Gus? I was unprepared because I was in a coughing fit.
So you caught me off guard. I actually talked to Doyle about this a little while ago. These are moves that make a ton of sense. These like youth national team, US former youth national team guys who, yeah, maybe the ceiling isn't full national team, but it's good. I think Peter Sean's already a good MLS player. I agree. I think a lot of these moves for Red Bulls are weird to me.
This is coming as a current Met fan where it's like there are problems and the things you're moving out don't seem to be the problem unless you've decided that everything is broken. And unless you change everything, nothing can get better. is Peter shout going to be a best 11 player? Probably not. If he's in a three man conversation for two spots in my midfield, I think I'm a good MLS team.
And he fits very well with Minnesota, which is what I like about this. He's very combative. He works hard. He's a dog. He can help in transition, but when they're sitting deep, because they don't play with possession that much, they play more direct. his skill set fits that very well beyond peter shroud um there are some other names for the red bulls that i keep hearing in on trade market daniel ederman is one
And Sean Neal is the other. I think those two are also very good players. Edelman was the USU 20 captain. He's been a starter for the Red Bulls for several years now. I... I was surprised to hear his name so much because I figured that he'd have a place moving forward with this team in a different system. But they do have a lot of central midfielders. And if the offers are coming in that are strong, but like Edelman is somebody that...
I think at this point I'm expecting to move. Sean Nielsen is a guy that I've heard a lot about. It wouldn't surprise me in any way. I don't know if I would say, I feel more confident that Edelman will be traded than Nielsen, but that doesn't mean that both won't happen. Both are really tough. They're both products of a Red Bull system. And I find it hard to extrapolate out what they look like outside of that. So if you're a Philly or you're a Cincinnati, okay.
go grab them that kind of will fit like for like with what you're doing if you're not you really have to squint and look at some of the numbers and watch the tape and decide If you think they fit, I think Edelman will succeed more outside of the Red Bull system than Sean Neal as well. Like I think Neal is elite for what the system is set up as. He's a ball winner. He's an athletic freak. He's physical. He plays on the front foot going forward. If you're asking to play through him,
I think you're going to struggle a little bit. I didn't, you know, my skim around some depth charts and stuff. I think that's one. Maybe it makes sense for Dallas in like just upgrade the position. It doesn't even matter what the skill set is. Like you need pro, you need starting level players.
at center back. And if you bring him in on the deals he's on and how much it probably costs, he probably still go out and sign someone else at center back. But outside of that, it just feels hard to see how he'd fit into a lot of teams. Maybe Charlotte. in a weird like Malanda sort of replacement with Andrew Privet having a chance to earn the spot. Those are the two that popped in my head. I think like you and I think up different bars for.
um i guess fit and what is super acceptable like i think he would improve a lot of teams or at least a lot of teams could do much worse like i don't know just just scrolling through the names like real salt lake portland philly Those are teams that I think he would fit into. I said Philly, so you can't take that one from me. Portland's another one. Minnesota just traded for Brian Ferry. Yeah, Portland's another one where they're so bad at the position that it would fit as well.
He's an upgrade on Zuparic because we're an upgrade on Zuparic. And RSL might be one where they're in that sort of territory. But you're not playing him over Justin Glad. Is he that high? I mean, even Philip Quinton. Sure. I don't know. That one excites me less and less. It's their correct team. That's all. With Edelman, I don't understand what the hell Red Bulls are doing. Isn't the whole point that they develop youth players?
he's your guy. Like, and what the hard part about all of this, like you have them on homegrown deal. So they're not hitting the cap. Whatever you get him on, you don't have to pay a transfer fee. You don't have to bring him in. Like, are you really going to bring someone else in who's going to give you that big of a ceiling above what he's capable of? That seems bizarre to me.
Well, they did a tan deal on Bergen. Ronald Donkor is somebody who I think had a really good year last year and is another young player. Audrey Mamedi, he's not going to be ready for 2,000 minutes next year, but he's coming at some point. And I believe that they're going to be in the market for... eights still because like uh i spoke to julian du guzman for like off like a interview about offseason plans he mentioned number eights and wingers more than anything else
throughout the conversation. So it's, it's clear that like, that's where they're going to spend their resources. And if you've already got Bergen that just came in, um, you already have Don core. Like I, I agree with you in general, but like that would be their thought process. Okay.
I wouldn't be shocked to see a couple of these guys end up on a St. Louis, by the way. No, that's another team that makes sense. Oh, St. Louis, because we got a question in the chat. Just a little bonus one here. This is why you come to a live show. They're not going to... They're doing groundwork and like, they'll be ready to move on players, but I don't see them spending any assets on players before that they finalize the head coach because...
