Coming to you live from Orelliot Avenue Studios of Sports Radio ninety three point three KJRFM. This is Sounders Weekly with your host Jackson Felts.
Good evening, everybody, welcome into Sounders Weekly. Jackson Felts here, good to be with you on this Wednesday evening. Beautiful day, weather finally turning here in Seattle, and the Sounders are coming home for a three match home stretch in nine days. After that long road week where we had three matches and eight days all on the road. Sounders with the win at Houston, the loss at LAFC that we're just not gonna talk about today, and then the one one
drawed down at Portland this last Saturday. Now we have a three match in nine day home stretch. It starts with Dallas coming up on it Saturday. That's gonna be an eleven thirty Providence Swedish pre match show right here ninety three point three KJRFM and a twelve o'clock kickoff, So a little bit of brunch or early lunch with the Sounders on Saturday afternoon. Then they'll have a San Diego home match on Wednesday night. That's I believe a five thirty game at Loominfield on a Wednesday, so sort
of happy hour. We go from Brunch with the Sounders to Happy Hour with the Sounders on Wednesday, and then Sunday against Minnesota at three pm on that following Sunday, So nine days, three home matches after that last road stretch, but big week to talk about, and of course we'll be talking about that Porland game. We're gonna be talking to Dax McCarty, who's a studio host with MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. He'll be coming up here in just about fifteen to twenty minutes here on Sounders Weekly.
We're also gonna be, of course, be a joined by Ari Lillianwall, who is a writer and editor from Major League Soccer dot Com and also hosts the podcast Lobbing Scorchers. He'll come up later tonight. As both guests and the person who's on hold right now, A're gonna be talking about the Sounders one to one draw against the Pearland Timbers this last Saturday, FC Dallas coming up this Saturday, and everything in between, plus with our next guest, the
little venture that he has going. I'm joking, it's quite a big venture. James Riley is a former Sounders defender. You know him, you love him. We've watched him for a very long time. And James Riley is now the head coach of Ballard FC. Ballard FC is a USL two team, so it's just a division down from the USL level. USL is kind of on par with MLS Next Pro. I know, there's so many different leagues, but MLS Next Pro. He kind of used to be part of the USL. They went off and did their own thing.
That's where Tacoma Defiance is, but to S two formerly used to be part of the USL one league below that is USL two. That is where Ballard FC plays. That is where Midlakes plays. Over on the east side, that's where West Seattle Junction plays. That's where Tacoma Stars play. There's a lot of teams out here in the Northwest, and of course Ballard FC is one of them. They're head coach. James Riley, former Sounders defender, joined us right
here on Sounders Weekly. James, my good friend. I know you're also a broadcast analyst here on KJR for Sounders matches as well.
How are you a buddy. It's good to have you on this show.
Thanks Jackson, always a pleasure man. Appreciate you and glad to be on.
Good to have you back on my friend. All right, let's uh, let's start with some Sounders. I do want to talk a fair amount of ballad FC here in a moment, but Sounders Timbers is all we obviously where we have to start tonight show.
And that one to one game.
You know, I watched it again on Sunday and I thought the Sounders were the better team, But at the same time, it's one of those weird things where I'm pretty happy with a solid road point. What's your mentality on Sounders soccer coming out of that one to one game down in Portland.
Yeah, no, I agree. I mean, anytime you give you a point on the road in this league is exceptional, and obviously to do it against historical formidable flow is even better. I like the fact that we were able to score that first goal. Obviously we want to see out that chance and not give up such a quick response goal. But I agree statistically, I thought we were the better team, created more of the chances and that's
the game. But I you know, for me getting a point there, you know, they the guys will be you know, maybe a little upset, but happy with the point and now you know, you take it and you move on James.
Obviously, it's a team that's still dealing with the absence of Jordan Morris the Ford spot. Danny Mazowski has been so good. But what interests me about Seattle and what Brian Schweitzer and his staff have to worry about right now is finding the best combination midfielders. Because you have Pedro, you have Albert who is obviously the goal scorer from Saturday.
You have Ryan Kent who's come on to the scene Gangbusters and everybody else who has kind of marked your eyes as a must starter in this midfield for the Rave Green right now.
Great one, I mean I think, I mean, for me, Vargas and Roal Donn are phenomenal to have those two as you as your double pivots and then not wide. I mean, Kent has been exceptional. You have an experienced player that comes in that's played in great leagues, great teams, that understands the pressures of getting results. But I think he adds a different just dynam just a dynamic presence. He's just very good. That way makes very good decisions
on the ball. Obviously, you know, Roth Rocketing the homegrown just just industrial. For me, he's a Brian Metric type of player, Sounders type of player, almost like a young Roger Lezk that just does it we before me mentality, just gets up and down the line. You know, He's going to come in with like a workhorse, rocky type of type of you know, pedigree, and he also has the quality and I think Pedro for me is great.
