September 11, 2025 • 20 mins
Catch “The Drive with Spence Checketts” from 2 pm to 6 pm weekdays on ESPN 700 & 92.1 FM. Produced by Porter Larsen. The latest on the Utah Jazz, Real Salt Lake, Utes, BYU + more sports storylines.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Time to hit the pitch on the drive. The RSL
Insider today and every day is brought to you by
beer Bar Head Downtown for watch parties and game day
shuttles to the stadium. More at beer Bar, SLC dot com.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Live today at the Mountain America Expo Center. Excuse me,
the Utah RV Super Show. We do it every year
out here. We are very close to America First Field,
where RSL calls home. Speaking of RSL, it's time to
take a little bit of a break from the football
conversation to talk some soccer. Kurt Schmidt's our guy, chief
(00:35):
roster constructor for the club, stops by on Thursday. Kurt
at Thursday, Man, how we doing good? I'm good. So
since you guys last played a match, did you write
a book? Did you travel the world? Did you go
see family across?
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Like?
Speaker 2 (00:49):
What is it? What is it with this break?
Speaker 3 (00:51):
Man?
Speaker 2 (00:52):
It feels like such a weird break late summer, early fall.
I can't even remember last time you guys played a game.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
Yeah, it's a long one and the biggest culprit because
you know, we didn't have a game step of the
international break this past weekend. So the biggest culprit was
with Seattle, the Seattle game getting moved for the League's Cup.
But it's been good to get I think, to give
the coaches and the players time to refocus and work
(01:19):
on a few things that, you know that we needed
to sharpen up.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
So what are those boxes courage you guys wanted check?
You know, we had Pablo on last week, got up
with Johnny Russell yesterday, so that was fun. And you know,
we talked about the dynamic of it being a little
bit of a mini like training camp because of course
you brought in three additions during the transfer window in
Olatunji and Cruz and then DeAndre Yedlin as well. So
(01:45):
during this window it can be looked at as a
couple of different ways. You know. One way is what
a weird time to take this long break, and the
other way is, Okay, let's utilize the time to get
these guys ingratiated so they understand what we're asking from them.
So what sort of boxes as have you guys checked
over the past three weeks.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
Yeah, some of it, and you touched on it with
some of the new guys, getting them more time together
and training and just getting that familiarity going so that
they play well off each other. I think that's been
very important. I know Pavel's been working with the guys
on some scenarios and situations, you know, drilling down on
the details of how to approach a different phases, different
(02:24):
moments in the game for sure. For sure, working and
taking a look at what some different shapes look like
and how some some guys might look in different spots,
and and then of course, you know, just drilling down
on on set pieces with with a big gap between games,
you know, there's there's some good work to be done
in that way as well.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
So some news today Kurt Well extended contract extension for
Rotha Cabral who has just been dynamite. And that's only
what I see when it comes to matches. And I
understand that of the off the pitch, you guys have
really appreciated what he's out to your locker room. So
tell us about this process, what it's been like for
you to kind of witness your decision to bring him
(03:06):
in manifest great things, and you know the conversations you
guys had that ultimately and with him signing a contract extension.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
Yeah, I mean, you know it couldn't be happier for him,
and you know, for him to stay with us. And
obviously he and his family has settled in the area
really well and they enjoy it. And so you know,
I think nobody deserves it more than he does in
terms of what he's brought to the team in such
a short time and bringing all of his experience abroad
(03:36):
in Italy and England and Brazil to bear, you know,
with with us and our group. Obviously on the field
which everybody sees, they see the saves he makes, his
ability to help us in possession and build out of
the back and and all these things, which you know
is a huge boost to the group, but also what
he adds in his maturity and calmness in the locker room.
(03:58):
You know, we do have a very young team. He's
obviously not young, he's he's very experienced and he's grown
in his maturity and you know, he helps us in
the locker room. He helps us manage the you know,
the pressures and those sorts of things, and those are
difficult things to bring to a new team instantaneously, right
(04:18):
Like you can't kind of step into a new group
on day one and just be like Hey, everyone listened
to me, now you know. So he's he's also approached
things very respectfully in that way, and he's he's taken
the right path, and he's grown, he's grown on everyone.