They don't want to sign a player that they think is universally good. And then the coach just goes, I don't really like him. So they want the coach to be a part of that. So that's kind of why that they've been a little slow on the player front.
¶ High-Demand Midfielder Emeka Eneli
And one more about the Red Bulls, Cade Cowell, loan from Chivas. That deal is just about done. It's going to happen, from what I understand. We'll see. I think that's a good roll of the dice by the Red Bulls. Let me throw this out there. So someone in the chat who's Brazilians asking about Neymar, we probably won't really. I haven't seen those 75. Yeah, we probably won't really talk about it, but you're welcome. Someone else in the chat, though, was like, oh, Daniel Edelman's not that good.
So Daniel Ellman's under contract for $465K for the next three seasons, the last of which is a team option. Minnesota just gave up that amount for Peter Stroud and then have to pay his contract. On that deal. Daniel Edelman is a good player. Like you have to double that to get an MLS starter because you asked me when one of the rumors came up, you're like, how much do you think this person costs? And it's like 450 to 500 is this person could potentially start for you.
That's the cost right now. And then you have to pay their salary. So that is a great asset to have on your roster. And the guys you named, great. Very few of them, if any of them, are a full-time MLS starter today. And if you're going to go out and get someone.
That means you're spending X on transfer fee and then X on contract. And then they take time to get comfortable. It seems weird to me to move off that. But I like the K-Cowell move. I think that's a good move. So I'm stoked about that one for the Red Bulls. I would agree. And again, they need to get wingers in. And while they want to play with the ball more, there's still going to be Red Bull DNA there and a guy with his physical attributes and talent.
You're going to get rolls of the dice. He's going to get more and more chances. He won Player of the Month one month in Liga Neckes. He wasn't a failure at Chivas, and Chivas is not an easy place to go to. I like this one, by the way. Revs. For Daniel Adelman. That's a good shot. I like that. I do like that. I do like that. Speaking of the trade market and midfielders, congratulations to Matt Doyle for skeeting this into existence.
I'm told no fewer than 10 teams in MLS have called for real Salt Lake midfielder Emeka Ineli. When Emeka Ineli did not start their playoff game, I'm fairly certain within 10 minutes of the team news coming out, a handful of teams called and said, hey, what's going on? Like, oh, is he available? And this offseason has continued. There has been conversations for a new contract with RSL that hasn't gone very far. He signed a new deal in 2024. He was part of the same draft class that...
Max Arson was, and I say that because both of them were rewarded by their clubs, and it was good stuff by both Real Salt Lake and Columbus to give both of those guys new deals earlier than they had to, and they didn't make it combative.
Then, Emeka Nelly, after that contract, went to January camp, gets two caps with the national team, continues to be viewed as a really good midfielder in this league. And Arvson has done more because he's been in the national team more. He exploded under Wilford Nancy.
Orbson got another new contract. So that is like the negotiating point for Meccano. He's like, OK, well, I know that we just kind of did a new contract a year and a half ago or whenever it was. Well, I've already outplayed that. And if you guys aren't going to give it.
we've got 10 teams lining up right here. We also like are not shopping him. They do not want to trade them, but they're going to, teams are going to keep going. Yeah. Yeah. This is the, again, who's the starter that didn't start, but.
four years on 400k a year there's no chance if you're rsl you're giving that up for easy like you have to come over the top with a deal to make it worth their time to move off a guy who's that valuable has also played multiple positions for you so he's flexible he's versatile he's high level um he's domestic so you're not using an international spot on him like
this is the type of contract that's gold in major league soccer. And so to give it up, you're going to have to be wooed more than just, yeah, he doesn't start. So we'll take a shot and we'll give you him. Like we're talking, I think we're talking 800 K in allocation money, if not more. I'm more like 1.5 to 2 million. Whoa. You're talking cash for on a Meccanelli. Let's go.
Yeah, and then you could fit a new contract, and then that just becomes a TAM deal between the acquisition costs. I think that that's something that is fair for everybody. And again, that's more speculation than anything else. I don't think I'm far off, but I want to be clear. That's not like... hearing from rsl this is the answer or so i do not have it no you're just setting it based off the market that you've seen yeah yeah yeah all right that got that got me hyped and
I would love to see him. I can only play a lot next year. So it'd be cool if he was on the team. Is there anybody off the top of your head that you'd like to see Columbus comes to mind for me? That's a good one. I mean, I like this ref shout now of saying like they need to strengthen in central midfield. Yeah, wow. I think he'd do really well in Vancouver if they transfer Kubo. Do you think that's the...
that's the series that will occur? I'm saying hypothetically. If it happens. And there is plenty of interest in Kubas. I believe Atletico... P. Yeah. Yeah. I have their jacket on the back of my chair, actually. Do you know? Yeah. I traded it with someone at GA Cup one time. They were like, hey, I'd love one of those MLS shirts. I'm like, one of the 37 I have here. They're like, I'll trade you. And I was like, I didn't know this was a thing people did. And it's great. That's fantastic. So.