He's the one that's balanced. He's a bit more cerebral and just flows with the game and it has fantastic technique and tactical awareness and goal scoring, goal production, you know ability. And then for me, Robert, you know is Albert. He has he has to be playing in his form. He can set up goals, you can score goals, and then obviously you have a suit set that can fill in.
But I think it's good to have options, and I think, you know, you'll continue to look at the best combinations and training in a games and then ultimately you have to give it to the players that are performing, you know, the best individually and collectively. But it's a good problem to have for coach Smester.
Yeah, it's a great problem. Indeed, there's certainly a log jam. And obviously they start a match stretch of three home matches in nine days, starting on Saturday against Dallas, so we might be in a position where we see you know, everybody you just mentioned him more coming up along those
three games, and I'm sure you will. But it's just that combination of of you know, with a full week off, you know, what do you do with that midfield is so interesting And James Riley's with us, a former Sounders FC defender now head coach of Ballard f C, who will get into in just a moment, but you know, James is as a former defender.
You know.
One of the things that's that's interested me so much is watching Kim ky Hee because he was our man of the match on Saturday and I think it could have been him or Yamar. We said as much on the postgame show, and it's it's been amazing to me how seamlessly Kim has integrated back into the starting lamp and the fact that they completely you know, other than not one goal, but really for the most part shut down a very very good Portland offense.
Yes, I've always had a soft spot for Kim because he's Korean, and obviously my background is Korean, but I mean I thought he was fantastic. My mother's Korean, but I thought he was fantastic when he was here. Honestly, I was. I was sad that he's left. I thought he had a banner year the year he left or prior, and then you know, things happened. But I think it's good.
I think he handled it professionally. I think it's awesome for the club to bring him back and bring him back, not inside, you know, to retire him, but bring him back because he has value, value and an experienced player that's been through our system and knows what it takes to be in Seattle. So I think he's been fantastic.
And for me, Yamar almost is similar to you know, Stefan, where we just expect it, like when he has a good game, gets expected and he's a he's a stalwart back there and you always just feel comfortable and safe with him in the back. But yeah, those two as you're you're starting center backs are great and obviously with Reagan getting healthy, you just want competitions at spots, and he's a fantastic young you know center back that has played some big, big, massive minutes for us, and then
certainly we'll get his time once healthy. But there's gonna be competitions at spots, which is great, and especially as the Sounders get into kind of that congested period in the summer with the Club World Cup. I mean, you'll need everyone confident, comfortable fit to go in and contribute. So I think it's a great great again, another great problem to have, and kudos to those two very experienced center backs.
Definitely want to be healthy and be you know, rearing mentally right, physically right. Coming up a month from now when you have to face botha Fogo and Athletico Madrid and PSG, you want to be able to stay respectable and stay you know, as competitive as you could potentially be on that will require health and require you know, good form. So hopefully we continue to get that over the next four games before the Club World Cup starts. One player who we know will not be playing for
the Sounders. He hasn't played, of course since a couple of years ago, because he is one of our compatriots on our Sounders broadcasts and also a former Ballard FC player.
Kelen row Kellan Rowe, who.
Is part of our crew of course, and he was part of the Ballard f C roster for the US Open Cup which was unfortunately a loss out of inter Bay Stadium just a month or two ago.
James, there doesn't need to be a quote.
We've already talked and we talked to Kellen on this show about you know that that game and about what happened. But glossing over that the fact that you did have an Open Cup run and ended in disappointment there in that one game at inter Bay once again to Spokane.
Crazy enough.
But you know now that you are preparing for the first home match of the year, you're obviously starting off well. You had your first win for Ballard f C last weekend, started off very strong with a three uh and win. But you know, as Mike Clock reads right now, I mean we are right now you will be actually coaching and playing two days from this moment on Friday night against Bigfoot FC down there at Interbay in the first home match for Ballad FC of twenty twenty five. I'm
kind of wondering how your team is setting up. You obviously a one oer to o start, but how you feeling about your squad entering twenty twenty five there with Ballard.
Yeah, no, I appreciate it. We're excited. We've returned seventeen players, which was the most that we returned last year. Last year, we obviously had a fantastic group, and my staff and I are always very fortunate and grateful to be able to work with the such a you know, fine group of young men that represent a lot of the local universities from you dub to to Seattle, U to SPU, and then we have some from outside of that. But
you know, the group looks strong again. We will face the problem of too many good players not enough spots on the field, and that's what we'll have to navigate. But our core message to the group right now is to dedicate to the to the process. And it was interesting we did a poll the other day and just said, you know, raise your hand if you want to be a pro. And we had twenty five guys at training on that day and all twenty five raised their hands.