And now you know, I think he's commanded the respect
with his performances and how he cares himself of all
(04:39):
the players and all the staff.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
Thirty five years old and according to the release, you
have signed him through twenty twenty seven, with an option
for twenty twenty eight. Most positions that feels really really
old when it comes to keepers, you know, I suppose
a lot of great keepers age pretty well. Is that
fair to say?
Speaker 3 (04:58):
Yeah? I mean, goalkee is the one position that you
can play for a long time and and and usually
you get better because you get smarter, You read the
game better, your positioning gets better, and you know, you actually,
as you get older as a goalkeeper, you tend to
look less impressive because it looks like you're making a
bunch of easy safe sometimes and everyone's hitting the ball
(05:21):
at you. But it's really because you're anticipating and your
your positioning is just that much better. Your footwork is
usually better, and so you know, it kind of simplifies
the game for those guys. So yeah, I mean my
first couple of years in MLS with Seattle, I believe
our goalkeeper was over forty when when he came, and
you know, he had similar, you know, experiences abroad, and
(05:42):
when you have those experiences of that maturity, you know,
I think that's that side of the game for those
guys only becomes better with age. And you know, especially
the type of goalkeeper he is. You know, he's not
someone that just relies on insane athleticism to cover the
entire goal, right, So that's not something that's gonna you know,
(06:03):
that's something that would tend to be players as they
get older. But with him, it's it's you know, obviously
the ability on the ball with his feet that's not
going away. And certainly his positioning and how he reads
the anticipates of the game. That's that's something that only
gets better as he gets older.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Eight excuse me, eight clean sheets for Ratha this year. Jerious, Kurt,
Why why now? I'm not criticizing at all. I'm just wondering,
you know, as far as the timing of the announcement,
I wasn't expecting when I got the email so what
what made now the right time to extend.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Cabral I think it's it's a reward for for obviously
what he's done. And you know, he's a guy that
has a body of work behind him, and so this
is this is who he is, right, This isn't a
young player who's had a good month and you know,
and and it's you know too two inch insipatory, but
I think he's someone that's you know, come in and
(06:56):
was willing to come in at a level and with
it with the group to sort of prove himself again, right,
which is another mark in his favor in terms of
his character, as he was willing to come in and
humble himself and say, look, I'll come in, I'll show
you guys what I can do. And he did that,
And so I think it's important as we head into
the stretch run here and then you know into the
(07:18):
offseason and for twenty six that we have a key position,
a key player and a key position locked up that
we've shown him the fans, you know, and the rest
of the locker room honestly that when you come in
and do those right things, the club you know, is
recognizes those things and makes that commitment to players that
come in and do the right things.
Speaker 2 (07:38):
Both Diego, Luna Brian o'heita now back with the squad
after their national team duties. We saw Diego with one
start and then came off the bench against Japan, and
I thought he looked really good. It feels like Pochattino
really likes Diego. Talk to Johnny Russell, as I referenced earlier,
and he said one of the reasons that he wanted
(07:58):
to sign here was to play with Diego, And we
still really need to see Diego with Cruise and all
the tune gi so we can kind of see what
that looks like. So uh, to give us some returns
as far as you know, Diego back on the ground
and hopefully seeing him integrated with the other additions you
made during the summer transfer window.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
Yeah, I mean, it's just about growing that familiarity and
how they play with each other. And you know, Diego
when he has the ball, knowing the types of runs
that olotun G and Rawan will make without really you know,
looking and seeing it, you know, and just having that familiarity,
you know, Rwan knowing knowing that Diego will get in
the ball, Victor knowing that dig can get him the
ball in dangerous scisions. You know, so as they as
(08:40):
they breathe get that familiarity going. They understand what space
is in the field, they like to play in, what
type of runs each of them like to make. You know,
that's I'm looking forward to that. I think everyone should be,
because once they start clicking like that, it's going to
be it's going to be very dangerous.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
So when when you consider the players you have in
the attack, I mean, we haven't even talked about Diogo,
does it feel like and look, I know it's Pablo's choice, Okay,
I know that's it's his choice as far as what
the eleven looks like, But does it feel like you
guys are close to a consensus as far as what
your best group is up top at least what you