If, like, again, if Kubas is to leave, if I'm Vancouver, first of all, then I'm giving Berhalter a new contract. And then I'm calling about a mechanic. What about SKC? Pairing him with Jake Davis behind Manu Garcia. Yeah. Yeah, that would be good. And like, that's a team that they've got a couple of foundational pieces and they're looking for more. But when you start your roster with Dejan Jovalich, Manu Garcia, Daniel Shallowy, Jake Davis, and a couple others.
It's a good starting point, and they have tons of flexibility. They've needed a DM since they decided Ilya Sanchez wasn't good enough, and then Ilya Sanchez was best 11-ish for LAFC for a couple years. The other... Interesting one would be Charlotte. If they decide they need more help in that position, you probably end up in a situation where you're like playing again, three of these guys.
with like Bronico and Westwood and him, and no one's a true attacking mid. But that's if Pepiel's healthy. If he's not, Kerwin Vargas. You don't know when Zaha's going to leave, if Zaha's going to stay. So that would be more of like a talent play, but I could see it work out. Yeah, again, he can fit so many different styles that so many teams should be calling. Austin would be another one where it feels like...
I'm trying to speak the Owen Wolf move. You can't name a team that I'd say no to. Yeah, that's fair. Except teams that, like, LAFC's not going to do it because they've got five of these dudes. But hypothetically, if LAFC found a way to do it, I'd be like, sweet, yeah, that makes sense. And they would.
Dude, move around a couple loans, do those short-term signings that they do every August. Make sure he goes to a weird European country first, bring him back on loan, then have him leave for four months and then bring him back on a permanent deal. Yeah, I think we need to do in the future LAFC best 11 of guys that they signed as free agents in August that have made a combined. Christian Tao, it comes to mind. Big name signings LAFC's made that you didn't know played for LAFC.
That's the best. Or it doesn't even need to be big name. It's just like, again, Jelson and the Romanian guy who came and went in a blur this year. On to the next one, Houston.
¶ Houston Dynamo's Roster Reinforcements
Houston Dynamo are very, very busy. They're finalizing a deal to sign Brazilian winger Guilherme from Santos. It's about a 2 million fee. He's 30 years old. He had 14 goals and 10 assists in 3,400 minutes across all competitions last year. This season, sorry.
including the state cup, the state championship. Sorry, I don't want to get the name wrong. That includes like some semi-pro teams. So he did particularly at the end of the season for Santos when they were able to... avoid relegation he had five assists in his last four games so he came up big at the end of the season so it wasn't just that he was padding his stats in that competition but the 14 goals 10 assists is all-inclusive i'm told that they are also in advance talks on a pair of tams
The plan this winter was to add at least four, I think, new starters. And obviously Guillermo is one. And then these two new TAM signings would be two, three. And we'll see where else they go. So. I love this because they were bad this year and they spent no money and they were late on their work and they got caught by the entire season. Are there four openings in their starting lineup?
So Guillermo comes in at the wing. Right. They need at least one center back. I'm assuming that Sivachenko is going to be the starter, but I know that they're in the market for a center back. So that's two. Brooklyn. Brooklyn Reigns is likely to leave. Sources have told me he's got one within MLS. But where does Jack McGlynn go if Guillermo is a starter? That's a great question. I'm glad you asked.
He's, Guillerme is not coming to bench Lawrence and Ali. Right. He's, you know, there may, there may be games in which they don't, they don't both don't start. They're not going to start 34 games each. But the idea of their best 11 includes both of those players. So that means Jack McGlynn is either playing an 8.5 or a 10, Artur is a 6, and then Linger can play maybe as an 8 or somebody else.
And then there's more along the back line to add from there. Right. So the way I see it is like there's now with this move done, there's probably two openings in the starting lineup if they're not bringing a goalkeeper in, which it doesn't sound like they are. It sounds like I'm told that they're not. Right. So now it's. maybe left back and maybe one of the center backs. But if you're bringing in a winger and you're still going to start Jack McGlynn, he then has to slide into central midfield.
And you don't have a lot of space left in there. I will say all this and they had injuries this year. They got caught with their pants down. Bring depth in, like have starting level players that aren't locked in starters. It's a long season. You want to compete on multiple fronts. Like none of that I have an issue with. I was just surprised to hear the amount because it didn't feel like.
