February 5, 2025 • 17 mins
Pet Brennan from the Cincinnati Enquirer joins the show to discuss Lucho Acosta's uncertainty, Yuya Kubo reporting to camp late, some new names to keep an eye on this season and more!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is Pennstation eastco Subs Sincy three sixty about Cincinnati
from Cincinnatis, Sponsored in part by Pennstation East co Subs.
Handcrafted hot grilled subs, fresh cut fries, and lemonade. It's
all about good taste. Pennstation East Coast Subs order online today.
This is ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports station.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
From football to football. Let's talk a little FC Cincinnati
here on Cincy three to sixty. Hello, my name's Austin Elmore.
With you for one more hour. We'll turn things over
to Moegger in just a little bit forty minutes from
right now. Moeker checks in for quick hits, looking forward
to that conversation and looking forward to this conversation. His
name is Pat Brennan. He covers FC Cincinnati for the
(00:45):
Cincinnati Enquirer, and he is a twenty twenty five college
football Playoff national champion as an Ohio State Buckeye himself,
Pat Brennan joins the show. Hi, Pat, how.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
Are you feels great to be a champion? Man? Tell
you what?
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Nobody will ever be able to take that away from us.
Speaker 4 (01:05):
I can think of some people that might be able
to in the state of Michigan, but they'll try anyway.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
No matter what. We just can't shake it. I know
how it is. Pat there's a lot of drama with
Cincinnati sports and athletes and teams, and we talk a
lot about Higgins and Hendrickson, But what's the latest with
Lucianoacosta and how did we get here with him?
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Right? Well, that's a long winding tale. I don't know
if we have enough time on this segment for it,
but you know it's first of all for your listeners.
Speaker 4 (01:39):
That might not be ardent FC Cincinnati fans. Just to
put it into context, I think why this matters. If
there was ever if f C Cincinnati was ever going
to have even an outside chance at placing one of
its own players on the Cincinnati Sports mount Rushmore or one,
(02:01):
I think that would be really next two impossible to accomplish,
just because of where some people view soccer and the
sports ecosystem here and globally. But if that was gonna happen,
Luco Acosta was the best chance of that happening. That's
how important he is to f C Cincinnati fans. And
again that's just for your listeners who might not be
(02:21):
his in tune with what's going on here, and it's
really rattled.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
This fan base.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
I think that things have come to where they are
with Luco, which is basically.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
It seems like his time.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
At f C Cincinnati is winding down and maybe winding
down rapidly. He after the playoff lost last autumn, announced
that he thought maybe he had played his final game
with f C Cincinnati, just recapping the situation Austin, and
(02:55):
it seemed to I don't think f C Cincnati was
prepared for him to say that that he won out.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
He was only in the first year of a.
Speaker 4 (03:04):
Very lucrative, relatively long contract extension, so that kind of
I think caught people off guard. And then I don't
think a lot of progress was made toward keeping him
in the off season, and then he was a holdout
earlier in preseason.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
He and I were actually.
Speaker 4 (03:24):
On the same flight down to Tampa Bay last week.
I was on my way to a bachelor party at Gasparilla.
He was on his way to report to FC Cincinnati
spring training.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Different intentions for the Tampa Bay area, but yeah, look
he's been there.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
He's been training off for the side, which you could
say that's you know, catching him up to speed and
not putting him into you know, game like situations and
intensive practice situations too.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
Early in a situation that could get him hurt.
Speaker 4 (03:59):
But to me, that sounds like they're just kind of
maybe putting someone off to the side who they think
won't be there much longer. And I don't think he'll
be there much longer, and that's kind of where things are.
That's the long and the short of it.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
Off.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
If that's the case, if he's gone, how do you
replace that production? Can you replace the production of a
Luciano Acosta?
Speaker 3 (04:20):
No, I don't think you can.
Speaker 4 (04:22):
Unfortunately, I mean you can put people in there to
do the job that he did.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
It's a clearly defined job.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
We call it the number ten position, central attacking midfielder.
It's someone who distributes and creates and scores goals. There's
a lot of players that can do that, and frankly, Austin,
there are not a lot that can do it like Luco.