(09:18):
would like to see with the with the players who
start to kind of maximize your ability in the attack
has Kurt, I mean, if we're if we're honest, just
it's been the inability to score goals that has kind
of caught you guys. You've been stout defensively with Rafa
having such a great year, but we got to find
the back of the net. Do you feel like you
guys are close to a consensus group you want near
the top of the attack.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
I mean, look honestly, because because of what you just said,
you know that we've been light on goals, and that's
that's the job up there. I can't say yes to
that right because until until there's a player or for
you know, a person or you know two people or
a group of people that are that are showing that
they can produce together, you know, I can't say that
(10:02):
X Y or Z E decision is settled. You know,
the competition is there, and guys have to perform to
keep their jobs and their spots. You know, we obviously
brought into guys in the winter that we think or
in the summer that we think can can help us
score goals and will help the score goals. But you know,
I can't sit here and say the spence we're you know,
we've settled what that attacking group looks like before they've
(10:25):
really you know, shown that they will produce at the
level that we need them to. So we still need
that to gel and come together and show itself in
reality before we can say stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
Tell me, Kurt from your perspective, what you saw that
caused that nice little streak. You guys had to come
back down to earth a little bit. You know. It
feels like it's been a combination, unfortunately, of bad luck,
as we've spoken to you and Pablo and Jason about
and others, with some tough calls going against you, and
also some bad form at the wrong time. You guys
really had a tick in for a minute there and
(10:57):
then it kind of came back. I know that's just
the bio rhythm of a season, but any thoughts on
specifically what seemed to happen as the form combined with
the bad luck led to some lack of results.
Speaker 3 (11:09):
Look, I think MLS can be a bit of a
streaky league at times because of the parody that's driven
and there's not a ton always from a talent standpoint,
separating you know, each team on any given day, So
it can be a streaky league where a team will
you know, And I think I think some maybe it
was New England, you know, I think when ten games
unbeaten and ten games winless, you know, back to Backstreet.
(11:31):
So it can be a league like that and things
can happen, And I think you know, you noted the
some of the calls and certainly, you know, not that
it's anything is purely the fault of the referees, but
but there were some calls in there that that were
very dubious, to say the least, and you know, it
certainly affected some results. And look, you know, momentum is
(11:51):
a real thing. The mentality of the players is a
real thing. And whether the referee made a bad call
or or your team just you know, didn't play well
to win the game, the end result. You know, if
the end results a win, then everyone feels good. If
the end results a loss, everyone feels worse. And you know,
those things have real impact on training, on games, on
(12:12):
on momentum and how we carry things forward. So you know,
I think I think we've struggled, you know, at times
to keep the momentum going, and sometimes through you know,
our fault, sometimes through no fault of our own or
little fault of our own. And you know, and I
think we've we've really needed to be better at holding
our focus and key moments of some games, especially more recently,
(12:35):
whether that's set pieces or you know, key points in
the game, beginning of the game, end of the game,
you know, beginning and end of each half, you know,
so I think there's been some some mental focus. I
guess issues that they're they're at some point as well.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
The art of talent evaluation and professional sports has always
fascinated me. I did it on the pro basketball level
for a couple of years. And you get a lot right,
you get a lot wrong, but you do the best
analyze and then you make the decision. You see what happens.
And since you and I last spoke, Urge, you have
loaned Dom mark Zuke to Cincinnati, and it to me,
(13:10):
I'll just speak for myself, it was a reminder of
how little I know about the sport because the first
few matches after you acquired him last year, I thought
you had some juice with him, and there were moments
so quite frankly, brilliance. Honestly, why do you think it
didn't work out with Tom as he has moved on
to Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (13:28):
Yeah, and look and Dom's on loan and you know,
the future is not set in stone with him in
terms of what he does on his loan, and you
know what happens come January. But you know when when
we sign young players and when when you do sign
young players and your developmental club, whether those players come
from the academy or from abroad, you need to realize
(13:50):
like what that entails. And obviously, you know, youthful energy
and exuberants, you know, that's some of the positives maybe,
but there's also negatives in terms of inconsistency and experience maturity.