There was openings and like they've spent money on some of these guys. They've brought like if you don't believe in linger, you have no choice now. Like he's there. Is he called Ponce? He's there. So it's. Yeah. Linger's not a DP. He was just counting purposes last year. He's a Tambler. Okay, but that's not cheap. I understand. But I do think that this is a player that got...
that got kind of caught with the DP tag when it was just like an accounting mechanism rather than... I remember Sam Staschko. I'll pour one out for a guy, Sam Staschko, back when his fingers were working. He wrote this really good piece on like, we need to... talk of like different tiers of dps to like
alleviate like to change expectations so that again like the average mls fan i didn't know who this player was when they signed him and that doesn't mean that he's bad that when you say dp it's just like oh he must be awesome oh danny boongo is a dp i never heard of he's gonna like Two different things. Yeah. I don't disagree. We're ready. Ready for the next team? Yeah. Brooklyn Rains, by the way. Another one in MLS. I'll be hyped about.
I like Brooklyn Raines. I think he's not as good as he showed on the U-20 national team. I think he's better than what he's shown with Houston. Shout out to TAMGAM. Thank you, Sam.
¶ Orlando City's Youth Initiative and Sales
Next team to talk about Orlando. Orlando is cooking right now. We'll start with the U22 initiative. They are finalizing deals to sign a Brazilian winger named Thiago from Bahia. I'm told the fees are around $4 million. It was reported in Brazil $6 million. I'm told $4 million. And they're signing Otavio, a 19-year-old defensive midfielder from Internacional for, I believe, the fees in the region of $3.5 million. Two U22 slots that immediately, like...
Otavio goes into the midfield. Cesar Raho is leaving. And Thiago is a winger, but he has played center forward for Bahia, not just at the youth levels, but at the senior level too. So that gives them flexibility in the attack. Rodrigo Schlegel. They are nearing a deal to sell him to Atlas for around $600,000. Our culture has gotten worse when he leaves. He belongs in League of MX. Let him go home, Tom. Let him be where he needs to be. That's awesome. Rodrigo Schlegel is chaos.
Who does Francisco Calvo play for now? Because they need to play together. I think he was playing in like Saudi Arabia or Slovakia. He was in Turkey and then he was back in. Wasn't he back? I don't know. I can't keep up with that guy other than when he's just. He plays like Sergio Ramos when he plays for El Etifak in Saudi Arabia. Okay, good call. You were right. I always have my Etifak transfers on the top of my head.
Elsewhere for them, they traded Thomas Williams to Nashville for $100,000 in occasion money. And we'll see what else happens with this team. They're... I don't know if I would go as far as I expect Morial to leave. Maybe it's more hopeful, but like there's been interest in him from Columbia and Orlando ain't standing in his way kind of thing. Right. So if that happens, then they can add a DP. And this is.
I think already a strong team. Um, they're going to need to sign a goalkeeper. I'm told that they, that they like Carlos Cornell and let's free agency. Yeah. Yeah. Um, and. they've got a couple other things to do like maybe this like with with schlegel leaving maybe brecklow now plays center back maybe this tweaks the formation or the system just a little bit but um there's a lot of good players there's a lot to like in this group
So I just want to go back real quick and say that Alvaro Medran plays on the Saudi team with Francisco Calvo and Gini Wijnaldum. So there's a roster. The team that Steven Gerard left. Yes, that is the team we're talking about. Man. Genie went out. I'm still there. Yeah. Well, that's what it says on Wikipedia. What do I know? Good for him. Yeah. Orlando, they have taken a lot of risks with young players. Like they are very open to signing these under 22 players that.
They need production from them. For them to come into the team, which is, you know, it's not a proven entity in Major League Soccer that those players end up being starter level producers year one, let alone high level players. And it feels like you're trying to replace a lot of production. I mean, our Ujo alone. And then obviously Pedro Gaese and whatever you're going to be doing at center back. But if they can improve center back, that's a huge jump for this team.
because for all the jokes i'm making schlegel what to me wasn't a starter level center back over the last few years and they chose to stay with him rather than replace um Antonio Carlos when he left and give Jansen like a true partner. And that's been one of their biggest weaknesses where.
They've dominated games they've lost because they've had fragile moments. And it's between Gaese, who's a big game performer but has mistakes in him, and then Schlegel alongside him. So if that all comes up, which is the safety at the back, you know.
raising the floor, then if the ceiling doesn't jump, this is still a good team. It's still a competitive team. And I think that's fine. And that's one of those places where then maybe you do have a little time to wait for some of the young players to find their feet and develop. But yeah. And to add with the U22, it is a fair point to say it's difficult to rely. It should be viewed, particularly in the first half of the first season that they're there, as a bonus of anything you get.