He over the last few years as his numbers really
took off under excuse me, under head coach Pat Noonan
(04:50):
and since since noon In and GM Chris Albright took
over late in twenty twenty one, Lucio has. His name
is on lists of stats with the truly greatest players
that have ever played in MLS. The dude he won
the MVP Award two seasons ago. He would have been
(05:14):
a candidate to win it again last year if not
for injury concerns or injury situations there.
Speaker 3 (05:23):
Yeah, and he's in his peak.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
So yeah, just by definition, there someone who is considered
as one and would have been.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Considered an MVP candidate again, I mean.
Speaker 4 (05:35):
That's that's a that's a class of one, you know,
that's a yeah, a class of one. Now there, there
is some thought that the Portland Timbers, who are having
trouble with their own number ten, a guy who goes
by one name vander uh, there's some thought that FC
(05:56):
Cincinnati might be able to swoop in claim that and
he could do probably a pretty serviceable job in this
number ten position.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
The thing is the way c Cincinnati's built.
Speaker 4 (06:08):
Right now, Austin, I don't know if they need the
same production from Luco Acosta. They just spent all this
record breaking amount of money on a brand new striker
guy who plays at the top of the formation in
Kevin Danky, and he's supposed to be a lights out goalscorer.
So I think there was going to be a shift
in how we saw this team work. Instead of the
offense production coming through Luco or someone in that position,
(06:31):
you were going to see it go through.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
The top of the formation in Danky.
Speaker 4 (06:34):
So the task now might just be defined someone who
can suitably feed Kevin Danky. If that's the case, that's
actually asked to get a lot less out of that position.
But I think there's some hope that, you know, we're
just so used to seeing Lucco orchestrate it all, fans
(06:56):
will probably want to see someone in the Lucco mold,
kind of just a little magician. So we'll see if
sci Cincinnati can bring in the Savandah from Portland and
what replacing Lucio if and when the time comes.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Ultimately looks like.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
He wasn't the only one who was not happy and
didn't show up right away, You Yakubo among those as well.
Why didn't he show up originally? And is he there now?
Speaker 5 (07:25):
He is there now, Austin, He got there this week
after the team had a kind of a longer weekend,
a scheduled break in the middle of their They're already
halfway through their preseason and they had a scheduled break
this past weekend lucha or excuse me you.
Speaker 4 (07:41):
Yakubo arrived at the back end of that to.
Speaker 3 (07:45):
Get back into it this week.
Speaker 4 (07:47):
But you know the problem there if you've lost three weeks,
now that's you know, long term he can catch up,
but short term the game still count. Early in the season,
they're in a knockout competition. That is, you know, it's
it's admittedly it's their second year in it. People might
remember it from last year, the Cocke CAF champions Cup.
(08:07):
It wasn't as interesting in the early round, but it
can get more interesting and get more lucrative and important
if you do well and win the thing. And the
chemistry that will be an issue early in the season
as a result of these guys holding out, That jeopardize
is there, you know, stake in this tournament early on.
So we're looking at.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
That right now.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
But yeah, and Yujak Kubo is an interesting case. The
thing that made his situation weird Austin was that he
was so flexible. He played literally almost every position for
FC Cincinnati last year, and he seemed he was obviously
able to do it. He seemed willing and that gave
(08:50):
the impression that this was just a team first guy.
So then for him to then hold out also at
the at at the outset of the season here is
very concerning. You know, I think he scored ten goals
last year despite all the moving around, and I think
(09:11):
this is a player that played in one of the
top leagues in Europe earlier in his career before coming
to Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
I wonder if you.
Speaker 4 (09:19):
Know, he's looking for maybe a little bit more money
at this stage, because I would imagine if if he
were going to take one more go at a lucrative
stay in Europe, it might be now that he has
his stats from this past season to maybe justify that move.
And if the move isn't in the cards, he's probably
thinking about what he means to this team and thinking.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
Hey, you know, pay up.
Speaker 4 (09:45):
It's it's time I've been I've been flexible.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
With you guys.
Speaker 4 (09:49):
He's taken less money along the way. He has been
a good a good soldier for them over this over
his stay here, and he is one of the longer
tenured players. But ultimately these personal situations can affect the collective.
Speaker 3 (10:05):
I think hu guy is one of those cases a
good dude.
Speaker 4 (10:10):
This doesn't change whether or not he's a good person,
But you know, these business dealers can affect the collective.