And so it's an ambitious group and so you know, we were trying to make it as close to a pro environment as we can by just having standards, having a process that we dedicate to and you know, trying to get better and compete every day. A lot of the a lot of those practices we take from the Sounders during my time there. We have Ben dragon Vond that was with the Sounders at the USL level and MLS level as our director of goalkeeping, so he knows
that and brings that. We have coach Mantenda, who's you know, been been at the Columbus Crew when they at the academy level when they won their MLS Cup, and and is an EPD coach with watching you soccer. So we have a nice petigree. And it's good to have a balanced coaching staff as well, that holds me accountable, that challenges me, that affirms me, and then I try to do the same to all my coaching staff and players.
So we feel very confident and good this year, but more so of we have a clear mind of how we want to dedicate to the process and what that takes. And when you have an ambitious group that comes in and works hard, you know, the sky's the limit. But we'll just stay dedicated to the process and the results will come from that.
James Riley is our guest. He is the head coach of Ballard FC, also of course former Sounders defender. Also of course broadcast analysts for Sounders matches here on kjar for folks who want to head out there to the first hole match of the season. Ballard FC hosting Bigfoot FC two days from right now to seven o'clock kickoff at inter Base Stadium on this Friday, May twenty third.
Go BALLARDFC dot com for tickets. And you know, one of the interesting things, James, is that your former midfielder Peter Kingston has graduated and is now a big member of Tacoma Defiance. We saw him, you know, in the Open Cup, and he's obviously a key member, you know, working his way up through the Sounders system. And I think for not only Ballard f C fans, but of Sounders fans and Defiance fans who are watching players move not only through their system, but move from Ballard into
the Sounders. And there's been multiple obviously, Leo Bernie is a guy who the Sounders then added to the squad draft and is now part of that program as well. I think the question is who are those guys that both Sounder fans and Ballard f C fans are gonna be watching to move from your squad this year to the next level and maybe not the next level in twenty twenty six, but the next level here in the
next few years. Who are the main guys we need to be watching that we're going to be seeing as part of the system with the Sounders in the next few years.
You think, great question. I mean, certainly we're very happy and continues to pour. You know, Peter Kingston and we were actually out there that was our first team event, was the Open Cup game. So it was just great to see such a high level event. See they come with defiance play, you know, a first team level group at you know from Portland. They were, they were and but just it was awesome to see, you know, experience that as about as ballad s C as part of
as our first team event. But we're very happy for Peter. A lot of guys stayed actors, you know, say hello, we continue to support him and Leo Charlie Gaffney has signed there as well. Damien Alverez Lars is signed there. Lewis Roeblis is also form BARFC player. But I think this year, you know, we have a handful without you know, and I might miss a couple guys, but I think
we have Austin Brummitt is a high level potential. You have Cosa Koff at a you dub who's a high level potential, and Ricky Aman who's a high level potential. Charlie lamb Fear, a goalkeeper at a s U, is a high level potential. So those would be my quick handful. We have Andre Philebosian also at SU has high level potential. Man, we have a lot. We have a lot, and I probably left some names out, but we have a lot.
Well, you deserve kudos as well, and it's a great job that you've done with those kids there with Ballard f C. Well done with your first win of the season two nights from right now. Good luck there against Bigfoot in the first home gotch of the year. Good luck at Inner Bay. Thanks so much for spending some time highlighting your squad and talking some sounders.
Man.
I'm sure I'll see you soon in the broadcast booth, but look forward to seeing you on the sideline there at Interbay as well.
Thanks Jackson, always a pleasure, buddy. Appreciate you up the bridges and go Sounders. We'll see Sam. Thank you so much.
Up the bridges.
Indeed, that is of course sort of like you know, scarves up for the Sounders. Up the bridges is the line there, the promotional line for ballad f C. I believe that's a Andrew Harvey creation, but nonetheless up the bridges for ballad f C. Look forward to seeing another win this Friday against Bigfoot, and look forward to seeing another Sounds win this Saturday against FC Dallas. Will turn our attention back to the Seattle Sounders. Dax McCarty MLS
season pass on Apple TV Studio Analyst. He will join us next as we talk Sounders Timbers and we preview Sounders Dallas ahead, that's next on Sounders Weekly Sports Radio ninety three point three KJRFM.
Now back to Sounders Weekly on your home for Sunders FC Seattle's Sports Radio ninety three point three kjr FL.
Welcome back, Jackson Felt Sounders Weekly. Good to have you with us here on this Wednesday night Sports Radio ninety three point three KJRFM. This is the place you will hear the next Sounders match that's against Dallas this coming Saturday, late morning early afternoon. The pre match show the Providence Swedish pre match show will begin at eleven thirty am, so brunch with the Sounders kickoff set for noon right now,
right here on ninety three point three KJRFM. Folks, you can also listen in Spanish language and watch on last Season Pass on Apple TV. MLS Season Pass is the place you can watch the match and somebody who hosts some incredible content from the studio side of things. Somebody who we've never had on here Sounders Weekly before. It's Dax McCarty. Former MLS I don't know legend, but longtime MLS player and Dax McCarty joins us right here on Sounders Weekly for the first time.
