July 6, 2026 • 47 mins
Manny Lagos is in studio we go do all in on Team USA ahead of their game with Belgium tonight!
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Start all right, now, all right, Now, here is Manny Lagos,
(01:12):
chief development officer for the Minnesota United and also, as
we've said repeatedly today, Minnesota soccer immortality.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
His father Buzz. He is the immortal one. Yes, his father.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Buzz the the former leader of the Minnesota Thunder. But
also correct me if I'm wrong here. He used to
come on the show quite a bit in the PA.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
And do Bay days.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
Oh yeah, math professor, a math teacher, right, oh yeah, yeah,
Buzz was the bomb. I mean we're talking years ago,
but it's yeah, Buzz Lagos, Minnesota Immortality. Great scene, Manny again,
and uh more so for you and Nordo. I want
to begin with the with with U s A and
and Belgium this evening and Balligan playing in the game.
(01:57):
So we'll we'll we'll get to the we'll get to
the low hanging fruit here moment, Gerily. But now that
we know the red card has been rescinded and he
will play tonight, what do you think of a match
versus Belgium seven o'clock tonight, Manny.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
I mean, I'm still coming down from that Mexico England
last night because the drama and just I had no
skin in the game, and I'm exhausted from just, you know,
both those teams just putting everything on the line. And
I kind of have that sentiment tonight in terms of
what I'm going in nervous. I think we should be
favored based on how we've played versus them in this tournament.
(02:32):
But you're playing against kind of historically one of the
powers of Europe that can hurt you. So I just
think it's It's such an exciting matchup tonight, and I'm
so excited because I think our guys are in a
place where we can take them.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
Yeah, the match has a little pick them to it.
I mean USA is tepidly favored in this thing, right,
And like when after we all learned about the fixed right,
I mean, the red card being rescinded, I thought maybe
there would be some movement in the markets where like,
but I just don't know enough about soccer and wagering
(03:05):
and punting and things like that, where pretty much stayed
the same with or without Balligan. So now I just
I'm I'm I want to get the low hanging fruit
out of the way.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
But in the in the football.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Or soccer world, soccer world, it's I'd like it to
be the one A topic behind Mexico England last night.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
It's the a topic it is.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
I mean, from Brussels to BRUEs, they're just tripping out there.
So if you missed it, which you probably didn't because
a lot of sports snobs listened to nine to Now Balligan,
is it fair to call him the best player on
the USA team?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
Yes? Or no? Or would that be polistic? Or for me?
Speaker 3 (03:46):
I mean, I think Balligan has been our leading score
of this tournament. I think Polistice has had a great
forty five minutes. Ironically, I think no matter what whether
Baligan played or not, for me, Polisite, this is his
legacy game.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Okay, because he he played.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Those first forty five, was great, got an assist, got injured.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Yeah, it's his legacy.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Love me. We're going back to eighteen when this guy
was just a kid and again too much on his
shoulders and we didn't qualify and he was part of
that team, and that hit hard that he missed that
World Cup. And I think in twenty two he kind
of carried us, but he didn't really carry us the
way that we needed.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
And now this is the kind of games.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
When you look at Holland yesterday you look at him,
Bappe is doing. We need somebody like that. And again
I will talk all Balligan the second how important is
the team? But to me, everything is on the table
for poolistics. Now he came back, he got his legs
back because he was injured against that game against Austria Australia,
and then got some good minutes against Turkey, and I
get that the game against Bosni was insanely physical and
(04:44):
there wasn't a lot of space. There'll be space for
him tonight to go and get at him. So to me,
it's all about Googles, his legacy.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
And I think if he has the game, I think
he will again you got to do it on the field.
Speaker 3 (04:56):
I think we will start talking about him maybe as
the greatest US soccer player of all time. Outs out
of Landon Donovant or now passing up Landon Donovant.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Holy cow, big proclamation. Love that all right?
Speaker 1 (05:05):
So, like for me Friday, I thought that this Balligan
red card was a Fato complay, so like I stopped
following it. I don't know if this was percolating over
the weekend that there's a chance that oh, the White
House would get involved with the head of FIFA. So
I mean it's like in a white House, doesn't go
up a chain, it goes right to the head of FIFA.
Speaker 2 (05:28):
How did this happen?
Speaker 1 (05:29):
How was a red card to it an incredibly key
player on the worldly stage for the country that is
hosting the World Cup.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
How did this happen?
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Yeah, I mean listen, Nordon, I just talked about a
little bit before we got an air and I will
tell you my phone started pinging massively Sunday when this
kind of news broken.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
And how is Amos McGee? Oh my god, he's great.
He's great. He's been so fun.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
It's been so fun for some of our Minnesotans who
just have loved the support for so long, and just
how awesome this World Cup has been.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
But long story.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Short, I think I look at this and say it's unprecedented,
and I personally doesn't love it. I don't like using
this this kind of situation on the US. But I
take away the White House stuff and I'm going right
to the rules, and the reality is var is exploded,
very controversial, but they are now getting obsessive about every
(06:20):
little detail of the game.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
Time I've seen it. What does VARs down video okay,
video system review.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
So again, basically it's it's just like all the major
sports now have these different mechanisms to like see plays
and see replays in soccer, you know, And what I
love about about the World Cup right now is if
you're that average fan, you're starting to realize that with
the kind of scoring be not always a lot, every
little play matters so much, every little fall, every little moment,
(06:48):
every little momentum breaker. So long story short, it's it's
massively important in how you keep the ball moved, blocks, cetera.
Balligan's situation for me, really came down to the FIFA
looking at the rules and the process and saying there
was a breakdown between var which is fairly new, and
the on field referee and how they actually went about
deciding whether it was a red card or not. And
(07:08):
they felt like, wow, they went wrong with that process. Again,
I don't love the in tournament side of this. I
would have loved them and say we made a mistake.
Our refs are gonna get better. I think there should
be a human elements referees. Just like when players play poorly,
they have to put their hand up and saying I
gotta do better. I think the referee in the situation
horrible red card call. But part of me is like,
I think we got Haji right, we got Peppy, We
(07:30):
had guys that come in to do it. I love
that Balligan's plane, but I also think it felt unpresced
in a way that I didn't really love.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yeah, okay, if.
Speaker 1 (07:41):
If it seems that I'm looking at you longingly, I
love it. I haven't seen you in a decade and
a half. Yeah, well, here's why I'm doing it. Because
we're about the same age. We both have gray hair,
silver silver, but we have a combined four chins.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Three belong to me. I always love that.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
So this is kind of a self awareness reflection of
my kfan career. Given up No Manny since he played
and I know his father, Buzz, he taught me the
Pthagorean theorem.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
I always love that one. So anyway, well, I'm Manny.
Speaker 4 (08:11):
You've you've been a part of this sport for so
long and now whether it's it's MLS, it's your time
with the national team, et cetera. You know, as I
was mentioning t uf Air the in tournament aspect of
it as unprecedent as it is. I'm uncomfortable with that too. However,
I just think the gravity of a red card, the
fact that FIFA in their own right have not created true, obvious,
(08:36):
clear channels to review and appeal over the course of time.
We're in a tight We're in an awful spot right
now perception wise, and you know, the White House made
a call all of those things. But moving forward, with
a red card, you get punished twice, you get punished
as a team when he's sent off, you get punished
with the corresponding ban associated with it. I love the
(08:57):
idea if the best part that comes out of it
is any red card, including Quanta last night, did his
leg get to the ball first and did the ball
raise his foot into the leg of the Mexican player.
I would love the idea of all these red cards
being reviewed and potentially more appeals or suspensions lifted in
the future.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
I would agree with you.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Actually, Major League Soccer, we have an appeals process for
red cards after games, and it's pretty extensive, and you
got to put some money on the line as a
club to make sure you win the appeal, so you
better do it.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
Wow to beat.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
Well, it's just a little bit like to make sure
your owners don't just go crazy and appeal every red card.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
So there's a punitive penalty associated with it if you
do not successfully get that appeal done.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Yeah, so you're just not innundating the league office with
this appeals twenty four to seven for yellow and red cards.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
But what you're saying is exactly right.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
I mean, now you look at this now, I think
this sets a great precedent going forward that why would
you not have a second look after the game when
you have human air involved in these situations.
Speaker 4 (09:55):
Now, with the game tonight, one of the most fascinating
aspects to me in you know, we'll get to watch
Portugal in Spain and know what's on the line for
us if we are victorious tonight. You know, Golden Generations
you mentioned, you know, kind of best in Europe and
they had a nice little run. But Edin Hazzard has
gone Vincent Company. I think he's coaching in Germany now,
(10:16):
So some of those names have gone by the wayside.
The Bruna and Lukaku are still there, but they're twelve
years older than when we saw him in twenty fourteen.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
Manny what have you seen.
Speaker 4 (10:25):
From Belgium thus far in terms of whether it's the
struggles scoring, Lukaku comes off the bench and he's instant offense.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
What do you think about what we're up against tonight?
Speaker 3 (10:33):
Well, I think it's actually gonna be about all the
other players besides those two.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
And I say this a little bit honestly.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Both guys look like they eat a lot of waffles nowadays,
and I don't quite get around the field like they
should in fact eat the waffles.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Yeah, the good waffles.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
And in fact even I think when Belgium was down
to nothing in the eighty six minute, I think they
subbed out to Bruyna in like the sixty fifth.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Minute ish they did fifty sixth.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
That's when they started to really maybe get control the
game a little more and start creating some chances to
get back into the game against Senegal, who I think
absolutely destroyed them and played really well. So I would
say Belgium has really squeaked by. They do have some
really good young talent. You're right, they had this window
where they could have literally won the World Cup. They
probably should have. Maybe you could argue they didn't have
quite the back line to do it. But they got
(11:19):
guys in the field now that can just move the
ball easily all over the place. Every players skilled, every
player is athletic, and it's been a tough matchup for
the US when we play some of the higher level
European teams. There's no doubt Mexico ran into that last
night with a big, strong, technical team like England. So
tonight is one of those games where I like it
because we have to beat a tough team in a
round of sixteen to get to the quarters. And I'm
(11:41):
excited because I think our guys have more excitement and
confidence they've ever seen in the history of a national
team during a World Cup.
Speaker 4 (11:49):
When you mentioned Polisic having a legacy game, I love
that you went there with it.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
I love that you said it that way.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
But in terms of what that looks like against Belgium,
so you know, Balligan, he leads the team in goals.
But but Christians, the guy that stirs this drink. He's
your chief creator and your best overall player, I believe.
So against a weak central defense for a Belgium team
that appears, I think We're going to have the ball
a lot tonight.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
Many maybe you think I'm wrong on that, but I do.
Speaker 4 (12:19):
But we're going to have the ball a lot, They're
going to put bodies behind it. How does a guy
like Christian Polisic battle that and work through that and
create an individual effort that might spark something for Baligan
and others.
Speaker 3 (12:32):
Yeah, I think one of the things We've got to
get a lot of credit to Pachingino. This started a
year ago in terms of realigning and recalibrating Christian's kind
of role within the team. One of the first things
he did he didn't make them captain. And part of
the reason why I did that, he goes, I actually
don't want the ball to always go through Christian. I
really want to, you know, have a guy in the
(12:53):
backbeard captain Tim Marien, and then you've got you've got
Balligan up topic.
Speaker 2 (12:57):
I think makes great.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
Runs in between the lines, in between that they're two
big center backs and create space for poolstage where space
Christian space is really created. He's a very vertical, fast,
explosive player. What's the key and then is how he
lines up with our other two kind of offensive, creative midfielders,
and that would be Tillman and McKenny and Tillman's our passer,
(13:19):
he's our creative guy.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
He's kind of like our Deborne on the field.
Speaker 3 (13:21):
He's going to always be looking for any way to
break lines, pass, to get get a guy through. And
McKenny is to me been our player of the tournament
in that every game he provides our moxie. If you
watched Mexico last night versus England, think of Bellingham all
over the place, physical late runs and so mckenny's kind
of like our American tough moxie guy who's just out there.