Speaker 3 (10:16):
Like I'm trying to say here, and.
Speaker 4 (10:19):
It's not this was not a helpful situation to begin
the year, and it's part of the vibe that I've
felt just that this has been a little bit frustrating
and angsty early on for FCC.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
Yeah, and you can certainly tell when Pat Noonan is
talking to you guys in the media.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
Absolutely, when you absolutely when.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
You look at the collective outside of obviously a Costa
probably not going to be here, outside of Kubo. You
did mention Kevin Danky, how are they built? And who
are some names that we should be keeping an eye
out on that could end up being big time contributors
to this team.
Speaker 3 (10:53):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (10:54):
Well, the idea is that Kevin Danky is going to be,
like I said, a huge goalsc but you know, part
of his ability to do that relies on chemistry with
his teammates, and when you have key players around him
who have been holding out possibly leaving, that hurts his ceiling.
So you know, beyond Dankey, I'm look this is very
(11:18):
early in the season, and yeah, in f Ccincinnati season,
they I think, much like last year, you're gonna see
them kind of come together on the personnel front as
after the season starts, as things are unfolding, and I
think there are some important pieces that may yet be
(11:41):
still be added to the mix. But I think also
that you know, I'm interested to see how Nick Haglind
and Matt Miosket bounced back from their season ending injuries
last year. You know, we can't forget that Cincinnati lost
those guys for about how half a season last year.
So if they come back at or near the level
(12:04):
they were at before those injuries, you know, that's as
good as bringing in.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
A new player in my mind, you know.
Speaker 4 (12:10):
Just because they did play really well for periods without
those two guys. Cincinnati is pretty rich at the central
defense area of the field right now.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
And if you're.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
Bringing in Nick Handlan and Matt Miaska the twenty twenty
three Player of the Year, a defender of the year,
excuse me, if those guys, like I said, are able
to produce the level they were.
Speaker 3 (12:36):
Prior to the injuries, that's as good as getting too.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
High leverage, high value new players, and that will be
very important for this team.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
What is a realistic expectation for FC Cincinnati and twenty
twenty five.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
Magic question?
Speaker 4 (12:54):
It's a great I don't know if I'm settled on
an answer to that yet. Look, even with Lucho coming
and going, which makes me want to kind of peg
them back in terms of what aspect from them, regardless
of who they were replace them with. It just takes
time for these guys to get comfortable. If they bring
in that Evander dude, you know, it just takes time
(13:16):
to get the most out of that chemistry.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
Look, I don't think you're bringing.
Speaker 4 (13:22):
In Kevin Dankey to be part of the long term project.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
This is someone who.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
You could get a ton out of, but then maybe
you flip back to Europe at a profit. I think
this team's championship window is still open when you look
at the money they're spending, who they're spending it on,
what positions they're spending it at. I think not unlike
last year, early season struggles related to chemistry related to
(13:48):
onboarding personnel could lead to a rocky first couple months,
But you know, you play thirty four games in soccer.
If I were to compare that to the Bengals schedule.
You know, one game is not Losing a game in
MLS isn't quite as significant as it is in the NFL,
where you're playing about half that many games, you know
(14:09):
what I mean, Austin. So I think that there's room
for slippage. I think they will slip, but they should be,
you know, a top four seed with home field advantage
come playoff time.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
And yeah, they the money that is being spent on
this team, this is the bottom line. Offs.
Speaker 4 (14:26):
The money that is being spent on this team is
not money that you would expect.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
For just making the playoffs or just.
Speaker 4 (14:34):
Advancing to the second round. They want to win the
whole the whole thing. And you know, right now, the
things you hear out of camp, it doesn't sound great,
but it's been that way before with these guys. They
can grow into the season and like in a lot
of sports in this country, just get hot at the
right time.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
That's all that matters.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
Yeah, I hear you for sure. Pat Brennan covers FC
Cincinnati Cincinnati dot Com. Before where I let you go, Pat,
the ultimate question, who is going to win the Super Bowl?
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Oh? My god, hacking you do that to me.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
You know, you're a season media professional who spent such
a good chunk of time covering the NFL this year, Now, you.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
Know, I honestly, I like some people will point out
possible bias here in my hometown, but I actually I
think the Eagles can and prompt me. I don't know
if they should win. The Eagles can definitely win on Sunday.