Their central midfield depth is Atuesta and Wilder Cartagena. So those are the two starters. So I don't think that this kid is coming in as like, all right, you need to start on day one. Hope you're ready. That's a good spot to be in. They also have Jirbay, who was their draft pick last year. Who I liked. That has been good, yeah. But him and Cartagena are both long-term injuries they're coming off of. Well, Cartagena's back.
I don't know about Jermaine. That's a good point. I don't know when that injury was. But Cartagena was at the beginning of last season. I think it was preseason, actually. Yeah, it was. He'll be back. I wanted to give a shout to Zippy Tuna in the chat, who's always with us, who we love, who asked us about Danny Leyva. We talked about it.
In the past, I think Jeremiah Osham put the official numbers out that it's a million dollars is what they're saying they're bringing in. And somehow they can work it, I think. I guess because of his contract coming off, plus the money coming in, it could be up to 1.5 million onto the cap or spending flexibility. That was a weird way. I didn't really get that. I'm making that up about the salary thing on the fly.
No, no, no. And again, that wasn't meant to be disrespectful. In interesting, a different way of like, oh, because that's how some CSOs look at it. It's not just, what's the fee? It's just like, all right, what does this mean for the salary cap? It was just interesting to see that kind of like good reporting by Jeremiah. Yeah. Also, we have a bunch of super draft conversation going on in the chat, which I love because the sicko super draft situation is upon us. Okay, Tom, you can keep rolling.
If you have any other, I don't want to take away Thomas Williams from me because I'm going to move teams now. I'm hyped about Tommy Williams. $100,000 for this and a draft pick makes sense. Oscar Pereja is the one who kept telling me how good Tommy Williams is. So what am I supposed to do? I thought he was going to be Alex Freeman last year. Yeah. Yeah. He kept having opportunities or he never got opportunities. They kept talking about him being the one to break through. And.
I think at some point it's fair to say, okay, it didn't happen. Is there a wall? He is a physically early developer, right? He was over six foot tall. a 15 and so he gets pulled into a first team and then he spends three to four years not making it through and you don't know what that does to a player but it feels like Nashville has an idea of what he could be. Nashville is one of those teams that doesn't really have an academy right now. So they're sort of buying.
homegrowns from other teams or finding them in the draft to be able to improve their team. So I think he's got a shot to be a really good player. And I think no matter what the risk that Nashville is putting on the board is. exactly what you want to do with these assets i agree And helps to new coaching staff that plays young players. So you have a chance to make these moves. And again, you're not going to go 100%, particularly in some of these. But again, at 100,000?
good roll the dice and for like good on Orlando for like, all right, like, yeah, we're not going to play him. Yeah. You'd hope there's some sell on in there for them. Yeah. I didn't see anything in the release. Yeah. You know, but like, you know, there were some teams that'll be like, Hey, we know you're not good enough to play. Okay.
Oh, well, you're so valuable to us. We need six. It's just like, wait, those two things can't be true. Or it's like with contracts, it goes, no, no, no, we're not getting a new contract. Oh, well, actually, we need $2 million. It's like, what are you talking about? Both can't be. You got to do one or the other. If I'm that valuable, then you got to give me a contract.
if I'm not worth the contract. We started this show. The first chat was I'm trying to push Justin Hack to Orlando, which brings us full circle on you're not going to play that much, but you're too valuable to let go. And now he's a very valuable free agent.
¶ Montreal's Costly Defensive Additions
Yes, he is. He's, again, one of the more key. We'll get there in a second, but we got to talk Montreal. So the transition from Orlando to Montreal, Dagger Dan Thorhawson goes in a trade to Montreal for 500,000 game. plus another 125 in add-ons. Brian Vera, as previously reported, that's done. 1.2 million GAM, plus another 350,000. So that is a guaranteed 1.7 million GAM.
up to north of two million game for these two players. I don't like that. Yeah, that's a lot. The Vera one is more offensive to me than Dagger Dan. Because as I've said, 500K for a starter, I think you're in the ballpark of. And I think Dagger Dan is a starter. The odd part about Orlando is we assume Alex Freeman is going to get sold. Yeah. I mean, I'm not asking you. My point is Alex Freeman will not be on Orlando to start the 2027 season no matter what. Correct.