(13:42):
So to me, it's not all on Christian necessarily to
do it all.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
It's on him to.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Play within those front four that are kind of all
have different attributes, to create space, to create chances, and
to just create chaos against Belgian defense. And then our
wing backs are going to be so important. I think
Dess has had a somewhat soft tournament so far. He
can provide some great offense on that right wing. And
Robinson we know is player of the year, a top
(14:07):
eleven in Premier League two years ago, so we know
we can get up and down the field. So ultimately
it's those three pronged midfield that we have to win
that I think will be the difference in the game.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
The United States of America being a we. Yeah, we
have the third most people in the world, okay, behind
India and China. Why aren't we a blue blood soccer
powerhouse now? Now, we also are the fattest country in
the world, so maybe feeding the kids the wrong way
plays into it. But nevertheless, like it's the United States
(14:36):
of America, why aren't we a blue blood?
Speaker 3 (14:39):
Listen, it's funny you were in here, Nord and I
talked about this before, and we're getting there. It's slower
than I'd like it to be as well. I thought
after ninety four there'd be di explosion.
Speaker 2 (14:47):
There was an explosion. Everybody counting.
Speaker 1 (14:50):
Everybody counting on Freddie, you do too much?
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Yeah, but you.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
Guys also all know the sport.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
The fans.
Speaker 3 (14:54):
MLS sells out almost a ton.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Of their games.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
We sell out every game, and like the fans get
the how hard it is to win in soccer and grow.
You are talking about countries now that are really and
I really do think Minnesotan's understand it because of our
hockey culture here.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
It doesn't start at ten or eleven, it starts at two.
Or three.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
It starts when you first walk, you start skating and
wait two or three, there you go, you got to
start skating, you start walking and you start kicking that
ball around. That's what they're doing in Argentina. That's what
they're doing in France. And we're getting there. Like I said,
you know, we have to look at both the glass
half full to be like, oh my gosh, we've got
some really good guys in the field that we've developed
that are now showing the world that they can compete
(15:33):
and glass half empties.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
We just don't have enough of them.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
We still don't have like France has ninety eight of
all players in this World Cup were born in France.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Oh, that's just amazing. It just shows that.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
They at those early ages know how to develop high
level talent. And I again, I think we'll get there.
I think there's kids watching this World Cup. I think
there's parents who are like, oh, I got to put
a ball my kid right away. And I do think
in ten or twenty years we will be on another
level of competing right at that top. Now with England,
with Spain, with Argentina, with France.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
What happened to Brazil?
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Well, I think Brazil if you look at that team.
You know, I said it last night. I go in
my view, there's really only one superstar in the field,
and I mean real superstar. Yes, some players play for
some of the greatest teams in the world on the
field for both those sides, and they play in Premier
League and they play where the teams the guys make
the most money. But Erling Holland is a freaking superstar.
He's just unbelievable and everybody knows it. The ball doesn't
(16:25):
come to a lot, but when it does, everybody gets scared,
and he just is like, I will finish it. I'm
a true Viking. This is what happens. You could argue
Viddy Junior, is this the other superstar in the field.
I think he's a flawed one in that I don't
think he's a great leader. I think sometimes he kind
of plays for himself. And I think Brazil got caught
in a generation where they just don't have the talent.
At the end of the day, I don't think they
(16:46):
had the talent to actually make a real run in
this tournament.
Speaker 4 (16:48):
They've been kind of broken since twenty fourteen, don't you
think we I just got housed seven to one by Germany.
They're hosting the tournament. It was a fore gone conclusion
Neymar Junior is going to hoist the trophy and this
is just the next generation of greatness. They get embarrassed
on the global stage. They haven't been right since.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
No and it's been tough.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
Like I said, I think their last real superstar for
me was Neymar and like I said, he broke his
back in that tournament, so it did kind of hurt that.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Run for them.
Speaker 3 (17:13):
But since then they have not had the kind of
players and I do think this is the worst Brazilion
team in probably fifty or sixty years.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Norway England doesn't sound like a soccer match. It sounds
more like a war. What makes this one dynamic?
Speaker 3 (17:27):
I mean, I will tell you, like, you've got the
team Norway who's had the most points in qualifying in Europe.
You've got a player who is just every fourteen minutes
he scores a goal when he touches the ball, I'm sorry,
fourteen touches he scores a goal.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
And then I.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Would say you've got an England team though that for
the first time, everything last night was lined up for
them to once again, not win a game, get a
red card, not walk off the field going thinking we hey,
we have a chance to win this Manny, I thought.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
The Congo had a middle of the second half exactly
you No, You're.
Speaker 3 (18:01):
Right, they'd opened up, They had some counterattacks that could
have gone two or three nothing. I just think this
team has got some type of resilience that other teams.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
And it's not just on the field.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
I think off the field, the leadership of Harry Kane
and Bellingham in particular to not allow the press kind
of get in there and kind of make it just
like drama field all the time has given them something
that I don't think they've had in the past. And again,
I think they're probably going to be end up being
the favorites against Norway just because of the depth of
talent that they have versus Norway has one superstar, but
(18:32):
they might not have the whole depth of the roster
of England has.
Speaker 1 (18:35):
Interesting you said that about the media because after the
match last night against Mexico, Harry Kane said this, You
know all reporters and columnists are they want the controversy,
they want the negativity. Is Jordan Pickford the best goalkeeper
in the world.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
He's the most English goalkeeper in the world. Like he
looks like an Englishman, he plays like it some unbelievable. Yeah,
he plays for Everton in England, and you know he
plays where there his whole career, played his whole career,
and he's athletic, and he's a great leader and everything
about that game last night, guys, I could not tell you.
(19:09):
I honestly turned to my friends and my wife and
I said, I think this is the greatest World Cup
game I've ever seen.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
And I was exacered that three times.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
Well I read it twice from Learning Soccer Minds and
now from Minnesota Soccer Immortality.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
I hear it. I mean this resonates. Yeah, it does.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
And by the way, I got a little pride to it.
I'm going to give a little bit of a shout
out to both Canada and Mexico who've had great tournaments
and they've played amazing and obviously Jesse Marsh was leading
Canada kid from Racine, Wisconsin. But at the end of
the day, I will say, right now, my favorite thing
about the waking up this morning is that we are
the last CONCA calf that's our region team left Mexico
and Canada out, we win tonight, we go further than them.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
I think that's huge because I still want the US
State Soccer. Oh it's massive. Oh I could see with Mexico,
but with Canada.
Speaker 3 (19:53):
Well, I mean it's more about making sure that you're
the big dog in your region. And I think that's
important for our PSAKI and important for all this money
that's going to MLS, all this money that's going to development.
All these owners are putting so much money into the development.
Millions and millions of dollars are going into doing. What
you're trying to talk about is why can't we become
a superpower?
Speaker 2 (20:10):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (20:10):
Again, it doesn't have overnight, but I'm close to a
lot of the owners and it's so much money.
Speaker 2 (20:15):
That you want that success.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
So even this little metric of us winning tonight and
going further than Mexico and further than Canada is really
a big deal. But a shout out to Mexico last night.
I cannot tell you how well they played. They took
on a superpower and they really beat them down. Except
for the score line was that it's tough. Right at
the end of the day, England found a.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
Way this is Manny Lagos, Minnesota Soccer Immortality, chief development
officer for the Minnesota United. When we return, we will
handle who wins USA Belgium.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
And why that's on.
Speaker 1 (20:47):
That takes place at seven o'clock this evening from Olt
Seattle Way. We greatly thank Manny for stopping by the
studio and we're approaching the middle stages of the nine
to noon presentation, so it's time for a hydration break.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
We'll be right back.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
This is not the noon.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
I'm a fan from the one eight hundred ask.
Speaker 5 (21:08):
Bac Serginio desk block. Still the fat comes up for
all side. I think he's gonna be all inside here.
The trail leg of the player at the top.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
It is affect your review, the.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
Ghost star.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
Position.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
All right, many Lagos in studio outside of the Red,
White and Blue Covenant.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Let me hit you with two.
Speaker 1 (21:37):
Then you and Nordo can become You guys can analyze
US A Belgium and I'll just kind of sit back
and absorb because it's been fantastic. Is France absolutely the
team to beat from here with thembape.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
Yeah, there's no doubt. It's it's France.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
It's not just in Bape though it's them ballet, it's baccl,
it's it's their Robbio and Tukomeni in the midfield. That
they just don't have a weakness anywhere. Wow, I mean
they're a dream team. Yeah, it's a dream team.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
Were they favored into the World Cup and now, like
I would imagine they're more heavily favored.
Speaker 4 (22:08):
Well, it was pretty close between France and Spain. I
think Spain was a little more favorite. But the many lagos, we.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
Get Spain if we win and they win, right, yeah
we do.
Speaker 3 (22:16):
I actually would rather have the matchic in Spain versus France.
I don't know where the goals necessarily come from for Spain.
I think today will be a really tough test for
Spain just because I think Portugal probably feels like they
want a lottery ticket by beating Croatia. Who I think
we're the better team on the day, but Portugal has
Ronaldo and I think Spain still to me, has trouble
finding goals against really good teams.
Speaker 4 (22:37):
I think Michael o'lise for France might be the game changer.
Like they are a dream team and you mentioned all
the right names, but he's a new face to me
at least in terms of digging in and getting him.
That guy is a freaking superstar behind a superstar and embape.
Speaker 3 (22:53):
Yeah, he's the creative engine of the whole thing. He
played an amazing year and Bayern. Ironically, he was developed
actually in England, not franc even like kind of bragged
all these French players that were in the World Cup.
Speaker 2 (23:03):
He was actually raised and developed in England.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
But I just think that team has everything, and so
for them it just comes down to them smeshing and
not losing their cool.
Speaker 1 (23:14):
Which they almost did against Paraguay.
Speaker 2 (23:16):
They sure did, They sure did, and that is their
their flaws.
Speaker 3 (23:19):
They've probably have so many stars and egos that it's
hard to get.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Them aligned all the time.
Speaker 3 (23:23):
And the minutes now there's teeth there certain players that
aren't getting minutes. I think they're a little frustrated. Don't
want to play them though, until we have to that
this may be the dumbest thing you hear all day.
We're going to call it Fioba fairness in outside of
the box act. So we got the red card rescinded,
rescinded for Balligan. First question here with the outside of
(23:45):
the box bit, that may be super stupid. The referees,
the officials, the ref are Are they compensated by FIFA?
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Do they work for FIFA?
Speaker 3 (23:55):
I think everything we all have since channel up to FIFA.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
How many calls we can get tonight?
Speaker 1 (24:01):
The answers zero zero, I'm wrong.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
I mean the coaching me is like, hey, you've got
to play the game and you kind of get to
know how referees are going to ref based on kind
of how they call it the first ten or fifteen minutes.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
We'll be eleven ten for about fifty five minutes, mark
my words.
Speaker 3 (24:17):
All right, I don't care. Let's win no matter what.
But you understand what I'm saying. Oh yeah, oh yeah, no, no, no,
I get it. Like I said, we.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
I'm kind of making a game a match fixing allegation here,
but human nature gets to win too.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
You're right in some ways there's extra pressure now with
Balligan on the field and that we have to overcome.
You know, the reality is that there's a lot of
pressure from Belgium into FIFA about how unfair this is,
and there might be subconsciusly a referee that you know,
takes that into account as they kind of call the game.
Speaker 1 (24:45):
And Lastly, how does the world look at American soccer?
Do they disregard it like Canadians used to do with
American hockey until the Red, White, and Blue men and
women started beating them? Like, how does the world look
at Americans?