And so you know, Tom's not alone. I think, you know,
I think you're right in terms of what you said
you saw last season. I think in preseason this year
(14:11):
he was. He was also phenomenal, you know. And it's
it's worth noting that we never know always what's going
on inside a player's head and what's going on in
his personal life or at home or with his family
or anything that could obviously always affect what they're doing
on the field, because all we see is them, you know,
on the field every every weekend, and it's like, you know, hey,
(14:32):
nobody's really interested in that. You got to go perform
and do your thing, and sometimes it becomes difficult for
them to do that. And sometimes young players, you know,
they have a bad game or two and that's never
happened to them before, right, you know, And it's this
is the first time I've had I've struggled, and I
don't really you know, I can't look back on the
last time I struggled and how did I get myself
out of it, because that's never happened before. So they're
(14:52):
learning how to deal with those situations in real time.
So Tom, Tom, you know, and there's a few other
guys too that we've had and whether they're in this
patch now where they've gone through it and come out
of it. But you know, young players will go through
rough patches, and you know, I think down with Us
was going through a bit of a rough patch, and
I think a little bit of a change of scenery
and maybe a change of role for for Cincinnati can
(15:15):
hopefully help him rediscover his form. And then you know
what that means term going forward, whether whether they exercise
or you know, try to the purchase option at the
end of the loan, or he comes back to us,
or you know some other thing. You know that's that's
all in the future and yet to get to be written.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
Is gozo with you guys. This weekend, the U twenty
World Cup is coming up, right curtin Chile is is
going I don't even know is Gozo with you guys
for the weekend.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
And tell yes, he is with us this weekend.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
And and then he will go with the U twenties
to the World Cup in Chile.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Yes, uh, he will go soon. Yeah, but he with
us for the time being. Off the up my head,
I believe it's it's somewhere around the week and a
half is from now, if I can do mass so, yeah,
he's he's with us right now for the time being.
He just got back from U twenty camp over the window.
(16:15):
He and Marcus Sombrono, you know, who's the other player
we have at the U twenties did really well and uh,
and we're we're excited for both of them to hopefully
represent the US at the Youth World Cup.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Does it feel like Diego is solidified? We're nine months away,
Kurt from the World Cup, and like I said earlier,
Pochettino seems to love Diego and every time he's given
a chance, I feel like he's one of the brighter
players for the US men's national team. Does it feel
like he's locked in a spot for the World Cup.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
I mean, look, he Pochettino does seem to like him
and has shown a lot of faith in him, and
that's great, and I hope it continues. And you know,
it's up to Diego to keep doing the right things
to make sure it continues, because that, you know, the
faith isn't that you're a good player and that's it,
don't worry about it. The faith is that you're going
(17:06):
to continue to do the things that brought you to
my attention, right That's that's the faith that that Pachtino
has in him. And you know, as soon as you know,
as soon as if you're a player like Diego, as
soon as you think like, oh yeah, I'm you know,
I got this is that's when that slips through your fingers.
So I wouldn't say anyone, you know, I especially the
way things have gone for the national team lately, it's
(17:27):
hard to say that anyone, like you know, is a
lock for for anything right now, to be honest, because
I think there even though this window worked out where
we're coming out of it on the positive having been
in Japan, but it's it's, you know, it's still something
where they've got a lot to work through to find
the right group and the right mix of players, because
(17:47):
it's not always the you know, eleven or twenty best
players in the country. It's about the best team. And
so what is the right you know, the best fit
for individuals with each other that can help us be
success with the World Cup. And that's what Pochettino is
doing right now. And the reality is as much as
you want to win every game and fans, you know,
I'm a fan right and and I'd love the US
(18:10):
to win every game, but you know, if you're if
you're learning things, you're gonna go through struggles. You're gonna
lose games you don't. You don't learn as much when
you win as when you as when you lose. And
you know, hopefully he Pochettino and his staff will learn
some things and learn some lessons from from those experiences
that'll that'll serve them well going forward. And you know
there's gonna be mistakes that won't be repeated come come
(18:31):
time for the World Cup.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Last thing before I said, you lose, Kurt, here's some analysis.
Saturday feels like a big game. There you go, You're welcome,
Kansas City, nailed it. I hate you know, we get
on the interview, but what do you guys ever do?