So if you have a relationship with Dagger Dan, who was your starting right back before you were replacing with Alex Freeman, is now the time to get off of him. And as I keep saying, this is the number that you have to pay. So it's not like they got a great deal. They got the deal worth value. I appreciate Montreal. I appreciate Montreal going out and getting starters to help young players to not make their lives miserable. And I think this is a fine position to do it at. And then.
He originally came in as a center mid, and then they played him at right back, and he became a right back. So maybe there's space as well for Montreal to feel like... There's a higher ceiling if as he gets his feet wet there, they can move him higher up the field and maybe he becomes a factor. I don't mind that move. Vera, I don't think he's an elite center back in MLS. This feels like a crazy number to pay for this guy.
The only devil's advocate here is he's on like $600,000. So if you want to do the cap accounting, it was like, what did Bill Tuiloma get traded for? It was like a higher fee than $750,000, I think. Yeah, but because he was on a very, very team-friendly deal, and that was part of the price. It's just like if he was a more difficult contract to trade, it would have been less. And so maybe that's at play here, but I agree with you. It's a wild move.
Now, I think you get more out of Jalen Neal or Efren Morales if they're playing alongside Vera, at least to start. And I think you can potentially... help a Dante Sealy or whoever else by having dagger Dan on the team. Like this is what we said was they have over calculated in some ways at times and you need some adults in the room who can help.
It just seems like a lot to give up for some guys that who else, who else was like, who are they bidding against to get Brian adult in the room for somebody who is constantly on like a, shouldn't that have been a red court? Exactly. That's all I got on my show. That's all the juice you've got for it? That's all I got. That's all I got. Are we done?
¶ MLS Free Agent Market Deep Dive
I think so. Okay. We had Matthew Chaniere made permanent, which was announced. You don't like it if it's not your thing. You don't want to talk about it. So that was made permanent. I honestly, looking at the rundown, I skipped into the next section and I'm getting ready to start filming.
And then Sergio... It's on me, coach. Listen, I got to go back to the training ground and I got to be better one day at a time and just wait humbly for my next chance. Sergio Reguilon is... still being connected to um to inter miami which they won mls cup so therefore all their stuff was delayed the most in terms of making their announcements and then figuring out what they want to do so
That's one that we're just going to keep hearing and waiting on as we go forward. Thanks to everyone in the chat for all the questions, all the comments. I think we've touched on a bunch of them, but you can keep throwing them in there. We're going to talk a little bit about free agents and conca champions, and then we can answer some stuff.
at the end. But as I said, big mailbag episode coming up before the holidays so that we can get to a lot of the stuff that you are all curious about. I have one question from the chat, which is the most sicko thing anybody's ever asked me. From Mason. Tom, are you covering the re-entry draft? I just want to say I love you. We got some super draft stuff. What was the trade? It was Montreal and Dallas. It was a super draft pick for allocation money.
Yeah, Dallas moved up to number three. And shout out to Dallas's media team. they were ready after the announcement with an interview with Logan Farrington. They traded up to the number three spot to draft Logan Farrington, and they had that ready. It was really good. Ryan is the one over there who does that, one of the best in the game.
So yeah, continue. Let's go into it. So now we're going to go into free agents. Yeah, let me, I'm going to, these are the best, the best players on the board for me. Christian Espinosa, Christian Benzage, Dane St. Clair, Justin Hack. Carlos Cornell, Walker Zimmerman, Mikhail Ure, Paul Rothrock. Really quickly on Ure, I wrote a piece that I was like, you're the top 10. And I didn't have him in it.
Only because I was like, oh, he's just going back to Europe. Or maybe stay in Philly. What I've been told is that he is talking to multiple teams, and he is open to staying in MLS, even if it isn't in Philly. I've elevated him back into the top 10 just because at first I was like, oh, he's not staying here. Why put him in this? That's an interesting development. One of the ones that I didn't put in because I also kind of assumed there's no way he plays for a different MLS team.
Is Robin Ludd, like, really a free agent? Yeah, I'm still expecting him to come back, but, like, crap, man. I was saying that about Dane Sinclair. Yeah. I don't know the ins and outs of the negotiation. If he's a real free agent, he is, to me, a top three free agent. Even at 32? Yeah. He's so flexible. He's so good. He's now played in a system that isn't, I don't think, plays to his strengths.
and he has shown that he can be really really good i would say he's a guy where again like anelli there's not a team that i don't like them bringing him in yeah and now the conversations of like Mid-table teams that are trying to make a bump, it's a safe move for an SKC. It's a safe move. Well, they're not mid-table, so I don't even know why I said that. It's a safe move for an RSL. Teams like that where you're like, okay, whatever contract status he ends up on.
he's going to give you production. Or if a big team can sneak him in against the cap, he becomes like a championship keystone player where we talk about when Victor Vasquez got to Toronto where it's like they just needed one more. He could be that one more. if he wants to be for a championship team, because he is a DP level player. I wouldn't go as far as that, but I do agree that he's like...