It just feels like, you know, this one score thing
with Kansas City feels very tenuous at this point. The
(15:39):
Eagles have admittedly put not in the NFC Championship Game,
but they've closed out some tight games this year, so
I think that might be the antidote to the one score.
Speaker 3 (15:49):
Thing with Kansas City.
Speaker 4 (15:50):
And I just think it's a good matchup for the Eagles.
Compared to two years ago, Kansas City stepped backwards. I
think the Eagles clearly improved at certain positions.
Speaker 3 (16:03):
I know it will be an awesome game. I know
that much.
Speaker 4 (16:05):
You can bet on that if there's a if there's
a betting, if there's a wager available for the good games,
which I know.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
There isn't, I might empty the savings account on good game.
We'll see if you do that. Pat, what is the
best way for people to follow along with your coverage
of the Origin Blue all season?
Speaker 4 (16:26):
If you want to follow after that works out at
P Brennan e n Q b R.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
E n n A N all right, fantastic.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
Are you still in Florida?
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Uh No, I'm here.
Speaker 4 (16:40):
I'm here in the uh in the state of Cincinnati.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Sorry to hear that because it's freezing. All right, Pat,
thanks so much, man, have a good one.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
Okay, thank you, Austin.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
That is Pat Brennan Cincinnati dot Com. I love Pat.
He's uh he's a funny guy. And uh, that's good stuff.
FC Cincinnati has got drama of the her own and
this is one of the things that comes with winning.
With winning comes drama, and that's just something we have
(17:10):
to deal with and we're learning as we go, just
like everybody else. Phone lines are open the rest of
the show. Five point three seven four nine fifteen thirty
tweeted me as well at audio moor A U t
y E L m O r E our three brought
to you by Penn Station on the Home of the Bengals,
Cincinnati ZESPN fifteen thirty now
This is Pennstation eastco Subs Sincy three sixty about Cincinnati
from Cincinnatis, Sponsored in part by Pennstation East co Subs.
Handcrafted hot grilled subs, fresh cut fries, and lemonade. It's
all about good taste. Pennstation East Coast Subs order online today.
This is ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports station.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
From football to football. Let's talk a little FC Cincinnati
here on Cincy three to sixty. Hello, my name's Austin Elmore.
With you for one more hour. We'll turn things over
to Moegger in just a little bit forty minutes from
right now. Moeker checks in for quick hits, looking forward
to that conversation and looking forward to this conversation. His
name is Pat Brennan. He covers FC Cincinnati for the
(00:45):
Cincinnati Enquirer, and he is a twenty twenty five college
football Playoff national champion as an Ohio State Buckeye himself,
Pat Brennan joins the show. Hi, Pat, how.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
Are you feels great to be a champion? Man? Tell
you what?
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Nobody will ever be able to take that away from us.
Speaker 4 (01:05):
I can think of some people that might be able
to in the state of Michigan, but they'll try anyway.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
No matter what. We just can't shake it. I know
how it is. Pat there's a lot of drama with
Cincinnati sports and athletes and teams, and we talk a
lot about Higgins and Hendrickson, But what's the latest with
Lucianoacosta and how did we get here with him?
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Right? Well, that's a long winding tale. I don't know
if we have enough time on this segment for it,
but you know it's first of all for your listeners.
Speaker 4 (01:39):
That might not be ardent FC Cincinnati fans. Just to
put it into context, I think why this matters. If
there was ever if f C Cincinnati was ever going
to have even an outside chance at placing one of
its own players on the Cincinnati Sports mount Rushmore or one,
(02:01):
I think that would be really next two impossible to accomplish,
just because of where some people view soccer and the
sports ecosystem here and globally. But if that was gonna happen,
Luco Acosta was the best chance of that happening. That's
how important he is to f C Cincinnati fans. And
again that's just for your listeners who might not be
(02:21):
his in tune with what's going on here, and it's
really rattled.
Speaker 3 (02:25):
This fan base.
Speaker 4 (02:26):
I think that things have come to where they are
with Luco, which is basically.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
It seems like his time.
Speaker 4 (02:34):
At f C Cincinnati is winding down and maybe winding
down rapidly. He after the playoff lost last autumn, announced
that he thought maybe he had played his final game
with f C Cincinnati, just recapping the situation Austin, and
(02:55):
it seemed to I don't think f C Cincnati was
prepared for him to say that that he won out.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
He was only in the first year of a.