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Every game is a big game? You know what I mean.
I think, I think, I think the cliche I guess
would be that the playoffs start now for us.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
There you go, so how do you how do you
get three on Saturday against Casey?
Speaker 3 (18:58):
We score the wholes like kind of you kind of
you kind of hit the nail head before. But you know, look,
I think if if our guys are are clicking together,
if you know, if the last couple of weeks have
helped us gel you know, and become more familiar with
each other, you know, I know we'll create chances. I
know we'll score goals. You know, We've got to be
locked in defensively, and I think more in those dead
(19:20):
ball and critical moments of the game. So I think
it's important that Rafa and the guys you know, get
the shutout and give us a chance to win the game,
you know. And I think that's that's what it's about.
And we're you know, way back when we you know,
beat Seattle in the playoffs without taking a shot. You know,
I think are you know, Pablo and I are discussions
before that game. Was was just like, hey man, we
(19:42):
got to set the team up to give us a
chance to win the game. You know, like if we
if we can see goals here, like you know, then
that's going to make it that much harder. So we
got to give us a chance to win the game.
And I think that's the same thing with our defense
down the stretch here is if they give us a
chance to win the game, the attacks got to come through,
do their job and win. It's the game. But you know,
we know that we want to make We want to
(20:03):
make one gold enough and if we can score two
or three, we'll do that. But you know, we don't
want to put ourselves in positions where we have to.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
All right, buddy, you're the man. Appreciate the time, Good
luck on Saturday. We'll chat soon.
Speaker 3 (20:14):
Okay, Yeah, I appreciate it, man. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (20:16):
Gurch Schmid from RSL. It's been three weeks, but they're
playing a match coming up and it is a big one.
If they lose this one, the playoffs might not be
in the cards this year. Coming up Saturday, seven thirty,
America First Field against Sporting KC.
Time to hit the pitch on the drive. The RSL
Insider today and every day is brought to you by
beer Bar Head Downtown for watch parties and game day
shuttles to the stadium. More at beer Bar, SLC dot com.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Live today at the Mountain America Expo Center. Excuse me,
the Utah RV Super Show. We do it every year
out here. We are very close to America First Field,
where RSL calls home. Speaking of RSL, it's time to
take a little bit of a break from the football
conversation to talk some soccer. Kurt Schmidt's our guy, chief
(00:35):
roster constructor for the club, stops by on Thursday. Kurt
at Thursday, Man, how we doing good? I'm good. So
since you guys last played a match, did you write
a book? Did you travel the world? Did you go
see family across?
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Like?
Speaker 2 (00:49):
What is it? What is it with this break?
Speaker 3 (00:51):
Man?
Speaker 2 (00:52):
It feels like such a weird break late summer, early fall.
I can't even remember last time you guys played a game.
Speaker 3 (00:58):
Yeah, it's a long one and the biggest culprit because
you know, we didn't have a game step of the
international break this past weekend. So the biggest culprit was
with Seattle, the Seattle game getting moved for the League's Cup.
But it's been good to get I think, to give
the coaches and the players time to refocus and work
(01:19):
on a few things that, you know that we needed
to sharpen up.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
So what are those boxes courage you guys wanted check?
You know, we had Pablo on last week, got up
with Johnny Russell yesterday, so that was fun. And you know,
we talked about the dynamic of it being a little
bit of a mini like training camp because of course
you brought in three additions during the transfer window in
Olatunji and Cruz and then DeAndre Yedlin as well. So
(01:45):
during this window it can be looked at as a
couple of different ways. You know. One way is what
a weird time to take this long break, and the
other way is, Okay, let's utilize the time to get
these guys ingratiated so they understand what we're asking from them.