Dax, how are you, hey man?
Thanks for having me. Appreciate that warm welcome. I'm excited to chat.
You know.
I think I don't know if Sounder fans are gonna be mad at me, but I will say that I know you played with other teams and not necessarily rivals from from Dallas, DC, New York, Chicago, Nashville. Am I missing one? I knew I was missing one. I love I loved watching the way you played, and I loved I loved just kind of how you carried yourself on the field. And it was it was nice that you never had to play for a Portland Vancouver. So I feel safe saying.
That Jackson, I almost you know, it's funny you say that I was. I was the Portland Timber for about an hour? What or I don't know. I don't know how old you are, and I don't you don't have to say it live on air. But after the.
Twenty ten season with FC Dallas, we had just made it to the MLS Cup Final. We lost to the Colorado Rapids and heartbreaking fashion in extra time. I was left unprotected in the expansion draft. And if you remember, the Portland Timbers were coming into MLS in twenty eleven, and I was selected by the Portland Timbers in the expansion draft because I was left unprotected by Dallas and there was already a trade in place with DC United, so I got I got taken by the Portland Timbers
to then be traded to DC. But yes, I will say, you know, a blessing and a curse, because obviously have no regrets in my career. But you know, you wouldn't have particularly loved me if I would have played for the Timbers, and I think I would have loved playing playing with a guy like Diego Chara and Diego Valari for as long as they were there.
That would have been a pretty special midfield I think.
I hate to say that it would have. It's one of those things where like we can up here respect Diego Valeri because he's one of the absolute greats, but it's one of those things where we just hated watching how good he was on the field for so long. So it's one of those things. But midfield would have been something you didn't say though in DC for that long.
So maybe the Timbers would have done with with you know what happened with d C, and you would end up, you know, going and getting your your you know, long time with New York still who knows, but just glad that you never had to don those ugly green colors down there in Portland. Dax McCarty's our guest. He's now a studio analyst with MLS Season passed on Apple TV, breaking all these things down. Excited to chat some soccer with him for the first time here on Sounders Weekly.
All right, Dax, let's start Seattle Portland. Since we're already very much in the mood of the rivalry one one game for me, I came away from that game on Saturday night saying to myself, I feel like Portland is a little lucky to end up with a point, but nonetheless for the Sounders, and I always think this, it's it's a solid whenever you can kind of go on the road and end up getting a point on the road. What do you takeaways from Sounders Timbers from there on Saturday in Providence Park.
Yeah, I'd agree with you. I thought Seattle was the better team on the night. Anytime you have Portland Seattle, it's must Sea television and listen. It wasn't I think the spectacle that, you know, maybe it could have been. It's funny because I think there's a lot of recency bias when it comes to big rivalries in MLS, And look, I'm a victim of it too, right.
You have you have hell Is Reel, you have l Traffico, and.
You know, Portland Seattle is always top of mind for me, just being such a fan of the history of the league and that Ryan. But but the one thing that Portland Seattle hasn't really provided over the years is those crazy high scoring games, right like L TRAFFICO feels like it's just pure chaos every time those two teams step on the field, and with Portland Seattle you feel like it's it's more of a stalemate. You know, the teams
are quite even. Portland has been really free flowing this year, unbelievably dynamic in their attack, and yet Seattle completely nullified them. I think that's what I take away from this game was how impressive Seattle was in the back, especially after you know Jackson Reagan goes down with his hamstring injury and he's missed the last couple of games, that that back line of the Seattle Sounders has been really impressive
over the last couple of games. Obviously with Knuwho and Kim and Yamar and Alex Roldan.
I think you have a set stable.
Of a back line where you just see Seattle getting back to what they do best. It's protecting Stephan fries Net, making sure that they're not giving up great chances, and then letting their attacking players go and win the game for them.
Obviously one to one.
I think Brian Schmitzer after this three game road trip, would have been happy with four points.
The form that Seattle's in right now, maybe he would have wanted.
Five or six, but I think, you know, four points out of three games on the road, especially ending in Portland with a point, I think he would.
Have taken that.
Especially with the way the Sounders performed. I thought they were the better team on the night and probably deserved a little bit more. But it's always the fun rivalry anytime those two teams get together, I always watch.
Yeah, definitely it was fun and I think that's that's
absolutely correct. I mean, you look at the chances for Seattle down the stretch in those final ten minutes, and you know, I just I rewatched it on Sunday morning and said to myself, gosh, you know, if this, if this is an inch lower on this cross from now, or if you know, Pedro plays Paul Wright instead of Albert Left and all these little things here and there, and Portland is well, you know, we'll probably say the same Well that you know, third minute strike, you know
from distance, if that's a foot to the right, it's in the back of the So there's all these things either way. But I think you're dead on and that Seattle was the better team. Dax McCarty's our guest MLS Season Pass on Apple TV studio analysts there for MLS Season Pass from the Portland side. I'm interested because it's a team going into the match that I kind of looked at and said, I'm very into the Weeds on stats. I mean, I don't I don't know if you are, Dax.