Speaker 3 (25:00):
Uh? I think you're onto something in terms of I
think in coming into this World Cup not highly regarded
like kind of like, oh, that'd be a nice, nice
team to play, you know, because it's almost usually an
especially in a knockout around that where we don't usually
go very far. They're like great fresh meat. I think
this World Cup has totally changed the dial, like I mean,
(25:21):
and that's why I'm so proud of these guys. That's
how I think this team has fallen in love by
this country because the combination of energy, effort, quality, fight,
technical and tactical kind of acumen has been through the roof.
And I'm not just talking about like just the actual
score lines. I'm talking about the data that we have,
like some of the most best progressive passing the entire tournament.
(25:42):
We have some of the best defensive passing and breaking lines,
which really puts other teams under pressure.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
Soccer and analytics Yeah, oh yeah, how long has that
been prominent probably.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
About fifteen years.
Speaker 3 (25:52):
Okay, yeah, it's really blown up, and really the world
has taken note. Like everybody knows that we have been
one of the best teams in terms of overall balance
of play offensively and defensively. And I think, particularly going
into this game tonight, our back three has been through
the roof. You have our kind of stalwart not as
fast the guy Tim Reim. And then you throw in
(26:15):
Chris Richards, who just had a great season at Crystal
Palace and is getting accolades, is one of the better center.
Speaker 2 (26:19):
Backs now in that league.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
And then one of my favorite players to talk about
we talk about young players. Oh my gosh, this kid Freeman,
the son of Antonio Freeman, is just nothing rattlesome. And
what I love about him is he kind of uses
that as athleticism, but he dribbles the break lines out
of the back in a way very similar to Hughes
for the for the while where you're like, oh, shoot,
this is a great way to attack, and next thing
(26:42):
you know, he's just going forward, breaking lines, making passes.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
It's got a goal, but unbelievable, I do.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
I will say, yeah, breaking lines, what does that mean,
So that means.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
Basically, you know when teams have setups of their systems
and then they're space in between them to try to
get the ball forward and progress. Okay, And it's really
important soccer because if he can't progress and the other
team can kind of slowly just go forward and steal
the ball and then create chances to the momentum. But
if you can have players that can either pass and
break lines or dribbling break lines, you put all the
pressure on them. Now they can't go forward, they have
(27:13):
to sit back. Now you're creating chances. The more opportunities
you get the ball forward to get in the box
and get chances, obviously, the better chance you have scored goals.
Datalytics they call it expected goals. Freeman's one of the
best defenders in this tournament breaking lines with dribbling. Tim
Reim is the very best, I believe this tournament breaking lines,
passing out of the back as a center back.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
You gotta pay for that. Where do you find that stuff? Oh?
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Yeah, I mean some you pay for, some of you don't.
But there's people out there now they Nardo can get
it all. He knows he's into that stuff.
Speaker 4 (27:40):
Old man Reim looks like he's he's living on like it,
just like public, like he lives in a commute with
long hair his camp.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
I mean, just old man.
Speaker 4 (27:50):
Reim has been a freaking godsend in this tournament.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
At times he's been a beast. And by the way,
the Potentino, instead.
Speaker 3 (27:57):
Of put him just with one other center back, he's
him with two others. So now we have a back three,
which has been awesome coaching because now you don't have
to worry as much about his athleticism because he has
covered from Freeman and Richard to clean things up if
they get over the top on that side of the ball.
I will go back to one of the areas. And
I've loved him. It's one of my favorite stories. Is
our goalkeeper Matt Freese, a Harvard kid who's just grinded
(28:19):
to get where he is.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
It is the weak spot.
Speaker 3 (28:22):
You have probably considered the best goalie right now historically
in the tournament Courtois and you've got Freeze who's probably
considered probably one of the weaker in terms of just
like high level superstardom. But he's a steady guy and
I think that's actually been good for us.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
He's calm, he's composed.
Speaker 3 (28:39):
But if you're looking at the field right now and
you're asking an area where Belgium massively tilted in their favor,
it's going to be the goalkeeper.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
Position, all right, USA Belgium, seven o'clock to night. Boys,
who wins? And why Manny, you're the guest. You go first.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Oh my gosh, I'm going to throw this in Narto
because I want to get his insight, and then I'll
go off the top of it.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
Well, I love it.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
I'm nervous as bleep about this.
Speaker 4 (28:58):
So the way that I look at it, it's similar
but different. So what we saw in the first two games, Manny,
and excited for you to disagree or co sign on this.
I think we're going to see a much more athletic
and prepared version of some of the defensive low block
you've heard that thrown at around a lot. I think
(29:19):
they're going to sit back and allow us to have
the ball a ton tonight. The difference is is that
you have world class finishers with Belgium that maybe you
didn't have with the Offses that you didn't have with Paraguay,
and so the worrisome aspect for me is once I
see Lukaku freight training ahead.
Speaker 1 (29:38):
You mentioned other guys Trisard and.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
Doku, now could you?
Speaker 4 (29:43):
Yeah, but those two on the outside are going to
provide us with a ton of problems tonight in the
counter attacks. I think we win with the pressure and
the fast starts that have led to our success in
the previous matches. You're up to nothing at the half
in Australia, you're up three to nothing on Paraguay. You
(30:03):
get that goal from Balligan right before the break in
the Bosni. This team has had the enjoyment and the
advantage of playing from ahead for a large part of
this tournament. I think that needs to continue tonight for
Team USA if they're going to get through, because as
we've seen it the substitutions and the decision making later
stages of games, Belgium is not out of this thing
(30:25):
by any stretch. So it's the combination of taking advantage
of the possession you'll be gifted tonight, and then also
limiting the set pieces where the US I think they
still lead teams in set piece goals on corners and
free kicks is what I'm referring to.
Speaker 1 (30:42):
Belgium can still be lethal and de.
Speaker 4 (30:44):
Bruyna hasn't scored yet, but he has the opportunity to
in this tournament and in this match tonight. So managing
making the most out of possession, limiting set piece opportunities
for Belgium.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
I think this feels like a two to one game
maybe in our favor for Fox Manny Lagos, Manny Lagos,
Parker Fox, Well.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
I, sir, what do you think about what Nordo is
that I'm going to co sign on that. I think
it was a great assessment.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
I think particularly where I think you always should go
is getting your defensive balance first. So I think dealing
with their superstars is the way to go in terms
of making sure we deal with Doku. And again, last
game we had a different lineup. I think Timothy Ware
was playing on wide out right against him and he
torched us. Back in March we played a friendly and
Belgium really hit us hard, and again we didn't have
our quite same lineup, different system, But I'm going to.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
Go to win the freakingvie that was March. That was
in March.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
Okay, Well yeah, again, Casual speaking for Fire two, like,
what's dramatically different?
Speaker 3 (31:38):
Now?
Speaker 1 (31:39):
You didn't say they beat us, you said they drilled us.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
Yeah, five two, Yeah, yeah. It was one of those games.
Speaker 3 (31:43):
And by the way, within elements of the game, I
still think we actually played better than that score line.
So I'm not I'm not as nervous, and I'm not
as nervous as well, because we were playing with what
we call it back four versus a back five. And
like I said, when you mentioned Tressad and you mentioned
Doku and you mentioned Lukaku, We've got to make sure
we have the best defensively, and I just think this
system winds up very well to deal with those guys
in the way it didn't before.
Speaker 2 (32:05):
But you're right, I like.
Speaker 3 (32:06):
I'm co signing De Nordo on the fact that defense first,
we got to make sure we stop their big guys.
But ultimately, I think this tournament is about teams that
want to go on the front foot, teams that want
to take the game to them. Let's look at what
just happened when Norway freaking took it to Brazil, which
you never would imagine. You look at Morocco took it
to Holland with Netherlands, which you never would imagine. So
(32:26):
to me, it's that three midfielders I talked about, and
I'll throw Adams in there too, because he's more important
on the defensive side. You could argue that they're all
for our midfielders are going to battle, but let's just
say for the offensive side of just getting after them
waves an attack. It's McKenny, it's Tilman, it's Poolsich. It's
letting those guys understand that they should go for it,
(32:49):
do not lay back. Let's not try to like win
this game in a chess match. Let's put our front
foot against him. And I do think that's what the
teams that have won in this tournament have done. They've
gone on the front foot and they've been incredibly successful
at it.
Speaker 4 (33:03):
And lastly, well so in terms of tonight's game, now
we know Polisic and maybe the answer you just provided
a couple of names. A guy that will surprise us
potentially tonight. Is it Desk who's just kind of I mean,
he's been putting in work, he's been running routes, but
he hasn't been connecting right and McKenny, the do it
all hasn't been on the score sheet. Is there a
(33:25):
guy you're thinking if this thing goes the right way
in our favor, and this guy pops out of nowhere
onto the scoreesheet tonight. Who is a guy that can
tip the scales in our favor? Not named Baligan, not
named Christian.
Speaker 3 (33:38):
Yeah, I think Desk has sneakily got more offense than
him than he's played in these games, and he loves
to get forward and again to the detriment sometimes offensively,
he kind of leaves some holes and we have to
cover for him. But I just think he or either
whether it's arriving in fire posts later coming in on
his left foot and taking a shot, I think there's
some offense in there that hasn't come out. They we're
gonna have to find in different ways. But ultimately I'm
(34:00):
going to go back to Poolsich I really am. And
again it's not on the one guy, and I don't
want the whole game to be on him.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Legacy game.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
We've been great because it's not just one player, and
it's actually Pochettino evolving Christian's mentality that the ball doesn't
have to go through every time, but we when it's
key and it's vertical and it's getting up and down
the field, that's when we want you.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
To have the ball. So for me, this is a
legacy game.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
It is Pochettino the coach, right, Yeah, so was he
was he hired for this post? Yes, to get them
past the sit in the knockout sixteen because like nobody
else could.
Speaker 2 (34:32):
He's done the day after this is over.
Speaker 3 (34:34):
This was this was a mercenary hire to say, hey,
we have a pretty good group here. Build this group
into a World Cup, you know, champion hopefully, but at
least make a serious run, which he's already done. I mean, ultimately,
whatever happens tonight, he's proved successful in taking a group,
unifying them and playing some of the best soccer in
this tournament.
Speaker 2 (34:53):
There's no doubt that.
Speaker 3 (34:54):
I think people are starting to believe that he could
make a really special run here. But he really was
the kind of coach that we wanted if we had
a couple of turmoil years from coaches and some drama.
I won't go into it, but long story short, he's
come in.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
He it's it was. It wasn't easy.
Speaker 3 (35:10):
It wasn't like the moment he got here, we just
went up. We've had a year where US soccer fans
were like, are we going to really be able to
represent the wen, able to get out.
Speaker 2 (35:16):
Of our group. I was kind of it was ugly.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
I mean, we really did, and he really had to
realign some players expectations of what their roles were. All
the credit in the world. Beautiful guy, beautiful person. I've
got to sit down with them several times and meet
with them here in Minnesota when the national team played,
and I just love how I know for sure that
the one thing the guys will do for him is
run through a wall.
Speaker 2 (35:38):
Wow. That's awesome. Okay.
Speaker 1 (35:40):
Lastly for me, we we hail from the same generation.
How would how would Pele fair in this day and
age if he had this.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
Is the old the NBA question.
Speaker 1 (35:51):
Okay, well, let's give him the nutritionists, let's give him
the workout. So let's give him everything they have today.
How would he fare?
Speaker 2 (35:59):
I mean it's hard for me.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
I just think, you know, soccer is all about creating
time and space with your touches. It's all about like
that physical side of up and down. The guys run
way more today than they did back then, so it's
it's so hard to compare. My favorite player going up,
by the way, was actually Diego Rodondo was super flawed player.
A very physical era though, where you got crunched all
the time, I don't think you'd.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
Fare very well in the end. I mean when I
look at this.
Speaker 3 (36:25):
World Cup and I look at how evolved so many
countries are tactically, structurally, athletically technically, I.
Speaker 2 (36:35):
Don't think this would be an era for just one superstar.
Speaker 3 (36:37):
I think you need a team of kind of athletic
guys who can get.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
Around the field. What about Ricky Davis. I love Ricky Days.