Speaker 4 (03:04):
Very lucrative, relatively long contract extension, so that kind of
I think caught people off guard. And then I don't
think a lot of progress was made toward keeping him
in the off season, and then he was a holdout
earlier in preseason.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
He and I were actually.
Speaker 4 (03:24):
On the same flight down to Tampa Bay last week.
I was on my way to a bachelor party at Gasparilla.
He was on his way to report to FC Cincinnati
spring training.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Different intentions for the Tampa Bay area, but yeah, look
he's been there.
Speaker 4 (03:43):
He's been training off for the side, which you could
say that's you know, catching him up to speed and
not putting him into you know, game like situations and
intensive practice situations too.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
Early in a situation that could get him hurt.
Speaker 4 (03:59):
But to me, that sounds like they're just kind of
maybe putting someone off to the side who they think
won't be there much longer. And I don't think he'll
be there much longer, and that's kind of where things are.
That's the long and the short of it.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
Off.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
If that's the case, if he's gone, how do you
replace that production? Can you replace the production of a
Luciano Acosta?
Speaker 3 (04:20):
No, I don't think you can.
Speaker 4 (04:22):
Unfortunately, I mean you can put people in there to
do the job that he did.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
It's a clearly defined job.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
We call it the number ten position, central attacking midfielder.
It's someone who distributes and creates and scores goals. There's
a lot of players that can do that, and frankly, Austin,
there are not a lot that can do it like Luco.
He over the last few years as his numbers really
took off under excuse me, under head coach Pat Noonan
(04:50):
and since since noon In and GM Chris Albright took
over late in twenty twenty one, Lucio has. His name
is on lists of stats with the truly greatest players
that have ever played in MLS. The dude he won
the MVP Award two seasons ago. He would have been
(05:14):
a candidate to win it again last year if not
for injury concerns or injury situations there.
Speaker 3 (05:23):
Yeah, and he's in his peak.
Speaker 4 (05:24):
So yeah, just by definition, there someone who is considered
as one and would have been.
Speaker 3 (05:31):
Considered an MVP candidate again, I mean.
Speaker 4 (05:35):
That's that's a that's a class of one, you know,
that's a yeah, a class of one. Now there, there
is some thought that the Portland Timbers, who are having
trouble with their own number ten, a guy who goes
by one name vander uh, there's some thought that FC
(05:56):
Cincinnati might be able to swoop in claim that and
he could do probably a pretty serviceable job in this
number ten position.
Speaker 3 (06:06):
The thing is the way c Cincinnati's built.
Speaker 4 (06:08):
Right now, Austin, I don't know if they need the
same production from Luco Acosta. They just spent all this
record breaking amount of money on a brand new striker
guy who plays at the top of the formation in
Kevin Danky, and he's supposed to be a lights out goalscorer.
So I think there was going to be a shift
in how we saw this team work. Instead of the
offense production coming through Luco or someone in that position,
(06:31):
you were going to see it go through.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
The top of the formation in Danky.
Speaker 4 (06:34):
So the task now might just be defined someone who
can suitably feed Kevin Danky. If that's the case, that's
actually asked to get a lot less out of that position.
But I think there's some hope that, you know, we're
just so used to seeing Lucco orchestrate it all, fans
(06:56):
will probably want to see someone in the Lucco mold,
kind of just a little magician. So we'll see if
sci Cincinnati can bring in the Savandah from Portland and
what replacing Lucio if and when the time comes.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Ultimately looks like.
Speaker 2 (07:14):
He wasn't the only one who was not happy and
didn't show up right away, You Yakubo among those as well.
Why didn't he show up originally? And is he there now?
Speaker 5 (07:25):
He is there now, Austin, He got there this week
after the team had a kind of a longer weekend,
a scheduled break in the middle of their They're already
halfway through their preseason and they had a scheduled break
this past weekend lucha or excuse me you.
Speaker 4 (07:41):
Yakubo arrived at the back end of that to.
Speaker 3 (07:45):
Get back into it this week.