I mean, as a former player, do you care about the x GEN expected goals and that kind of stuff.
I think I think there's a place in the game for them, for sure, But as an older let's call it. I don't want to call myself a curmudgeon.
Just yet, but I am.
I'm I'm certainly not too gung ho on XG and on the data. I think there's a place for it in the game as long as it coincides with the eye test in what my eyes tell me right exactly.
So I mean I ton of took that, and I can't say that I've watched, you know, a lot. I've watched some Portland Timbers this year when you win, they're on and you know, those the condensed games leading up to Saturday, and from what I was reading statistically with their x G and what they were doing on the field, I kind of said this team doesn't seem to me to be I guess positioned where they actually are. It
seems like they're outperforming themselves. And I kind of came away from from Saturday's game also saying to myself, it's a Sounder team that wasn't able to start Pedro de la Vega. Do do the fixture congestion the rotation from LAFC on Wednesday? Obviously, Jordan Morris is injured. You mentioned Jackson Reagan. So it's a Sounder team that is one hundred percent and it's a Timber team that still I feel like was outperformed. Dax McCarty's our guest MLS Season
Pass on Apple DV Studio Analysts. Let's go to the team that you started your career with, and that's the next team on the Sounders schedule.
FC Dallas.
Obviously, these are two teams decks that made quite the deal in the off season with Hayesus Ferreira and then of course Paul Ariola, who unfortunately with the ACL done for the year. But it's a Dallas team that I kind of, you know, see back and forth, middling figuring themselves out. What do you see from this Dallas team? That we're going to have at Luminfield this Saturday.
Yeah, I've struggled to analyze Dallas because they're they're confounding.
They're a confounding team.
To me, they're pre What I would say to Seattle fans is beware, Seattle should be expected to win this game.
Seattle is the better team.
They have more depths, and quite frankly, I think they have a much more talented roster, and look, they have a first year head coach and Eric Quill. It's strange, though, because I think this is a little bit of a track game for Seattle, because Dallas has been really poor at home, but they've been pretty good on the road. They have one of the better road records in MLS, which is a little confounding. I think that they play better when they're not expected to carry the possession and
carry the attack. To be I think Seattle is going to dominate possession in this game, and I think Seattle's going to obviously take the game to Dallas. The one thing that has been pretty surprising for me is how difficult Eric Quill has found it to incorporate Lucho Acosta into his tactical setup. Lucho Acosta has struggled this year
and look, he has three goals on the season. But one of the most shocking statistics for all you data nerds out there, Luco Acosta one of the best number tens in MLS history, one of the best number tens in MLS over the last couple of seasons. He doesn't have an assist this year, which is mind blowing. I can't really wrap my head around it. I don't think Lucho Acosta has found his feet just yet in this Dallas team, and he's the key to everything that they
do because quite frankly, Dallas is really vulnerable defensively. They don't have I think a great setup tactically, which it comes to defense deep. I think they can see chances too easily, especially from service out wide into the box. So I think Seattle is going to find plenty of chances in this game. I think it's just a matter of if they take those chances. But look, Petsar Musa, they're designated player number nine, who for me is one of the best strikers in MLS.
He's very dangerous, and him and Luzo Acosta.
They had developed a pretty good understanding early in the year where Petsar Mussa would drop into midfield and he got a couple of really nice creative assists to Lucho Acosta for a few of the goals Acosta has scored. So I would still be wary if I was Seattle because those two players are some of the most dangerous players in MLS still, even when they're.
Not in great form.
I think that Seattle should win this game comfortably, but FC Dallas is a little bit of an enigma right now.
That's a great way to put it, a really really good way to put it, Jacks. I mean, when you think about the game down in Dallas back on April twelfth that Seattle won, won nothing. I mean a big reason was because that game was so, you know, radically altered when Musa went down with the injury right before halftime and Dallas has to play a completely different style
of soccer without Musa for the second half. I mean that game, if he doesn't go down and Moosa's in there, that game could go way differently in the last forty five minutes. So if you know him being healthy and him being available and being in there for ninety minutes for Dallas, I like we said it could be a trap game. So for for Sounders, you know, Brian Schmitzer won't be overlooking them, but for the players, for the fans, yeah, I think that's wise words not to overlook this Dallas team.
And don't and and and don't forget that FC Dallas right now. You know they're dealing with a little bit of of of of fixture congestion. They have to go to New York on Wednesday, May so, so three days before the Seattle game, so you're looking at across that's for the US Open Cup, so you're looking at a cross country flight back to Seattle after that, So.