He can be a key piece on a good team. The only worry there is longevity. Obviously, there are some guys that are in their 30s that I do. Again, Ludd should be. You're right. I agree with that. But a guy like Walker Zimmerman, I still think he's very valuable. He's 32, right? He's not. He made best 11 five years in a row. He's not quite that guy. And guess what? The guy he is right now is still very good, I think, and particularly in the right system. Toronto.
For playing for Robin Frazier, for that team, what they need on the field, obviously, first and foremost, is very important. Off the field. They're continuing to reset the culture, and they've done a lot of great work so far. And who better to bring in than a guy like Walker Zimmerman Free Agency to plug the hole on the field and in the locker room, which is, again, important. Christian Benteke.
I just have, I just want to will it into existence, him going to Minnesota. I want to be clear. I would, I'd be surprised. Minnesota under Khaled Al-Mahd. They don't sign guys of this profile or of this fee. I mean, look at Dane St. Clair made free agency. Again, I don't know the ins and outs of what the negotiations were.
I don't know how you let him get to free agency. I don't know how Seattle lets Paul Rothrock get to free agency. Because Paul Rothrock is capped in a tier where he can only make the senior maximum. That's like, whatever, $700,000.
Like, Seattle, I'm surprised that they didn't get that deal done before free agency. And same thing with Dane Sink. Dane Sinkler just won goalkeeper of the year. And you're not going to win goalkeeper of the year every year, but he's established he's a high-level goalkeeper in this league. And those players cost money. Yeah. I'm just surprised. Dane St. Clair, you could argue, is the MVP of that club. Like, they are defensive. Sure wasn't a playoff. Yeah, they're a defensive-based team.
The goal for a lot of playoff games is to get to PKs where he's a difference maker. Like, plus he's going to be on a World Cup stage. Maybe. Like very in a very big way, which is not the whole reason. But one, it has a potential sell on at the end if you're worried about the contract. And two.
It promotes your team and puts you in a good spot. One of the ones we keep getting is Justin Hack, who a lot of people have put out there. My pick is Justin Hack to San Jose, as I think he fits best in a three-center back setup.
If you're Justin Hack, and I'm not joking when I say more than half of the league has called about him, why would San Jose be up there? Like, let's, again, you can insert any teams, and you have the likelihood is that they have at least called, and obviously the finances have to be correct.
But like all things being equal, let's say you have to choose from LA Galaxy, LAFC, going back to NYCFC. But is the contract the same between LA Galaxy, LAFC and San Jose for you? I'm saying all things being equal. Oh, yeah. But I don't think there's, and again, this is another player. There's a cap. I should have started this section with this. It is infuriating to me that this isn't free agency. We need to call it something else.
I even tried to read the CBA, immediately regretted that, did not get any information from it, asked people who were smarter than me on it. Because Christian Espinosa, you can only offer him 90% of whatever San Jose offered him. And it's like that depending on what tier you're in.
Paul Rothrock, you can only offer him the max, but you need to qualify free agency. This isn't free agency. There's nothing free about it. Yeah, you can't offer anything. The other thing I would say for Hack is, I don't know that he's a... Even if he gets the conversation, I don't know that he's a locked in starter for a lot of these teams. But my main thing is, I think he needs to be a center back in a back three. Sure. So he has to find a group that's playing that way.
And go there. And that's not every team in MLS right now. Or have like a hard man next to him. Like him and Tiago Martins. Like... that was such a good partnership. And I know that it was as a back three with Gustavo. But if he's the ball player and you have more of a destroyer and again, Tiago Martins can do a ball playing. That's why he's a DP. He's a very good player. But like that dude is just.
made of steel and just a physical presence on top of it. So if, if you pair him with somebody like that in a back four, I think that can work too. Yeah. Any other free agent convos before we move? No, I will say, um, Every year I have to remind myself that this isn't like the NBA where...
After the tampering, you can't tamper, so you can't talk to people. And then if free agency opens at 1 p.m. Eastern, at 1.02 p.m., there's a deal that's magically completely already all done and all the little nuances. It's really impressive that you can get that done in 120 seconds. So I was ready for that. And then I was like, oh, yeah, that's not how it works. Plenty of time in the offseason for these players to make decisions and figure out what they want to do. Less time.