That's old school, Dame, That's good. Let's go as old school.
Speaker 3 (36:48):
No, but I would say you brought up a name
like Ricky Davis. There is so many great generations and
again I bring it, yeah, I bring back to Minnesota
and Allansfield and on my time with you in thunder
and all these weather they're players with their fans. They
should be so proud to have to go out and
watch this team represent this country because there's been decades
of just work behind the scenes and the growth, whether
(37:09):
it's on the field, it's off the field. And again,
this is the sport that unifies humanity because it is
the global sport. And this World Cup is a success
because the World needed to remind ourselves that we are
a human hate a race that wants to celebrate things sometimes.
And I really believe that tonight will Will you think
(37:30):
about tens of thousands of people in that march in
downtown Seattle, that stadium right in the Urban Corps, There'll
be nothing like it. I mean I was there against
Australia and I was telling Nardo like it was the
best Astralia.
Speaker 2 (37:46):
Unbelievable.
Speaker 3 (37:46):
Yeah, it was just it was unbelievable because the team
is guys you love. The team is playing hard and
playing their hearts out, and the fans are understanding now
of how important this is the rest of the world
and how important some of this is for our country
to cast put our chest out against the rest of
the world.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
That's awesome, Thank you, sir.
Speaker 1 (38:05):
Well with the references of Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and Ricky.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
Davis, yeah that means you're old.
Speaker 1 (38:10):
You tell my single mom took me to our FK
Stadium to see Washington Diplomats games. You saw you're on
Croy fled I probably saw about five day times back.
Speaker 2 (38:21):
In the day. A great name too, by the way, Yeah,
for sure.
Speaker 1 (38:24):
As is Manny Lagos Chief Development officer for for the
Minnesota United Anything we need to know about that.
Speaker 2 (38:32):
You guys got anything going on now?
Speaker 3 (38:33):
Oh my gosh, soccer celebration. Guys, get down there downtown.
We we with Brits. We put on a great show.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
It's awesome. We've worked with the city of Minneapolis. Has
the lawn right, yeah, they've they've got the.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
Lawn, but we've we've gotten now outside PD Plaza just
up and down, just loads of US fans just going crazy.
We did it last night for Mexico, and I give
a shout out to our owners. They they really said, hey, Minneapolis,
we think we can help you get people downtown.
Speaker 2 (38:58):
It has been such a was that for Mexico England.
Oh my gosh, it was crazy last night. While and
by the way, every US.
Speaker 3 (39:05):
Game has been packed, and again it's it's yeah, it's
hard because I think we probably lament now not having
the World Cup here and having a host city. But
I think Minneapolis, Saint Paul, this Twin city, they've stepped up.
Every watch bar, every bars are packed. It's just been
such a cool thing. But tonight's gonna be special. I mean,
this will be more people than have ever watched US
national team game. I'm sure north of thirty million will
(39:27):
watch me. And right now, it's been an averaging between
Telemundo and Fox right around twenty five million.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
Right which twenty four point blew me away, insane close
to Super Bowl numbers NFL.
Speaker 3 (39:36):
And I would say for Minnesota United, like I said,
get down there, we we really tried to put on
a show that that makes you feel a part of
the soccer community. And certainly we're just about to start
up on a twenty second and get excited again and again.
We know this will add new more fans. I want that,
but I told you before, I also want these Minnesota
kids to want to become superstars in Minnesota. That's when
(39:58):
Minnesota Night it will really be a global power. Yeah,
as when we're developing the superstars right here at home.
Speaker 2 (40:03):
Okay, I don't let me.
Speaker 1 (40:05):
Let me get into your schedule a little bit and
do an on air production meeting as we sit.
Speaker 2 (40:08):
Call it run here.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
If USA beats Belgium this evening in place, Friday, I
want to come back in studio.
Speaker 2 (40:15):
I would love to Friday.
Speaker 1 (40:16):
Let's go, well, well, set a time, all right.
Speaker 2 (40:19):
We got to win the game. Tonight.
Speaker 1 (40:21):
God bless you and your family. There's awesome that you
came by.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Man. Tell Buzz that I say hello. Hopefully he remembers me.
Speaker 3 (40:26):
Of course, he remembers everybody that he has a memorious deal.
Speaker 1 (40:30):
And really truly, I mean, my career and life would
not be where it is if your father did not
teach me the pythagory in here. There you go with, yeah,
and the true meaning of the Isosceles. Trying a lot
of triangles on a soccer field, by the way, so
that helps You're awesome, many good scene, Thank you, sir.
Many lagos. Yeah, many lagos with the Minnesota night. I
(40:51):
was going to give a Twitter handle there for a second,
but we'd have to dust that off pre pandemic for
that to be in place. So just follow his follow
his soccer squad, the Minnesota United, and root for the
USA tonight at seven.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
Back after this he wait, welcome back.
Speaker 4 (41:08):
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Speaker 1 (41:22):
And how about these twins.
Speaker 6 (41:25):
Bell in the air to right center field, diminga is
going back to the wall, and Josh Bell has done it,
the seventh twin ever to homer from both sides of
the plate. In the same game of the Twins break
it open once again. Hit is a four run eighthitting
eleven four twins.
Speaker 2 (41:42):
Here the brocks the con that's all the butt.
Speaker 1 (41:47):
Bard out Blake more presentation. The con t me, boy,
he asked me to do it. He's like, can you
drop the con in somewhere so I can put it
on the button bar.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
I did it.
Speaker 1 (41:59):
I did it between segments, I hit the little pause thing.
Speaker 4 (42:02):
Backed off and with that con, it's a beautiful thing, good,
beautiful thing for the baseball team, winning two out of three.
And then the Yankees are a little dinged up right now,
but the wins count okay, And you heard Josh Bell
with two home runs, one from each side of the
play dig that apparently the seventh twin ever to do so.
And then six to one, featuring a Royce Lewis two
runs single right up the middle, two outs bases.
Speaker 1 (42:25):
Juice appreciated that yesterday with a.
Speaker 4 (42:26):
Six to one win six games until the All Star
breaks so and then they're chilling at Target Field, home
bound as they are starting tomorrow against Cleveland into the
weekend the La Angels.
Speaker 1 (42:37):
These Twins just don't quit.
Speaker 4 (42:39):
And whatever you think of them, whatever you think of
the roster, whatever you think of the bullpen, et cetera,
the team is just four games back in the Division,
a game and a half out of the wild card.
Speaker 1 (42:48):
They are very game, very competitive. Shelty has them playing.
Speaker 4 (42:52):
Really have max value of what you're getting out of
that team. So tremendous stuff from the Minnesota Twins. I
saw something they haven't. Did you say it that it
was just a second time they had taken a series
from the Pinstripe since like twenty nineteen or something crazy
like that.
Speaker 1 (43:07):
The Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees have played fourteen
series since twenty nineteen, and the Minnesota Twins have won
two of them, including meat loafing them over the weekend.
Speaker 2 (43:19):
I'm a kid, dougik I love it.
Speaker 4 (43:22):
Otherwise, you know a lot of Team USA conversation this morning.
Speaker 1 (43:25):
Nine to do and if you're curious, Okay, well, if US.
Speaker 2 (43:28):
Win, what's next?
Speaker 4 (43:30):
Well they'll play on Friday, and they will play the
winner of this afternoon's matinee.
Speaker 1 (43:35):
Portugal and Spain. Who do you I don't know if
you're good at touting these in the shows that I
did with Blake Moore last week. Yeah, he offered two
World Cup touts and nailed them both.
Speaker 2 (43:49):
Oh sweet.
Speaker 1 (43:49):
He went over two and a half in the Japan
game against whom ever, And I mean you needed a
stiff drink very late in that thing to get the three,
but he got it. And then another one that was
a dog and it came through. My man's on fire
with the World Cup. Like Portugal and Spain, who do
you like?
Speaker 2 (44:07):
And why?
Speaker 5 (44:08):
Well?
Speaker 4 (44:08):
I like I like Spain and I like them just
by nature of their possession in the way that they play,
just absolutely suffocating Christiano Ronaldo today.
Speaker 1 (44:19):
We would you play that in the three way or
just the two advance?
Speaker 2 (44:23):
I would.
Speaker 4 (44:24):
I would play them winning in regulation today, And that's
why I'm looking at it, so they get the Yeah.
The key The key for me is Rinaldo is kind
of like Earling Holland in terms of how they're playing
him these days, where for Holland to get action you
need Oda Garden some of his teammates to distribute. They
got to get him the ball. Similarly, with Portugal, some
issues they've had, specifically with their midfield, have limited Rinaldo's opportunities.
(44:49):
I have been incredibly underwhelmed with Portugal's midfield throughout this tournament.
Speaker 2 (44:53):
And they're here. They deserve to be here, they earn
the right.
Speaker 4 (44:56):
But in the end, I think Spain's going to be
moving forward. I don't think it'll take extra time to
do so.
Speaker 1 (45:01):
I have I have a sneaky spot. Oh sweet, so
to just to advance. Okay, so you get, you get
overtime and all that. Yeah, with a no tie, Spain
is like minus two sixty sounds about right, Portugal plus
two ninety and that eliminates the three way terrorism and
(45:23):
stuff like that. Now, if you want to put the
winning and regulation piece in there, this so Portugal Spain
is minus a half goal minus one oh nine. Okay,
uh money line, Spain is minus one oh nine to
win a regulation. Portugal's plus three thirty two over under
(45:44):
here is two and a half the overs minus one
twenty three. I think you'll get three goals today, and
if you think it'll be a draw, plus two sixty one. Yeah, no,
and it's and it's played out a lot of these
A lot of these games have gone to extra time.
Speaker 2 (45:58):
Same for a draw, Socks rooting for a draw is awful.
Speaker 4 (46:01):
I just think Spain's a better, better team top to bottom,
and they're a team like this. I like the I
would I like the over two and a half. But
I like Spain winning in regulation. They're a team that
ascends over the course of a tournament. Big opportunity. We
got a little border battle in its as well, So
I I like I like the Spaniards moving through.
Speaker 2 (46:22):
Well.
Speaker 4 (46:23):
See man Brett Brett lives and breathes every three way
betting line in the sport of soccer, and so so
I'll leave the touting to him in the long run.
But but for me, I'm feeling Spain today and then
I'm feeling hopefully the.
Speaker 1 (46:36):
United States later tonight.
Speaker 2 (46:38):
Yeah, and we'll party. Yeah, me too.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
Use we could have the football feast on Friday. Manny
Logo has already said he come back in Man. That
means nine just became seven. Put news to Nord in there.
It became six, but bikes bits in there became five.
Speaker 4 (46:55):
It's a light day news Denord so let's uh, let's
pause and then come back around the corner with Parker
Fox and Studio and Hammer on the Howl and the
NBA and many hoops related talkers to jump into.
Speaker 1 (47:06):
With Parker, indeed Pete Fox at Parker Fox two four
via x KFA and sports Time is eleven o two.
Speaker 2 (47:14):
Good morning, This is nine tone
Speaker 5 (47:21):
If you're listening live to Paul Allen and nine to
New on iHeartRadio.
Start all right, now, all right, Now, here is Manny Lagos,
(01:12):
chief development officer for the Minnesota United and also, as
we've said repeatedly today, Minnesota soccer immortality.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
His father Buzz. He is the immortal one. Yes, his father.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Buzz the the former leader of the Minnesota Thunder. But
also correct me if I'm wrong here. He used to
come on the show quite a bit in the PA.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
And do Bay days.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
Oh yeah, math professor, a math teacher, right, oh yeah, yeah,
Buzz was the bomb. I mean we're talking years ago,
but it's yeah, Buzz Lagos, Minnesota Immortality. Great scene, Manny again,
and uh more so for you and Nordo. I want
to begin with the with with U s A and
and Belgium this evening and Balligan playing in the game.
(01:57):
So we'll we'll we'll get to the we'll get to
the low hanging fruit here moment, Gerily. But now that
we know the red card has been rescinded and he
will play tonight, what do you think of a match
versus Belgium seven o'clock tonight, Manny.