Speaker 4 (07:47):
But you know the problem there if you've lost three weeks,
now that's you know, long term he can catch up,
but short term the game still count. Early in the season,
they're in a knockout competition. That is, you know, it's
it's admittedly it's their second year in it. People might
remember it from last year, the Cocke CAF champions Cup.
(08:07):
It wasn't as interesting in the early round, but it
can get more interesting and get more lucrative and important
if you do well and win the thing. And the
chemistry that will be an issue early in the season
as a result of these guys holding out, That jeopardize
is there, you know, stake in this tournament early on.
So we're looking at.
Speaker 3 (08:27):
That right now.
Speaker 4 (08:28):
But yeah, and Yujak Kubo is an interesting case. The
thing that made his situation weird Austin was that he
was so flexible. He played literally almost every position for
FC Cincinnati last year, and he seemed he was obviously
able to do it. He seemed willing and that gave
(08:50):
the impression that this was just a team first guy.
So then for him to then hold out also at
the at at the outset of the season here is
very concerning. You know, I think he scored ten goals
last year despite all the moving around, and I think
(09:11):
this is a player that played in one of the
top leagues in Europe earlier in his career before coming
to Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (09:17):
I wonder if you.
Speaker 4 (09:19):
Know, he's looking for maybe a little bit more money
at this stage, because I would imagine if if he
were going to take one more go at a lucrative
stay in Europe, it might be now that he has
his stats from this past season to maybe justify that move.
And if the move isn't in the cards, he's probably
thinking about what he means to this team and thinking.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
Hey, you know, pay up.
Speaker 4 (09:45):
It's it's time I've been I've been flexible.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
With you guys.
Speaker 4 (09:49):
He's taken less money along the way. He has been
a good a good soldier for them over this over
his stay here, and he is one of the longer
tenured players. But ultimately these personal situations can affect the collective.
Speaker 3 (10:05):
I think hu guy is one of those cases a
good dude.
Speaker 4 (10:10):
This doesn't change whether or not he's a good person,
But you know, these business dealers can affect the collective.
Speaker 3 (10:16):
Like I'm trying to say here, and.
Speaker 4 (10:19):
It's not this was not a helpful situation to begin
the year, and it's part of the vibe that I've
felt just that this has been a little bit frustrating
and angsty early on for FCC.
Speaker 2 (10:30):
Yeah, and you can certainly tell when Pat Noonan is
talking to you guys in the media.
Speaker 3 (10:35):
Absolutely, when you absolutely when.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
You look at the collective outside of obviously a Costa
probably not going to be here, outside of Kubo. You
did mention Kevin Danky, how are they built? And who
are some names that we should be keeping an eye
out on that could end up being big time contributors
to this team.
Speaker 3 (10:53):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (10:54):
Well, the idea is that Kevin Danky is going to be,
like I said, a huge goalsc but you know, part
of his ability to do that relies on chemistry with
his teammates, and when you have key players around him
who have been holding out possibly leaving, that hurts his ceiling.
So you know, beyond Dankey, I'm look this is very
(11:18):
early in the season, and yeah, in f Ccincinnati season,
they I think, much like last year, you're gonna see
them kind of come together on the personnel front as
after the season starts, as things are unfolding, and I
think there are some important pieces that may yet be
(11:41):
still be added to the mix. But I think also
that you know, I'm interested to see how Nick Haglind
and Matt Miosket bounced back from their season ending injuries
last year. You know, we can't forget that Cincinnati lost
those guys for about how half a season last year.
So if they come back at or near the level
(12:04):
they were at before those injuries, you know, that's as
good as bringing in.
Speaker 3 (12:08):
A new player in my mind, you know.
Speaker 4 (12:10):
Just because they did play really well for periods without
those two guys. Cincinnati is pretty rich at the central
defense area of the field right now.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
And if you're.
Speaker 4 (12:22):
Bringing in Nick Handlan and Matt Miaska the twenty twenty
three Player of the Year, a defender of the year,
excuse me, if those guys, like I said, are able
to produce the level they were.
Speaker 3 (12:36):
Prior to the injuries, that's as good as getting too.
Speaker 4 (12:39):
High leverage, high value new players, and that will be
very important for this team.
Speaker 2 (12:46):
What is a realistic expectation for FC Cincinnati and twenty
twenty five.
Speaker 3 (12:53):
Magic question?