¶ CONCACAF Champions Cup Bracket Analysis
for the teams that are in conca champions. We got our bracket on Tuesday night or whenever it was, as I said, another awkward draw. In general, I'd say tough draw for major league soccer teams in that. for the most part you have to face probably a league mx team before you even get to a quarter final let alone the fact that everyone will have to go through one
to get to a semifinal. Um, and then there's some tough MLS on MLS matchups potentially coming as well as of course, all of Helen says had the success they've had, uh, over the last few years and some of the other big teams, uh, in the region. One of the most delicious ones just out the gate.
is San Diego drawing Pumas, their first ever CONCACA champions. You're sitting right on the Mexico border. You know, for many people, they were Tijuana fans. They listened to Liga MX on the radio. They watch it on TV. Like our friend Michele Giannone covered. Liga MX full time living in Tijuana, like you're living in San Diego. You are right there. It's not TJ. It's Pumas. And then the winner of that will move into a Toluca.
A game against Toluca who are on a bye into the next round. And if they were to go far enough, LA Galaxy are in that little quadrant as well. LA Galaxy playing Sporting San Miguelito from Panama in their opening game into a bye against Mount Pleasant. which is the bayou, like that's the portion of the bracket you want to be in. It's a very favorable draw just to get to the quarterfinals. But that little corner of the world, obviously we saw Toluca and LA Galaxy in the...
I want to say it was the Liga MX Esportiva Walmart X explainer championship friendly cup. Was that the game that it was? Yeah, I think so. Sponsored by Sparrow. Last year, which was a wild game. And Toluca are in the Laguia final again. They're playing later tonight. That team is a wagon. In the first leg. And, yeah, they've been really, really impressive. They're one of the teams to watch, Ruiz in midfield.
incredible. So that's a really, really strong quadrant and San Diego's first shot at this. It doesn't get easy. It's not easy. We've seen teams really struggle. Remember Austin losing in their first opportunity. To a Haitian club, was it? Or a Dominican club? A Haitian team that was playing in the Dominican Republic because their league was canceled due to... Yes.
Political turmoil in Haiti. So that's one of the really big regions. Somehow Nashville and Inter-Miami end up in a potential clash again. I don't know what's going on. It's every year. It's every year. It's three times a year. There's like not much between them, except for the fact that they just keep playing and it's always meaningful games. So now I guess they're rivals. Nashville would have to get through Ottawa first, who were CPL champions for the first time, which was really.
Really cool to see on the MLS side of things. The other one that could be all MLS in the next round would be Seattle got a buy and Vancouver Whitecaps. If they're able to get a victory in the first round, they would move into all Cascadia round of six. which is a pretty tasty game to just have earlier in the year. For sure. And in that quadrant, there's a possible setup of Cincinnati Tigres in the round of 16. That's another big time matchup. But again, there's...
Outside of Galaxy getting Mount Pleasant, potentially, again, if they get through the first round, there isn't... When you get to the round of 16, as it should be in a regional competition, there isn't an easy match. LAFC would get Al Jalense if they're able to get by Real España, which, remember, three years ago? Or maybe...
No, that was Leon. I thought it was the game right before COVID. Whatever it was, LAFC went down. I think they lost at Alojolense or they lost in the second leg at home and almost lost the tie. So they have a little bit of history there and it was an incredible series. So that's... not easy and then in that quadrant you have Cruz Azul and Monterey potentially floating in a quarterfinal if Vancouver FC doesn't knock all of them
out the water in their first opportunity. So this is the pathway. The final will be on May 30th. My understanding from what I've heard is there's two separate February start dates. There's like an early February one and then a two-week break and then a late one. And I don't think the MLS teams know which one they're all in yet. So they're all fingers crossed hoping for the second one. Otherwise, you just start earlier for no reason.
But that has to do with the other leagues that are all currently in their clausuras and playing. competitions and all of that. So it's a wild and wacky region. It's why we're obsessed with it. It's why we absolutely love it. Olympia Club America, you know, is going to be like, oh, I'm not going to watch this. And Olympia is going to put up like a four spot.
in the first leg, and then Club America is going to win 7-0 in the second leg. So after we go to Halifax, maybe we'll get a CCL game in there at some point, sponsored by Saudi Arabia. as it always is in this region. Okay. That's all we had for live stuff on the show today. So thank you to all of you for joining us. Thank you to all of you for being here. Thank you to you, Tom, especially for all of your insights and all of your work.
has a question here, lay it on in the chat. We can hang out for a minute and take them. But if anyone doesn't, then we can move out of here and head out. And we're going to keep doing this throughout the off season. So make sure to jump in. We'll put out some posts on Blue Sky when we're going to go live. Make sure to subscribe to us on YouTube so you get the alert. And we'll talk to you all again very, very soon.