Speaker 3 (02:11):
I mean, I'm still coming down from that Mexico England
last night because the drama and just I had no
skin in the game, and I'm exhausted from just, you know,
both those teams just putting everything on the line. And
I kind of have that sentiment tonight in terms of
what I'm going in nervous. I think we should be
favored based on how we've played versus them in this tournament.
(02:32):
But you're playing against kind of historically one of the
powers of Europe that can hurt you. So I just
think it's It's such an exciting matchup tonight, and I'm
so excited because I think our guys are in a
place where we can take them.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
Yeah, the match has a little pick them to it.
I mean USA is tepidly favored in this thing, right,
And like when after we all learned about the fixed right,
I mean, the red card being rescinded, I thought maybe
there would be some movement in the markets where like,
but I just don't know enough about soccer and wagering
(03:05):
and punting and things like that, where pretty much stayed
the same with or without Balligan. So now I just
I'm I'm I want to get the low hanging fruit
out of the way.
Speaker 2 (03:15):
But in the in the football.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Or soccer world, soccer world, it's I'd like it to
be the one A topic behind Mexico England last night.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
It's the a topic it is.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
I mean, from Brussels to BRUEs, they're just tripping out there.
So if you missed it, which you probably didn't because
a lot of sports snobs listened to nine to Now Balligan,
is it fair to call him the best player on
the USA team?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
Yes? Or no? Or would that be polistic? Or for me?
Speaker 3 (03:46):
I mean, I think Balligan has been our leading score
of this tournament. I think Polistice has had a great
forty five minutes. Ironically, I think no matter what whether
Baligan played or not, for me, Polisite, this is his
legacy game.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Okay, because he he played.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Those first forty five, was great, got an assist, got injured.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Yeah, it's his legacy.
Speaker 3 (04:06):
Love me. We're going back to eighteen when this guy
was just a kid and again too much on his
shoulders and we didn't qualify and he was part of
that team, and that hit hard that he missed that
World Cup. And I think in twenty two he kind
of carried us, but he didn't really carry us the
way that we needed.
Speaker 2 (04:20):
And now this is the kind of games.
Speaker 3 (04:22):
When you look at Holland yesterday you look at him,
Bappe is doing. We need somebody like that. And again
I will talk all Balligan the second how important is
the team? But to me, everything is on the table
for poolistics. Now he came back, he got his legs
back because he was injured against that game against Austria Australia,
and then got some good minutes against Turkey, and I
get that the game against Bosni was insanely physical and
(04:44):
there wasn't a lot of space. There'll be space for
him tonight to go and get at him. So to me,
it's all about Googles, his legacy.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
And I think if he has the game, I think
he will again you got to do it on the field.
Speaker 3 (04:56):
I think we will start talking about him maybe as
the greatest US soccer player of all time. Outs out
of Landon Donovant or now passing up Landon Donovant.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Holy cow, big proclamation. Love that all right?
Speaker 1 (05:05):
So, like for me Friday, I thought that this Balligan
red card was a Fato complay, so like I stopped
following it. I don't know if this was percolating over
the weekend that there's a chance that oh, the White
House would get involved with the head of FIFA. So
I mean it's like in a white House, doesn't go
up a chain, it goes right to the head of FIFA.
Speaker 2 (05:28):
How did this happen?
Speaker 1 (05:29):
How was a red card to it an incredibly key
player on the worldly stage for the country that is
hosting the World Cup.
Speaker 2 (05:39):
How did this happen?
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Yeah, I mean listen, Nordon, I just talked about a
little bit before we got an air and I will
tell you my phone started pinging massively Sunday when this
kind of news broken.
Speaker 2 (05:47):
And how is Amos McGee? Oh my god, he's great.
He's great. He's been so fun.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
It's been so fun for some of our Minnesotans who
just have loved the support for so long, and just
how awesome this World Cup has been.
Speaker 2 (05:57):
But long story.
Speaker 3 (05:58):
Short, I think I look at this and say it's unprecedented,
and I personally doesn't love it. I don't like using
this this kind of situation on the US. But I
take away the White House stuff and I'm going right
to the rules, and the reality is var is exploded,
very controversial, but they are now getting obsessive about every
(06:20):
little detail of the game.
Speaker 1 (06:21):
Time I've seen it. What does VARs down video okay,
video system review.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
So again, basically it's it's just like all the major
sports now have these different mechanisms to like see plays
and see replays in soccer, you know, And what I
love about about the World Cup right now is if
you're that average fan, you're starting to realize that with
the kind of scoring be not always a lot, every
little play matters so much, every little fall, every little moment,
(06:48):
every little momentum breaker. So long story short, it's it's
massively important in how you keep the ball moved, blocks, cetera.
Balligan's situation for me, really came down to the FIFA
looking at the rules and the process and saying there
was a breakdown between var which is fairly new, and
the on field referee and how they actually went about
deciding whether it was a red card or not. And
(07:08):
they felt like, wow, they went wrong with that process. Again,
I don't love the in tournament side of this. I
would have loved them and say we made a mistake.
Our refs are gonna get better. I think there should
be a human elements referees. Just like when players play poorly,
they have to put their hand up and saying I
gotta do better. I think the referee in the situation
horrible red card call. But part of me is like,
I think we got Haji right, we got Peppy, We
(07:30):
had guys that come in to do it. I love
that Balligan's plane, but I also think it felt unpresced
in a way that I didn't really love.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yeah, okay, if.
Speaker 1 (07:41):
If it seems that I'm looking at you longingly, I
love it. I haven't seen you in a decade and
a half. Yeah, well, here's why I'm doing it. Because
we're about the same age. We both have gray hair,
silver silver, but we have a combined four chins.
Speaker 2 (07:55):
Three belong to me. I always love that.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
So this is kind of a self awareness reflection of
my kfan career. Given up No Manny since he played
and I know his father, Buzz, he taught me the
Pthagorean theorem.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
I always love that one. So anyway, well, I'm Manny.
Speaker 4 (08:11):
You've you've been a part of this sport for so
long and now whether it's it's MLS, it's your time
with the national team, et cetera. You know, as I
was mentioning t uf Air the in tournament aspect of
it as unprecedent as it is. I'm uncomfortable with that too. However,
I just think the gravity of a red card, the
fact that FIFA in their own right have not created true, obvious,
(08:36):
clear channels to review and appeal over the course of time.
We're in a tight We're in an awful spot right
now perception wise, and you know, the White House made
a call all of those things. But moving forward, with
a red card, you get punished twice, you get punished
as a team when he's sent off, you get punished
with the corresponding ban associated with it. I love the
(08:57):
idea if the best part that comes out of it
is any red card, including Quanta last night, did his
leg get to the ball first and did the ball
raise his foot into the leg of the Mexican player.
I would love the idea of all these red cards
being reviewed and potentially more appeals or suspensions lifted in
the future.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
I would agree with you.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Actually, Major League Soccer, we have an appeals process for
red cards after games, and it's pretty extensive, and you
got to put some money on the line as a
club to make sure you win the appeal, so you
better do it.
Speaker 2 (09:28):
Wow to beat.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
Well, it's just a little bit like to make sure
your owners don't just go crazy and appeal every red card.
Speaker 4 (09:33):
So there's a punitive penalty associated with it if you
do not successfully get that appeal done.
Speaker 3 (09:38):
Yeah, so you're just not innundating the league office with
this appeals twenty four to seven for yellow and red cards.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
But what you're saying is exactly right.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
I mean, now you look at this now, I think
this sets a great precedent going forward that why would
you not have a second look after the game when
you have human air involved in these situations.
Speaker 4 (09:55):
Now, with the game tonight, one of the most fascinating
aspects to me in you know, we'll get to watch
Portugal in Spain and know what's on the line for
us if we are victorious tonight. You know, Golden Generations
you mentioned, you know, kind of best in Europe and
they had a nice little run. But Edin Hazzard has
gone Vincent Company. I think he's coaching in Germany now,
(10:16):
So some of those names have gone by the wayside.
The Bruna and Lukaku are still there, but they're twelve
years older than when we saw him in twenty fourteen.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
Manny what have you seen.
Speaker 4 (10:25):
From Belgium thus far in terms of whether it's the
struggles scoring, Lukaku comes off the bench and he's instant offense.
Speaker 1 (10:31):
What do you think about what we're up against tonight?
Speaker 3 (10:33):
Well, I think it's actually gonna be about all the
other players besides those two.
Speaker 2 (10:37):
And I say this a little bit honestly.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Both guys look like they eat a lot of waffles nowadays,
and I don't quite get around the field like they
should in fact eat the waffles.
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Yeah, the good waffles.
Speaker 3 (10:47):
And in fact even I think when Belgium was down
to nothing in the eighty six minute, I think they
subbed out to Bruyna in like the sixty fifth.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Minute ish they did fifty sixth.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
That's when they started to really maybe get control the
game a little more and start creating some chances to
get back into the game against Senegal, who I think
absolutely destroyed them and played really well. So I would
say Belgium has really squeaked by. They do have some
really good young talent. You're right, they had this window
where they could have literally won the World Cup. They
probably should have. Maybe you could argue they didn't have
quite the back line to do it. But they got
(11:19):
guys in the field now that can just move the
ball easily all over the place. Every players skilled, every
player is athletic, and it's been a tough matchup for
the US when we play some of the higher level
European teams. There's no doubt Mexico ran into that last
night with a big, strong, technical team like England. So
tonight is one of those games where I like it
because we have to beat a tough team in a
round of sixteen to get to the quarters. And I'm
(11:41):
excited because I think our guys have more excitement and
confidence they've ever seen in the history of a national
team during a World Cup.
Speaker 4 (11:49):
When you mentioned Polisic having a legacy game, I love
that you went there with it.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
I love that you said it that way.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
But in terms of what that looks like against Belgium,
so you know, Balligan, he leads the team in goals.
But but Christians, the guy that stirs this drink. He's
your chief creator and your best overall player, I believe.
So against a weak central defense for a Belgium team
that appears, I think We're going to have the ball
a lot tonight.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
Many maybe you think I'm wrong on that, but I do.
Speaker 4 (12:19):
But we're going to have the ball a lot, They're
going to put bodies behind it. How does a guy
like Christian Polisic battle that and work through that and
create an individual effort that might spark something for Baligan
and others.
Speaker 3 (12:32):
Yeah, I think one of the things We've got to
get a lot of credit to Pachingino. This started a
year ago in terms of realigning and recalibrating Christian's kind
of role within the team. One of the first things
he did he didn't make them captain. And part of
the reason why I did that, he goes, I actually
don't want the ball to always go through Christian. I
really want to, you know, have a guy in the
(12:53):
backbeard captain Tim Marien, and then you've got you've got
Balligan up topic.
Speaker 2 (12:57):
I think makes great.
Speaker 3 (12:58):
Runs in between the lines, in between that they're two
big center backs and create space for poolstage where space
Christian space is really created. He's a very vertical, fast,
explosive player. What's the key and then is how he
lines up with our other two kind of offensive, creative midfielders,
and that would be Tillman and McKenny and Tillman's our passer,
(13:19):
he's our creative guy.
Speaker 2 (13:19):
He's kind of like our Deborne on the field.
Speaker 3 (13:21):
He's going to always be looking for any way to
break lines, pass, to get get a guy through. And
McKenny is to me been our player of the tournament
in that every game he provides our moxie. If you
watched Mexico last night versus England, think of Bellingham all
over the place, physical late runs and so mckenny's kind
of like our American tough moxie guy who's just out there.