Some tired legs or some rotated legs and some airline miles for Dallas coming here to Seattle on Saturday. And it's a Saturday morning I guess after noon game as well, with a noon Pacific time kickoff. So that's an added little wrinkle in there as well. Even if it's a few hours less rest, it's a few hours less rest for Dallas. So really really insightful thoughts, Dax. I hope this isn't the last time we get to talk. This
is the first time. And so good Man, I could ask you about twenty more questions about the rest of the league. Thank you so much for forgiving us so much time.
Can I.
Please get you into Seattle fans?
Yeah, it's please.
If you're a fan of the Seattle Sounders, will you please appreciate what.
You guys have?
Oh? Okay, I I feel like Albert Rusnak.
We don't talk enough about how important of a player he is.
He's one of the most underrated players.
In the league.
And listen, I'm not as in tune with social media as I was back when.
I was a little bit younger. I'm not really in tune with house. What Seattle fans feel like is their strongest team or their best player. And you can go on and on about different permutations on the players, the different formations that Brian Schmitzer plays, and the different ways that the team plays, who plays.
In that front four.
Albert Rusnak has to be on the field for the Seattle Sounders team. He has been the MVP of their season. He's slowly making a case and creeping into my top ten for most valuable player in Major League Soccer. I mean, that's how important I feel Albert Rusnak is to this team. So please appreciate what you have. He's a wonderful player. He scores goals, he creates goals, he gets assists, he works hard. He's got a great relationship with that midfield
of Obed Vargas and Christian Rodan. So if I can offer that up, just to end this interview, please appreciate what you have in Albert Rusnak, because a player of his caliber probably doesn't get enough love.
I would one hundred percent agree. I mean, for what he did last year, he was the team MVP. He set the record, the team record for assists across a single season, across all competitions. He's such a special player.
Which is crazy to say with the team that.
Exactly exactly and Marl Rosales and everybody else that this team has had over the years. So oh man, well said Dax. Let's let's chat again soon. I hope I can love this man.
Thank you so much for it all the best, man, Good luck to you guys this weekend.
Dax McCarty MLS Season pass on Apple TV. He is a studio analyst.
Damn. That was good.
I could have talked to him for another twenty minutes so much more. But we do got to get a break. We do got to get to ari Lellenwall MLS Season Pass on Apple TV. We really kind of stuck to Sounders there, the Seattle side, the Portland side from last week Dallas Ahead. I loved his stuff there on Albert Rusnak. But now let's hit around to a few other MLS
topics and games that I wanted to hit to. I will quickly remind folks since I mentioned MLS Season Pass on Apple TV, that is where you can watch Saturday's match once again to noon kickoff. Right here on Sports Radio ninety three point three KJRFM. That's where you can listen to the match. We'll have a provident Swedish prematch show of eleven thirty on Saturday late morning, so it's brunch with the Sounders and folks. You can also listen in Spanish language on l Ray thirteen sixty. All right,
we'll chat with ari Leenwallfromajor League Soccer dot com. That's next here on Sounders Weekly Sports Radio ninety three point three KJRFM.
Now back to Sounders Weekly on your home for Sounders fc cel's Sports Radio ninety three point three kjr FM.
Welcome back to Sounders Weekly.
Jackson Feltzer on this Wednesday, and it say thanks to our guests so far this evening, James Riley, Dax McCarty from MLS Season Pass, been a great show so far, and I talking Sounders Soccer, talking all things MLS, Ballard FC. And in case you missed them, or in case you have to turn off your radio for some stinking reason and miss our next guy, Ari lillianwall MLS Soccer dot Com in the podcast Lobbing Scorchers. If in case you have to miss sham, check out our podcast. It's Sounders
Weekly wherever you get your podcasts. But Ari Lilian Walla joins us right here on the show. Ari, how you doing, buddy.
I'm good Jackson. Just got back from Portland's last yesterday evening. So happy to be back in Seattle and talking to MLS.
With you stayed a little bit in Portland, Ore again. I'm sorry.
Hey, let's let's talk about that game on Saturday, Sounders Timbers. What I was just saying to Daxon and what I've kind of just been taking away from the game after rewatching it is that Portland was lucky get a point because I think the Sounders were the better team with the better chances. That all being said, I still think it's a solid road point for Seattle. How did you see that game?
Yeah? I thought the performance was pretty good, and I think ordinarily a one to one draw and a Kascadia Darby as the road team like that is an acceptable result, if not an amazing one.
But I think the reason.
That it didn't quite feel like one of those draws that feels like a win is just because of what happened in the LAFC game and how far that one went off the rails. I think if that game had even been more competitive, this draw Portland would feel a lot better. But in terms of the result itself, you usually take a draws the road team in a derby match like this. The home team is the one that is usually going to feel let down if they can't take all three points.