Speaker 4 (12:54):
It's a great I don't know if I'm settled on
an answer to that yet. Look, even with Lucho coming
and going, which makes me want to kind of peg
them back in terms of what aspect from them, regardless
of who they were replace them with. It just takes
time for these guys to get comfortable. If they bring
in that Evander dude, you know, it just takes time
(13:16):
to get the most out of that chemistry.
Speaker 3 (13:20):
Look, I don't think you're bringing.
Speaker 4 (13:22):
In Kevin Dankey to be part of the long term project.
Speaker 3 (13:25):
This is someone who.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
You could get a ton out of, but then maybe
you flip back to Europe at a profit. I think
this team's championship window is still open when you look
at the money they're spending, who they're spending it on,
what positions they're spending it at. I think not unlike
last year, early season struggles related to chemistry related to
(13:48):
onboarding personnel could lead to a rocky first couple months,
But you know, you play thirty four games in soccer.
If I were to compare that to the Bengals schedule.
You know, one game is not Losing a game in
MLS isn't quite as significant as it is in the NFL,
where you're playing about half that many games, you know
(14:09):
what I mean, Austin. So I think that there's room
for slippage. I think they will slip, but they should be,
you know, a top four seed with home field advantage
come playoff time.
Speaker 3 (14:21):
And yeah, they the money that is being spent on
this team, this is the bottom line. Offs.
Speaker 4 (14:26):
The money that is being spent on this team is
not money that you would expect.
Speaker 3 (14:31):
For just making the playoffs or just.
Speaker 4 (14:34):
Advancing to the second round. They want to win the
whole the whole thing. And you know, right now, the
things you hear out of camp, it doesn't sound great,
but it's been that way before with these guys. They
can grow into the season and like in a lot
of sports in this country, just get hot at the
right time.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
That's all that matters.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
Yeah, I hear you for sure. Pat Brennan covers FC
Cincinnati Cincinnati dot Com. Before where I let you go, Pat,
the ultimate question, who is going to win the Super Bowl?
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Oh? My god, hacking you do that to me.
Speaker 2 (15:07):
You know, you're a season media professional who spent such
a good chunk of time covering the NFL this year, Now, you.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
Know, I honestly, I like some people will point out
possible bias here in my hometown, but I actually I
think the Eagles can and prompt me. I don't know
if they should win. The Eagles can definitely win on Sunday.
It just feels like, you know, this one score thing
with Kansas City feels very tenuous at this point. The
(15:39):
Eagles have admittedly put not in the NFC Championship Game,
but they've closed out some tight games this year, so
I think that might be the antidote to the one score.
Speaker 3 (15:49):
Thing with Kansas City.
Speaker 4 (15:50):
And I just think it's a good matchup for the Eagles.
Compared to two years ago, Kansas City stepped backwards. I
think the Eagles clearly improved at certain positions.
Speaker 3 (16:03):
I know it will be an awesome game. I know
that much.
Speaker 4 (16:05):
You can bet on that if there's a if there's
a betting, if there's a wager available for the good games,
which I know.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
There isn't, I might empty the savings account on good game.
We'll see if you do that. Pat, what is the
best way for people to follow along with your coverage
of the Origin Blue all season?
Speaker 4 (16:26):
If you want to follow after that works out at
P Brennan e n Q b R.
Speaker 3 (16:33):
E n n A N all right, fantastic.
Speaker 2 (16:35):
Are you still in Florida?
Speaker 3 (16:38):
Uh No, I'm here.
Speaker 4 (16:40):
I'm here in the uh in the state of Cincinnati.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Sorry to hear that because it's freezing. All right, Pat,
thanks so much, man, have a good one.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
Okay, thank you, Austin.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
That is Pat Brennan Cincinnati dot Com. I love Pat.
He's uh he's a funny guy. And uh, that's good stuff.
FC Cincinnati has got drama of the her own and
this is one of the things that comes with winning.
With winning comes drama, and that's just something we have
(17:10):
to deal with and we're learning as we go, just
like everybody else. Phone lines are open the rest of
the show. Five point three seven four nine fifteen thirty
tweeted me as well at audio moor A U t
y E L m O r E our three brought
to you by Penn Station on the Home of the Bengals,
Cincinnati ZESPN fifteen thirty now
Popular Podcasts
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com