(13:42):
So to me, it's not all on Christian necessarily to
do it all.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
It's on him to.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Play within those front four that are kind of all
have different attributes, to create space, to create chances, and
to just create chaos against Belgian defense. And then our
wing backs are going to be so important. I think
Dess has had a somewhat soft tournament so far. He
can provide some great offense on that right wing. And
Robinson we know is player of the year, a top
(14:07):
eleven in Premier League two years ago, so we know
we can get up and down the field. So ultimately
it's those three pronged midfield that we have to win
that I think will be the difference in the game.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
The United States of America being a we. Yeah, we
have the third most people in the world, okay, behind
India and China. Why aren't we a blue blood soccer
powerhouse now? Now, we also are the fattest country in
the world, so maybe feeding the kids the wrong way
plays into it. But nevertheless, like it's the United States
(14:36):
of America, why aren't we a blue blood?
Speaker 3 (14:39):
Listen, it's funny you were in here, Nord and I
talked about this before, and we're getting there. It's slower
than I'd like it to be as well. I thought
after ninety four there'd be di explosion.
Speaker 2 (14:47):
There was an explosion. Everybody counting.
Speaker 1 (14:50):
Everybody counting on Freddie, you do too much?
Speaker 2 (14:52):
Yeah, but you.
Speaker 3 (14:52):
Guys also all know the sport.
Speaker 2 (14:53):
The fans.
Speaker 3 (14:54):
MLS sells out almost a ton.
Speaker 2 (14:56):
Of their games.
Speaker 3 (14:57):
We sell out every game, and like the fans get
the how hard it is to win in soccer and grow.
You are talking about countries now that are really and
I really do think Minnesotan's understand it because of our
hockey culture here.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
It doesn't start at ten or eleven, it starts at two.
Or three.
Speaker 3 (15:12):
It starts when you first walk, you start skating and
wait two or three, there you go, you got to
start skating, you start walking and you start kicking that
ball around. That's what they're doing in Argentina. That's what
they're doing in France. And we're getting there. Like I said,
you know, we have to look at both the glass
half full to be like, oh my gosh, we've got
some really good guys in the field that we've developed
that are now showing the world that they can compete
(15:33):
and glass half empties.
Speaker 2 (15:34):
We just don't have enough of them.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
We still don't have like France has ninety eight of
all players in this World Cup were born in France.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Oh, that's just amazing. It just shows that.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
They at those early ages know how to develop high
level talent. And I again, I think we'll get there.
I think there's kids watching this World Cup. I think
there's parents who are like, oh, I got to put
a ball my kid right away. And I do think
in ten or twenty years we will be on another
level of competing right at that top. Now with England,
with Spain, with Argentina, with France.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
What happened to Brazil?
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Well, I think Brazil if you look at that team.
You know, I said it last night. I go in
my view, there's really only one superstar in the field,
and I mean real superstar. Yes, some players play for
some of the greatest teams in the world on the
field for both those sides, and they play in Premier
League and they play where the teams the guys make
the most money. But Erling Holland is a freaking superstar.
He's just unbelievable and everybody knows it. The ball doesn't
(16:25):
come to a lot, but when it does, everybody gets scared,
and he just is like, I will finish it. I'm
a true Viking. This is what happens. You could argue
Viddy Junior, is this the other superstar in the field.
I think he's a flawed one in that I don't
think he's a great leader. I think sometimes he kind
of plays for himself. And I think Brazil got caught
in a generation where they just don't have the talent.
At the end of the day, I don't think they
(16:46):
had the talent to actually make a real run in
this tournament.
Speaker 4 (16:48):
They've been kind of broken since twenty fourteen, don't you
think we I just got housed seven to one by Germany.
They're hosting the tournament. It was a fore gone conclusion
Neymar Junior is going to hoist the trophy and this
is just the next generation of greatness. They get embarrassed
on the global stage. They haven't been right since.
Speaker 2 (17:05):
No and it's been tough.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
Like I said, I think their last real superstar for
me was Neymar and like I said, he broke his
back in that tournament, so it did kind of hurt that.
Speaker 2 (17:12):
Run for them.
Speaker 3 (17:13):
But since then they have not had the kind of
players and I do think this is the worst Brazilion
team in probably fifty or sixty years.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
Norway England doesn't sound like a soccer match. It sounds
more like a war. What makes this one dynamic?
Speaker 3 (17:27):
I mean, I will tell you, like, you've got the
team Norway who's had the most points in qualifying in Europe.
You've got a player who is just every fourteen minutes
he scores a goal when he touches the ball, I'm sorry,
fourteen touches he scores a goal.
Speaker 1 (17:41):
And then I.
Speaker 3 (17:42):
Would say you've got an England team though that for
the first time, everything last night was lined up for
them to once again, not win a game, get a
red card, not walk off the field going thinking we hey,
we have a chance to win this Manny, I thought.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
The Congo had a middle of the second half exactly
you No, You're.
Speaker 3 (18:01):
Right, they'd opened up, They had some counterattacks that could
have gone two or three nothing. I just think this
team has got some type of resilience that other teams.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
And it's not just on the field.
Speaker 3 (18:10):
I think off the field, the leadership of Harry Kane
and Bellingham in particular to not allow the press kind
of get in there and kind of make it just
like drama field all the time has given them something
that I don't think they've had in the past. And again,
I think they're probably going to be end up being
the favorites against Norway just because of the depth of
talent that they have versus Norway has one superstar, but
(18:32):
they might not have the whole depth of the roster
of England has.
Speaker 1 (18:35):
Interesting you said that about the media because after the
match last night against Mexico, Harry Kane said this, You
know all reporters and columnists are they want the controversy,
they want the negativity. Is Jordan Pickford the best goalkeeper
in the world.
Speaker 3 (18:49):
He's the most English goalkeeper in the world. Like he
looks like an Englishman, he plays like it some unbelievable. Yeah,
he plays for Everton in England, and you know he
plays where there his whole career, played his whole career,
and he's athletic, and he's a great leader and everything
about that game last night, guys, I could not tell you.
(19:09):
I honestly turned to my friends and my wife and
I said, I think this is the greatest World Cup
game I've ever seen.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
And I was exacered that three times.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
Well I read it twice from Learning Soccer Minds and
now from Minnesota Soccer Immortality.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
I hear it. I mean this resonates. Yeah, it does.
Speaker 3 (19:23):
And by the way, I got a little pride to it.
I'm going to give a little bit of a shout
out to both Canada and Mexico who've had great tournaments
and they've played amazing and obviously Jesse Marsh was leading
Canada kid from Racine, Wisconsin. But at the end of
the day, I will say, right now, my favorite thing
about the waking up this morning is that we are
the last CONCA calf that's our region team left Mexico
and Canada out, we win tonight, we go further than them.
Speaker 2 (19:46):
I think that's huge because I still want the US
State Soccer. Oh it's massive. Oh I could see with Mexico,
but with Canada.
Speaker 3 (19:53):
Well, I mean it's more about making sure that you're
the big dog in your region. And I think that's
important for our PSAKI and important for all this money
that's going to MLS, all this money that's going to development.
All these owners are putting so much money into the development.
Millions and millions of dollars are going into doing. What
you're trying to talk about is why can't we become
a superpower?
Speaker 2 (20:10):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (20:10):
Again, it doesn't have overnight, but I'm close to a
lot of the owners and it's so much money.
Speaker 2 (20:15):
That you want that success.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
So even this little metric of us winning tonight and
going further than Mexico and further than Canada is really
a big deal. But a shout out to Mexico last night.
I cannot tell you how well they played. They took
on a superpower and they really beat them down. Except
for the score line was that it's tough. Right at
the end of the day, England found a.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
Way this is Manny Lagos, Minnesota Soccer Immortality, chief development
officer for the Minnesota United. When we return, we will
handle who wins USA Belgium.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
And why that's on.
Speaker 1 (20:47):
That takes place at seven o'clock this evening from Olt
Seattle Way. We greatly thank Manny for stopping by the
studio and we're approaching the middle stages of the nine
to noon presentation, so it's time for a hydration break.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
We'll be right back.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
This is not the noon.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
I'm a fan from the one eight hundred ask.
Speaker 5 (21:08):
Bac Serginio desk block. Still the fat comes up for
all side. I think he's gonna be all inside here.
The trail leg of the player at the top.
Speaker 2 (21:20):
It is affect your review, the.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
Ghost star.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
Position.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
All right, many Lagos in studio outside of the Red,
White and Blue Covenant.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
Let me hit you with two.
Speaker 1 (21:37):
Then you and Nordo can become You guys can analyze
US A Belgium and I'll just kind of sit back
and absorb because it's been fantastic. Is France absolutely the
team to beat from here with thembape.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
Yeah, there's no doubt. It's it's France.
Speaker 3 (21:53):
It's not just in Bape though it's them ballet, it's baccl,
it's it's their Robbio and Tukomeni in the midfield. That
they just don't have a weakness anywhere. Wow, I mean
they're a dream team. Yeah, it's a dream team.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
Were they favored into the World Cup and now, like
I would imagine they're more heavily favored.
Speaker 4 (22:08):
Well, it was pretty close between France and Spain. I
think Spain was a little more favorite. But the many lagos, we.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
Get Spain if we win and they win, right, yeah
we do.
Speaker 3 (22:16):
I actually would rather have the matchic in Spain versus France.
I don't know where the goals necessarily come from for Spain.
I think today will be a really tough test for
Spain just because I think Portugal probably feels like they
want a lottery ticket by beating Croatia. Who I think
we're the better team on the day, but Portugal has
Ronaldo and I think Spain still to me, has trouble
finding goals against really good teams.
Speaker 4 (22:37):
I think Michael o'lise for France might be the game changer.
Like they are a dream team and you mentioned all
the right names, but he's a new face to me
at least in terms of digging in and getting him.
That guy is a freaking superstar behind a superstar and embape.
Speaker 3 (22:53):
Yeah, he's the creative engine of the whole thing. He
played an amazing year and Bayern. Ironically, he was developed
actually in England, not franc even like kind of bragged
all these French players that were in the World Cup.
Speaker 2 (23:03):
He was actually raised and developed in England.
Speaker 3 (23:06):
But I just think that team has everything, and so
for them it just comes down to them smeshing and
not losing their cool.
Speaker 1 (23:14):
Which they almost did against Paraguay.
Speaker 2 (23:16):
They sure did, They sure did, and that is their
their flaws.
Speaker 3 (23:19):
They've probably have so many stars and egos that it's
hard to get.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Them aligned all the time.
Speaker 3 (23:23):
And the minutes now there's teeth there certain players that
aren't getting minutes. I think they're a little frustrated. Don't
want to play them though, until we have to that
this may be the dumbest thing you hear all day.
We're going to call it Fioba fairness in outside of
the box act. So we got the red card rescinded,
rescinded for Balligan. First question here with the outside of
(23:45):
the box bit, that may be super stupid. The referees,
the officials, the ref are Are they compensated by FIFA?
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Do they work for FIFA?
Speaker 3 (23:55):
I think everything we all have since channel up to FIFA.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
How many calls we can get tonight?
Speaker 1 (24:01):
The answers zero zero, I'm wrong.
Speaker 3 (24:06):
I mean the coaching me is like, hey, you've got
to play the game and you kind of get to
know how referees are going to ref based on kind
of how they call it the first ten or fifteen minutes.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
We'll be eleven ten for about fifty five minutes, mark
my words.
Speaker 3 (24:17):
All right, I don't care. Let's win no matter what.
But you understand what I'm saying. Oh yeah, oh yeah, no, no, no,
I get it. Like I said, we.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
I'm kind of making a game a match fixing allegation here,
but human nature gets to win too.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
You're right in some ways there's extra pressure now with
Balligan on the field and that we have to overcome.
You know, the reality is that there's a lot of
pressure from Belgium into FIFA about how unfair this is,
and there might be subconsciusly a referee that you know,
takes that into account as they kind of call the game.
Speaker 1 (24:45):
And Lastly, how does the world look at American soccer?
Do they disregard it like Canadians used to do with
American hockey until the Red, White, and Blue men and
women started beating them? Like, how does the world look
at Americans?