Yeah, no, and I think Portland should be feeling let down. I did something crazy, and I actually went to the Timber subreddit and kind of just saw what their discourse was, and I think they were sort of understanding, like, wow, yeah, I mean, we had a big performance at a sermon and Seattle had some big chances, so we got a point so it's in one of those interesting games where I think both teams can end up feeling pretty decently happy about up with splitting the points there On Saturday,
are you let's talk about what's next? And it is a Dallas team that you know, Dax McCarty was just kind of saying they're figuring themselves out, and you know they're a confusing team right now.
What is FC Dallas in your eyes?
Yeah?
I mean Seattle beat them on the road earlier this season and they haven't had much of an upward trajectory since then. They're kind of struggling in their first season under Eric Quill. I think expectations around them nationally were cautiously optimistic with the arrival of Lucho Acosta and his potential partnership with Pe tar Musa, and I think they still have a good foundation there, but if you just look at the results in the table, they clearly haven't
figured how it all fully clicks yet. They got a negative goal differential, they're below the playoff line right now, and they also historically struggle when they come to Seattle.
So this is a.
Game that Seattle is going to be favored in, but you still have to go out and beat them and kind of just get back on track after a road trip. That was I think kind of like the Portland game, like acceptable but not incredible.
Yeah, I think we all would have accepted four points out of that three game stretch, you know, all being on the road. It was just, you know, disappointing considering how close you are to getting a win at Portland, and also disappointing considering what happened a week ago. Don't even want to talk or mention about the LAFC game the entire night tonight, but Ari Lean was our guest MLS Season Pass on Apple t Geez, that's you know,
that's the second time I've actually screwed that up. Ari Lellen was a writer and editor for MLS Soccer dot Com. He also hosts the podcast Lobbing Scorchers, and of course Lobbing Scorches you can see on YouTube. Subscribe to it. You can get notified about the live shows on Monday mornings and Thursday nights. You can also get Lobbing Scores
wherever you get your podcasts, including the iHeartRadio app. All right, Ari, let's jump around the rest of the league for a few minutes here before we end tonight's show, I really thought it was gonna happen. I really thought the La Galaxy were going to get their first win. They were playing LAFC, and LAFC it looked like we're on the ropes. It looked like the Galaxy got it. A goal was called off side by var and ultimately still the Galaxy
have not won a game. I mean, we're nearly halfway into the season already and the Galaxy still don't have a win, and it didn't come amazingly against LAFC.
Yeah.
No, it's wild ten and four. It's a historically bad start to the season for them. It's the longest winless run in MLS club has ever had to start the season. And you know, I think they there's a reason for encouragement for them in the sense that Marco Royce actually has been playing pretty well the last few weeks. He had both their goals in this game, including that incredible free kick equalizer, So they're getting healthier and they looked
a little bit better in that game. But I think the result of that l traffico was a pretty ideal from our perspective, Jackson, because La Galaxy stay winless, They're still not off the schneid there, even though they played a little bit better. And then LAFC, you know, they probably felt like they really should be winning that game with how tough of the season that the Galaxy have had, and then they dropped the lead in the eighty seventh minute.
So that was honestly pretty all around comedic series of events.
I thought it was great comedic indeed, and it's just great that we didn't get all three. I do wish the Galaxy would have won, just to not give the one point to LAFC. But again, again, the comedy of it, the fact that the MLS champions from twenty twenty four have the record in twenty twenty five for games to start a year without a win. That I mean, I don't know what odds you could have gotten that on Vegas, but you'd be a billionaire at this point.
Ari, Let's see, it's now how long how long can this go? You know how many games can they go without a win? We're about to find out.
Oh I don't know here, let let me just live on the air. This is terrible, but let me just google LA Galaxy schedule and then see what they have coming up here. So right now, this week they play Saturday in San Diego, a good San Diego team. Next Wednesday they host San Jose. That could easily be a loss. Then they host RSL that could be a loss. They go to Saint Louis on June fourteenth, the fact that
they're on the road. They go to Colorado, then to San Jose, then hosting the white Caps, then they host DC United on July twelfth. There is a world, there is a universe where they don't win until July twelfth. That would be astounding.
A few winnable games in there, but that's definitely not an easy schedule.
No, it is not. All right, all right, let's continue on here. How about Miami. They got their ass kicked on Sunday three nothing lost to Orlando rivalry week, and boy, Orlando took that to hearten they whooped them. How about Miami getting crushed?
Yeah, no, it looks like they're full on spiral spiraling. Right now. You have Lionel Messi talking after the game about how awful the officiating was when he was talking about a very benign, not that controversial call. So that should give you a pretty good idea of where his mind is at Andy.
They've been bad.