Speaker 3 (25:00):
Uh? I think you're onto something in terms of I
think in coming into this World Cup not highly regarded
like kind of like, oh, that'd be a nice, nice
team to play, you know, because it's almost usually an
especially in a knockout around that where we don't usually
go very far. They're like great fresh meat. I think
this World Cup has totally changed the dial, like I mean,
(25:21):
and that's why I'm so proud of these guys. That's
how I think this team has fallen in love by
this country because the combination of energy, effort, quality, fight,
technical and tactical kind of acumen has been through the roof.
And I'm not just talking about like just the actual
score lines. I'm talking about the data that we have,
like some of the most best progressive passing the entire tournament.
(25:42):
We have some of the best defensive passing and breaking lines,
which really puts other teams under pressure.
Speaker 1 (25:47):
Soccer and analytics Yeah, oh yeah, how long has that
been prominent probably.
Speaker 2 (25:51):
About fifteen years.
Speaker 3 (25:52):
Okay, yeah, it's really blown up, and really the world
has taken note. Like everybody knows that we have been
one of the best teams in terms of overall balance
of play offensively and defensively. And I think, particularly going
into this game tonight, our back three has been through
the roof. You have our kind of stalwart not as
fast the guy Tim Reim. And then you throw in
(26:15):
Chris Richards, who just had a great season at Crystal
Palace and is getting accolades, is one of the better center.
Speaker 2 (26:19):
Backs now in that league.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
And then one of my favorite players to talk about
we talk about young players. Oh my gosh, this kid Freeman,
the son of Antonio Freeman, is just nothing rattlesome. And
what I love about him is he kind of uses
that as athleticism, but he dribbles the break lines out
of the back in a way very similar to Hughes
for the for the while where you're like, oh, shoot,
this is a great way to attack, and next thing
(26:42):
you know, he's just going forward, breaking lines, making passes.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
It's got a goal, but unbelievable, I do.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
I will say, yeah, breaking lines, what does that mean,
So that means.
Speaker 3 (26:53):
Basically, you know when teams have setups of their systems
and then they're space in between them to try to
get the ball forward and progress. Okay, And it's really
important soccer because if he can't progress and the other
team can kind of slowly just go forward and steal
the ball and then create chances to the momentum. But
if you can have players that can either pass and
break lines or dribbling break lines, you put all the
pressure on them. Now they can't go forward, they have
(27:13):
to sit back. Now you're creating chances. The more opportunities
you get the ball forward to get in the box
and get chances, obviously, the better chance you have scored goals.
Datalytics they call it expected goals. Freeman's one of the
best defenders in this tournament breaking lines with dribbling. Tim
Reim is the very best, I believe this tournament breaking lines,
passing out of the back as a center back.
Speaker 2 (27:32):
You gotta pay for that. Where do you find that stuff? Oh?
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Yeah, I mean some you pay for, some of you don't.
But there's people out there now they Nardo can get
it all. He knows he's into that stuff.
Speaker 4 (27:40):
Old man Reim looks like he's he's living on like it,
just like public, like he lives in a commute with
long hair his camp.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
I mean, just old man.
Speaker 4 (27:50):
Reim has been a freaking godsend in this tournament.
Speaker 2 (27:53):
At times he's been a beast. And by the way,
the Potentino, instead.
Speaker 3 (27:57):
Of put him just with one other center back, he's
him with two others. So now we have a back three,
which has been awesome coaching because now you don't have
to worry as much about his athleticism because he has
covered from Freeman and Richard to clean things up if
they get over the top on that side of the ball.
I will go back to one of the areas. And
I've loved him. It's one of my favorite stories. Is
our goalkeeper Matt Freese, a Harvard kid who's just grinded
(28:19):
to get where he is.
Speaker 2 (28:20):
It is the weak spot.
Speaker 3 (28:22):
You have probably considered the best goalie right now historically
in the tournament Courtois and you've got Freeze who's probably
considered probably one of the weaker in terms of just
like high level superstardom. But he's a steady guy and
I think that's actually been good for us.
Speaker 2 (28:37):
He's calm, he's composed.
Speaker 3 (28:39):
But if you're looking at the field right now and
you're asking an area where Belgium massively tilted in their favor,
it's going to be the goalkeeper.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
Position, all right, USA Belgium, seven o'clock to night. Boys,
who wins? And why Manny, you're the guest. You go first.
Speaker 3 (28:51):
Oh my gosh, I'm going to throw this in Narto
because I want to get his insight, and then I'll
go off the top of it.
Speaker 2 (28:55):
Well, I love it.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
I'm nervous as bleep about this.
Speaker 4 (28:58):
So the way that I look at it, it's similar
but different. So what we saw in the first two games, Manny,
and excited for you to disagree or co sign on this.
I think we're going to see a much more athletic
and prepared version of some of the defensive low block
you've heard that thrown at around a lot. I think
(29:19):
they're going to sit back and allow us to have
the ball a ton tonight. The difference is is that
you have world class finishers with Belgium that maybe you
didn't have with the Offses that you didn't have with Paraguay,
and so the worrisome aspect for me is once I
see Lukaku freight training ahead.
Speaker 1 (29:38):
You mentioned other guys Trisard and.
Speaker 2 (29:41):
Doku, now could you?
Speaker 4 (29:43):
Yeah, but those two on the outside are going to
provide us with a ton of problems tonight in the
counter attacks. I think we win with the pressure and
the fast starts that have led to our success in
the previous matches. You're up to nothing at the half
in Australia, you're up three to nothing on Paraguay. You
(30:03):
get that goal from Balligan right before the break in
the Bosni. This team has had the enjoyment and the
advantage of playing from ahead for a large part of
this tournament. I think that needs to continue tonight for
Team USA if they're going to get through, because as
we've seen it the substitutions and the decision making later
stages of games, Belgium is not out of this thing
(30:25):
by any stretch. So it's the combination of taking advantage
of the possession you'll be gifted tonight, and then also
limiting the set pieces where the US I think they
still lead teams in set piece goals on corners and
free kicks is what I'm referring to.
Speaker 1 (30:42):
Belgium can still be lethal and de.
Speaker 4 (30:44):
Bruyna hasn't scored yet, but he has the opportunity to
in this tournament and in this match tonight. So managing
making the most out of possession, limiting set piece opportunities
for Belgium.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
I think this feels like a two to one game
maybe in our favor for Fox Manny Lagos, Manny Lagos,
Parker Fox, Well.
Speaker 2 (31:03):
I, sir, what do you think about what Nordo is
that I'm going to co sign on that. I think
it was a great assessment.
Speaker 3 (31:08):
I think particularly where I think you always should go
is getting your defensive balance first. So I think dealing
with their superstars is the way to go in terms
of making sure we deal with Doku. And again, last
game we had a different lineup. I think Timothy Ware
was playing on wide out right against him and he
torched us. Back in March we played a friendly and
Belgium really hit us hard, and again we didn't have
our quite same lineup, different system, But I'm going to.
Speaker 2 (31:30):
Go to win the freakingvie that was March. That was
in March.
Speaker 1 (31:33):
Okay, Well yeah, again, Casual speaking for Fire two, like,
what's dramatically different?
Speaker 3 (31:38):
Now?
Speaker 1 (31:39):
You didn't say they beat us, you said they drilled us.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
Yeah, five two, Yeah, yeah. It was one of those games.
Speaker 3 (31:43):
And by the way, within elements of the game, I
still think we actually played better than that score line.
So I'm not I'm not as nervous, and I'm not
as nervous as well, because we were playing with what
we call it back four versus a back five. And
like I said, when you mentioned Tressad and you mentioned
Doku and you mentioned Lukaku, We've got to make sure
we have the best defensively, and I just think this
system winds up very well to deal with those guys
in the way it didn't before.
Speaker 2 (32:05):
But you're right, I like.
Speaker 3 (32:06):
I'm co signing De Nordo on the fact that defense first,
we got to make sure we stop their big guys.
But ultimately, I think this tournament is about teams that
want to go on the front foot, teams that want
to take the game to them. Let's look at what
just happened when Norway freaking took it to Brazil, which
you never would imagine. You look at Morocco took it
to Holland with Netherlands, which you never would imagine. So
(32:26):
to me, it's that three midfielders I talked about, and
I'll throw Adams in there too, because he's more important
on the defensive side. You could argue that they're all
for our midfielders are going to battle, but let's just
say for the offensive side of just getting after them
waves an attack. It's McKenny, it's Tilman, it's Poolsich. It's
letting those guys understand that they should go for it,
(32:49):
do not lay back. Let's not try to like win
this game in a chess match. Let's put our front
foot against him. And I do think that's what the
teams that have won in this tournament have done. They've
gone on the front foot and they've been incredibly successful
at it.
Speaker 4 (33:03):
And lastly, well so in terms of tonight's game, now
we know Polisic and maybe the answer you just provided
a couple of names. A guy that will surprise us
potentially tonight. Is it Desk who's just kind of I mean,
he's been putting in work, he's been running routes, but
he hasn't been connecting right and McKenny, the do it
all hasn't been on the score sheet. Is there a
(33:25):
guy you're thinking if this thing goes the right way
in our favor, and this guy pops out of nowhere
onto the scoreesheet tonight. Who is a guy that can
tip the scales in our favor? Not named Baligan, not
named Christian.
Speaker 3 (33:38):
Yeah, I think Desk has sneakily got more offense than
him than he's played in these games, and he loves
to get forward and again to the detriment sometimes offensively,
he kind of leaves some holes and we have to
cover for him. But I just think he or either
whether it's arriving in fire posts later coming in on
his left foot and taking a shot, I think there's
some offense in there that hasn't come out. They we're
gonna have to find in different ways. But ultimately I'm
(34:00):
going to go back to Poolsich I really am. And
again it's not on the one guy, and I don't
want the whole game to be on him.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Legacy game.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
We've been great because it's not just one player, and
it's actually Pochettino evolving Christian's mentality that the ball doesn't
have to go through every time, but we when it's
key and it's vertical and it's getting up and down
the field, that's when we want you.
Speaker 2 (34:17):
To have the ball. So for me, this is a
legacy game.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
It is Pochettino the coach, right, Yeah, so was he
was he hired for this post? Yes, to get them
past the sit in the knockout sixteen because like nobody
else could.
Speaker 2 (34:32):
He's done the day after this is over.
Speaker 3 (34:34):
This was this was a mercenary hire to say, hey,
we have a pretty good group here. Build this group
into a World Cup, you know, champion hopefully, but at
least make a serious run, which he's already done. I mean, ultimately,
whatever happens tonight, he's proved successful in taking a group,
unifying them and playing some of the best soccer in
this tournament.
Speaker 2 (34:53):
There's no doubt that.
Speaker 3 (34:54):
I think people are starting to believe that he could
make a really special run here. But he really was
the kind of coach that we wanted if we had
a couple of turmoil years from coaches and some drama.
I won't go into it, but long story short, he's
come in.
Speaker 2 (35:07):
He it's it was. It wasn't easy.
Speaker 3 (35:10):
It wasn't like the moment he got here, we just
went up. We've had a year where US soccer fans
were like, are we going to really be able to
represent the wen, able to get out.
Speaker 2 (35:16):
Of our group. I was kind of it was ugly.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
I mean, we really did, and he really had to
realign some players expectations of what their roles were. All
the credit in the world. Beautiful guy, beautiful person. I've
got to sit down with them several times and meet
with them here in Minnesota when the national team played,
and I just love how I know for sure that
the one thing the guys will do for him is
run through a wall.
Speaker 2 (35:38):
Wow. That's awesome. Okay.
Speaker 1 (35:40):
Lastly for me, we we hail from the same generation.
How would how would Pele fair in this day and
age if he had this.
Speaker 2 (35:49):
Is the old the NBA question.
Speaker 1 (35:51):
Okay, well, let's give him the nutritionists, let's give him
the workout. So let's give him everything they have today.
How would he fare?