For a few weeks now, Jackson. They have won one game I think in their last seven, might even be eight now, and they're losing these games by multiple goals, and the vibes just seem like they're deteriorating at a rapid rate. Baby Armascherano. I think it's fair to look back and question the process behind dat higher given his lack of experience, And I think you're seeing the difference between being a great player and a great coach right now. I don't really know what the issue is, but it
doesn't seem like it's getting better right now. And that is kind of a crazy place for a team that just set the points record a season to go to.
Be Yeah, it is a bit crazy. I think that we're going to have to take a moment and kind of breathe with Miami and see if they can corral. But it's funny because a couple of weeks ago we were talking them up and then they ended up losing and now this and then we I mean there was also a time where we were talking down San Diego
and then they went and won a game. It's sort of these things where we bring up how bad a team is, where we bring up how good a team is, and then they'll go out and have the exact opposite result that weekend.
So why don't we do it again Atlanta United.
Atlanta United and Garth logerway down there are having quite a rough stretch, losing again and despite the talent and money they've spent, Atlanta just can't get it together, which means that of course they're going to win this weekend. But what are your thoughts on Atlanta United?
Yeah, I mean this last game against Facilly.
The w Union was another really tough one.
They actually they looked a little bit better in the first half. But what I thought was interesting about this game was that the phil Union they rotated it like.
Like it was an open Cup game.
That's like what they thought of Atlanta United. And so they admittedly played a little bit better and had some
chances in the first half. Philly goalkeeper, their young homegrown goalkeeper, had an incredible game, but then they give up a really bad penalty and lose one zero, and it's just you know, we talked, we talked about a week after week Jackson, but I just don't know what to make of a thirty million dollars attack that pretty much just can't score a goal right now unless it's an own goal. And Ronnie Dila his days as the manager that club
might actually be numbered. Which that's another crazy thing to think about, given how much that they talked him up when they hired him.
That really is I mean, considering he won an MLS Cup with New York City and he was kind of a nice hire for Loggerway. I mean, maybe garth Is only has good teams when he hires interim people because that's what he's always done before this point. Absolutely crazy. Hey, we have it just a quick minute. Let's wrap it up because I'm glad we have a minute to get to This MLS MVP leader is an interesting conversation I
think right now. Obviously, you know, we were Messi, Messi, Messi last year and we kind of were on a very interesting train of just how many different great goal scorers and great goal contribut contributors there were in the league last year. But here we are now, who are your leaders? Maybe who is your leader right now for MLSMVP a third of the way into the season.
Yeah, I think there's some interesting candidates out there right now. I think an underrated one is Christian Espinoza for the San Jose Earthquake, who's putting up great numbers for them, and they've been one of the best, if not the best offenses in the league at times. I think he has eight assists and leads the league in key passes, so I think he has kind of a cool little case. But for me, I think right now I would go with one of two guys from the same team, which
is the Vancouver white Caps. I think Brian White has an excellent shout, but I would honestly go Jackson. This is a candidate that might not get a lot of play, but I think you should get more. But I would honestly give Pedro vite a shout.
I think he's been that good for Okay, good stuff.
That'll be an interesting one to keep watching because there's a lot of names you just listed there, so we'll keep that definitely talking about that as the weeks and months go on. Ari no show next week because the Sounders have a midweek match a hosting San Diego. It's actually a little bit earlier midweek match, so it's like a happy hour game that's kickoff of five thirty We're gonna have a pre match show over on nine to fifty kJ AM at five o'clock next Wednesday, So no
Sounders Weekly next week. I'll see at at lumin because we'll have an eight day stretch with one nine day stretch with three home matches. So I'll see Alattia next week. Until then, have a good week, my friend.
Sound good.
Thanks Jackson Arilllianwall mijor League Soccer dot com. He's a writer and editor there. He also hosts the podcast Lobbing Scorches. I'll not make that mistake anymore, all right. That'll do it here for Sounders Weekly tonight. Couple quick notes here. First, the Sounders FC Soccer is presented by Providence Swedish, the official healthcare partner of Sounders FC. Also want to tell you about michelob Ultra. It's ninety five calories and two point six grams of carbs. It's only worth it if
you enjoy it. All right, that'll do it for the show tonight. Check out Sounders Weekly wherever you get your podcasts in case you missed any of the show tonight. Great conversations with James Riley, Dax McCarty and Ari Lillianwall there and then also we'll talk to you on Saturday morning, eleven thirty a m. Premat show twelve o'clock kickoff, Sounders hosting Dallas at Lumenfield. We'll have a little brunch with you. We'll have a little early lunch for Sounders and Dallas
on Saturday afternoon. It's like weather's supposed to be pretty good this weekend, so it should be a fun match out there as the Sounders start a three game and nine day stretch, all of them at home Dallas and then San Diego on Wednesday, and then Minnesota on Sunday. We'll talk to you on Saturday everybody, But for right here and right now, it's Fox Sports Radio coming up next.