Speaker 2 (35:59):
I mean it's hard for me.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
I just think, you know, soccer is all about creating
time and space with your touches. It's all about like
that physical side of up and down. The guys run
way more today than they did back then, so it's
it's so hard to compare. My favorite player going up,
by the way, was actually Diego Rodondo was super flawed player.
A very physical era though, where you got crunched all
the time, I don't think you'd.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
Fare very well in the end. I mean when I
look at this.
Speaker 3 (36:25):
World Cup and I look at how evolved so many
countries are tactically, structurally, athletically technically, I.
Speaker 2 (36:35):
Don't think this would be an era for just one superstar.
Speaker 3 (36:37):
I think you need a team of kind of athletic
guys who can get.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
Around the field. What about Ricky Davis. I love Ricky Days.
That's old school, Dame, That's good. Let's go as old school.
Speaker 3 (36:48):
No, but I would say you brought up a name
like Ricky Davis. There is so many great generations and
again I bring it, yeah, I bring back to Minnesota
and Allansfield and on my time with you in thunder
and all these weather they're players with their fans. They
should be so proud to have to go out and
watch this team represent this country because there's been decades
of just work behind the scenes and the growth, whether
(37:09):
it's on the field, it's off the field. And again,
this is the sport that unifies humanity because it is
the global sport. And this World Cup is a success
because the World needed to remind ourselves that we are
a human hate a race that wants to celebrate things sometimes.
And I really believe that tonight will Will you think
(37:30):
about tens of thousands of people in that march in
downtown Seattle, that stadium right in the Urban Corps, There'll
be nothing like it. I mean I was there against
Australia and I was telling Nardo like it was the
best Astralia.
Speaker 2 (37:46):
Unbelievable.
Speaker 3 (37:46):
Yeah, it was just it was unbelievable because the team
is guys you love. The team is playing hard and
playing their hearts out, and the fans are understanding now
of how important this is the rest of the world
and how important some of this is for our country
to cast put our chest out against the rest of
the world.
Speaker 2 (38:03):
That's awesome, Thank you, sir.
Speaker 1 (38:05):
Well with the references of Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and Ricky.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
Davis, yeah that means you're old.
Speaker 1 (38:10):
You tell my single mom took me to our FK
Stadium to see Washington Diplomats games. You saw you're on
Croy fled I probably saw about five day times back.
Speaker 2 (38:21):
In the day. A great name too, by the way, Yeah,
for sure.
Speaker 1 (38:24):
As is Manny Lagos Chief Development officer for for the
Minnesota United Anything we need to know about that.
Speaker 2 (38:32):
You guys got anything going on now?
Speaker 3 (38:33):
Oh my gosh, soccer celebration. Guys, get down there downtown.
We we with Brits. We put on a great show.
Speaker 2 (38:40):
It's awesome. We've worked with the city of Minneapolis. Has
the lawn right, yeah, they've they've got the.
Speaker 3 (38:44):
Lawn, but we've we've gotten now outside PD Plaza just
up and down, just loads of US fans just going crazy.
We did it last night for Mexico, and I give
a shout out to our owners. They they really said, hey, Minneapolis,
we think we can help you get people downtown.
Speaker 2 (38:58):
It has been such a was that for Mexico England.
Oh my gosh, it was crazy last night. While and
by the way, every US.
Speaker 3 (39:05):
Game has been packed, and again it's it's yeah, it's
hard because I think we probably lament now not having
the World Cup here and having a host city. But
I think Minneapolis, Saint Paul, this Twin city, they've stepped up.
Every watch bar, every bars are packed. It's just been
such a cool thing. But tonight's gonna be special. I mean,
this will be more people than have ever watched US
national team game. I'm sure north of thirty million will
(39:27):
watch me. And right now, it's been an averaging between
Telemundo and Fox right around twenty five million.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
Right which twenty four point blew me away, insane close
to Super Bowl numbers NFL.
Speaker 3 (39:36):
And I would say for Minnesota United, like I said,
get down there, we we really tried to put on
a show that that makes you feel a part of
the soccer community. And certainly we're just about to start
up on a twenty second and get excited again and again.
We know this will add new more fans. I want that,
but I told you before, I also want these Minnesota
kids to want to become superstars in Minnesota. That's when
(39:58):
Minnesota Night it will really be a global power. Yeah,
as when we're developing the superstars right here at home.
Speaker 2 (40:03):
Okay, I don't let me.
Speaker 1 (40:05):
Let me get into your schedule a little bit and
do an on air production meeting as we sit.
Speaker 2 (40:08):
Call it run here.
Speaker 1 (40:10):
If USA beats Belgium this evening in place, Friday, I
want to come back in studio.
Speaker 2 (40:15):
I would love to Friday.
Speaker 1 (40:16):
Let's go, well, well, set a time, all right.
Speaker 2 (40:19):
We got to win the game. Tonight.
Speaker 1 (40:21):
God bless you and your family. There's awesome that you
came by.
Speaker 2 (40:24):
Man. Tell Buzz that I say hello. Hopefully he remembers me.
Speaker 3 (40:26):
Of course, he remembers everybody that he has a memorious deal.
Speaker 1 (40:30):
And really truly, I mean, my career and life would
not be where it is if your father did not
teach me the pythagory in here. There you go with, yeah,
and the true meaning of the Isosceles. Trying a lot
of triangles on a soccer field, by the way, so
that helps You're awesome, many good scene, Thank you, sir.
Many lagos. Yeah, many lagos with the Minnesota night. I
(40:51):
was going to give a Twitter handle there for a second,
but we'd have to dust that off pre pandemic for
that to be in place. So just follow his follow
his soccer squad, the Minnesota United, and root for the
USA tonight at seven.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
Back after this he wait, welcome back.
Speaker 4 (41:08):
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Speaker 1 (41:22):
And how about these twins.
Speaker 6 (41:25):
Bell in the air to right center field, diminga is
going back to the wall, and Josh Bell has done it,
the seventh twin ever to homer from both sides of
the plate. In the same game of the Twins break
it open once again. Hit is a four run eighthitting
eleven four twins.
Speaker 2 (41:42):
Here the brocks the con that's all the butt.
Speaker 1 (41:47):
Bard out Blake more presentation. The con t me, boy,
he asked me to do it. He's like, can you
drop the con in somewhere so I can put it
on the button bar.
Speaker 2 (41:58):
I did it.
Speaker 1 (41:59):
I did it between segments, I hit the little pause thing.
Speaker 4 (42:02):
Backed off and with that con, it's a beautiful thing, good,
beautiful thing for the baseball team, winning two out of three.
And then the Yankees are a little dinged up right now,
but the wins count okay, And you heard Josh Bell
with two home runs, one from each side of the
play dig that apparently the seventh twin ever to do so.
And then six to one, featuring a Royce Lewis two
runs single right up the middle, two outs bases.
Speaker 1 (42:25):
Juice appreciated that yesterday with a.
Speaker 4 (42:26):
Six to one win six games until the All Star
breaks so and then they're chilling at Target Field, home
bound as they are starting tomorrow against Cleveland into the
weekend the La Angels.
Speaker 1 (42:37):
These Twins just don't quit.
Speaker 4 (42:39):
And whatever you think of them, whatever you think of
the roster, whatever you think of the bullpen, et cetera,
the team is just four games back in the Division,
a game and a half out of the wild card.
Speaker 1 (42:48):
They are very game, very competitive. Shelty has them playing.
Speaker 4 (42:52):
Really have max value of what you're getting out of
that team. So tremendous stuff from the Minnesota Twins. I
saw something they haven't. Did you say it that it
was just a second time they had taken a series
from the Pinstripe since like twenty nineteen or something crazy
like that.
Speaker 1 (43:07):
The Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees have played fourteen
series since twenty nineteen, and the Minnesota Twins have won
two of them, including meat loafing them over the weekend.
Speaker 2 (43:19):
I'm a kid, dougik I love it.
Speaker 4 (43:22):
Otherwise, you know a lot of Team USA conversation this morning.
Speaker 1 (43:25):
Nine to do and if you're curious, Okay, well, if US.
Speaker 2 (43:28):
Win, what's next?
Speaker 4 (43:30):
Well they'll play on Friday, and they will play the
winner of this afternoon's matinee.
Speaker 1 (43:35):
Portugal and Spain. Who do you I don't know if
you're good at touting these in the shows that I
did with Blake Moore last week. Yeah, he offered two
World Cup touts and nailed them both.
Speaker 2 (43:49):
Oh sweet.
Speaker 1 (43:49):
He went over two and a half in the Japan
game against whom ever, And I mean you needed a
stiff drink very late in that thing to get the three,
but he got it. And then another one that was
a dog and it came through. My man's on fire
with the World Cup. Like Portugal and Spain, who do
you like?
Speaker 2 (44:07):
And why?
Speaker 5 (44:08):
Well?
Speaker 4 (44:08):
I like I like Spain and I like them just
by nature of their possession in the way that they play,
just absolutely suffocating Christiano Ronaldo today.
Speaker 1 (44:19):
We would you play that in the three way or
just the two advance?
Speaker 2 (44:23):
I would.
Speaker 4 (44:24):
I would play them winning in regulation today, And that's
why I'm looking at it, so they get the Yeah.
The key The key for me is Rinaldo is kind
of like Earling Holland in terms of how they're playing
him these days, where for Holland to get action you
need Oda Garden some of his teammates to distribute. They
got to get him the ball. Similarly, with Portugal, some
issues they've had, specifically with their midfield, have limited Rinaldo's opportunities.
(44:49):
I have been incredibly underwhelmed with Portugal's midfield throughout this tournament.
Speaker 2 (44:53):
And they're here. They deserve to be here, they earn
the right.
Speaker 4 (44:56):
But in the end, I think Spain's going to be
moving forward. I don't think it'll take extra time to
do so.
Speaker 1 (45:01):
I have I have a sneaky spot. Oh sweet, so
to just to advance. Okay, so you get, you get
overtime and all that. Yeah, with a no tie, Spain
is like minus two sixty sounds about right, Portugal plus
two ninety and that eliminates the three way terrorism and
(45:23):
stuff like that. Now, if you want to put the
winning and regulation piece in there, this so Portugal Spain
is minus a half goal minus one oh nine. Okay,
uh money line, Spain is minus one oh nine to
win a regulation. Portugal's plus three thirty two over under
(45:44):
here is two and a half the overs minus one
twenty three. I think you'll get three goals today, and
if you think it'll be a draw, plus two sixty one. Yeah, no,
and it's and it's played out a lot of these
A lot of these games have gone to extra time.
Speaker 2 (45:58):
Same for a draw, Socks rooting for a draw is awful.
Speaker 4 (46:01):
I just think Spain's a better, better team top to bottom,
and they're a team like this. I like the I
would I like the over two and a half. But
I like Spain winning in regulation. They're a team that
ascends over the course of a tournament. Big opportunity. We
got a little border battle in its as well, So
I I like I like the Spaniards moving through.
Speaker 2 (46:22):
Well.
Speaker 4 (46:23):
See man Brett Brett lives and breathes every three way
betting line in the sport of soccer, and so so
I'll leave the touting to him in the long run.
But but for me, I'm feeling Spain today and then
I'm feeling hopefully the.
Speaker 1 (46:36):
United States later tonight.
Speaker 2 (46:38):
Yeah, and we'll party. Yeah, me too.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
Use we could have the football feast on Friday. Manny
Logo has already said he come back in Man. That
means nine just became seven. Put news to Nord in there.
It became six, but bikes bits in there became five.
Speaker 4 (46:55):
It's a light day news Denord so let's uh, let's
pause and then come back around the corner with Parker
Fox and Studio and Hammer on the Howl and the
NBA and many hoops related talkers to jump into.
Speaker 1 (47:06):
With Parker, indeed Pete Fox at Parker Fox two four
via x KFA and sports Time is eleven o two.
Speaker 2 (47:14):
Good morning, This is nine tone
Speaker 5 (47:21):
If you're listening live to Paul Allen and nine to
New on iHeartRadio.
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