So what sort of boxes as have you guys checked
over the past three weeks.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
Yeah, some of it, and you touched on it with
some of the new guys, getting them more time together
and training and just getting that familiarity going so that
they play well off each other. I think that's been
very important. I know Pavel's been working with the guys
on some scenarios and situations, you know, drilling down on
the details of how to approach a different phases, different
(02:24):
moments in the game for sure. For sure, working and
taking a look at what some different shapes look like
and how some some guys might look in different spots,
and and then of course, you know, just drilling down
on on set pieces with with a big gap between games,
you know, there's there's some good work to be done
in that way as well.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
So some news today Kurt Well extended contract extension for
Rotha Cabral who has just been dynamite. And that's only
what I see when it comes to matches. And I
understand that of the off the pitch, you guys have
really appreciated what he's out to your locker room. So
tell us about this process, what it's been like for
you to kind of witness your decision to bring him
(03:06):
in manifest great things, and you know the conversations you
guys had that ultimately and with him signing a contract extension.
Speaker 3 (03:15):
Yeah, I mean, you know it couldn't be happier for him,
and you know, for him to stay with us. And
obviously he and his family has settled in the area
really well and they enjoy it. And so you know,
I think nobody deserves it more than he does in
terms of what he's brought to the team in such
a short time and bringing all of his experience abroad
(03:36):
in Italy and England and Brazil to bear, you know,
with with us and our group. Obviously on the field
which everybody sees, they see the saves he makes, his
ability to help us in possession and build out of
the back and and all these things, which you know
is a huge boost to the group, but also what
he adds in his maturity and calmness in the locker room.
(03:58):
You know, we do have a very young team. He's
obviously not young, he's he's very experienced and he's grown
in his maturity and you know, he helps us in
the locker room. He helps us manage the you know,
the pressures and those sorts of things, and those are
difficult things to bring to a new team instantaneously, right
(04:18):
Like you can't kind of step into a new group
on day one and just be like Hey, everyone listened
to me, now you know. So he's he's also approached
things very respectfully in that way, and he's he's taken
the right path, and he's grown, he's grown on everyone.
And now you know, I think he's commanded the respect
with his performances and how he cares himself of all
(04:39):
the players and all the staff.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
Thirty five years old and according to the release, you
have signed him through twenty twenty seven, with an option
for twenty twenty eight. Most positions that feels really really
old when it comes to keepers, you know, I suppose
a lot of great keepers age pretty well. Is that
fair to say?
Speaker 3 (04:58):
Yeah? I mean, goalkee is the one position that you
can play for a long time and and and usually
you get better because you get smarter, You read the
game better, your positioning gets better, and you know, you actually,
as you get older as a goalkeeper, you tend to
look less impressive because it looks like you're making a
bunch of easy safe sometimes and everyone's hitting the ball
(05:21):
at you. But it's really because you're anticipating and your
your positioning is just that much better. Your footwork is
usually better, and so you know, it kind of simplifies
the game for those guys. So yeah, I mean my
first couple of years in MLS with Seattle, I believe
our goalkeeper was over forty when when he came, and
you know, he had similar, you know, experiences abroad, and
(05:42):
when you have those experiences of that maturity, you know,
I think that's that side of the game for those
guys only becomes better with age. And you know, especially
the type of goalkeeper he is. You know, he's not
someone that just relies on insane athleticism to cover the
entire goal, right, So that's not something that's gonna you know,
(06:03):
that's something that would tend to be players as they
get older. But with him, it's it's you know, obviously
the ability on the ball with his feet that's not
going away. And certainly his positioning and how he reads
the anticipates of the game. That's that's something that only
gets better as he gets older.
Speaker 2 (06:18):
Eight excuse me, eight clean sheets for Ratha this year. Jerious, Kurt,
Why why now? I'm not criticizing at all. I'm just wondering,
you know, as far as the timing of the announcement,
I wasn't expecting when I got the email so what
what made now the right time to extend.
Speaker 3 (06:35):
Cabral I think it's it's a reward for for obviously
what he's done. And you know, he's a guy that
has a body of work behind him, and so this
is this is who he is, right, This isn't a
young player who's had a good month and you know,
and and it's you know too two inch insipatory, but
I think he's someone that's you know, come in and
(06:56):
was willing to come in at a level and with
it with the group to sort of prove himself again, right,
which is another mark in his favor in terms of
his character, as he was willing to come in and
humble himself and say, look, I'll come in, I'll show
you guys what I can do. And he did that,
And so I think it's important as we head into
the stretch run here and then you know into the
(07:18):
offseason and for twenty six that we have a key position,
a key player and a key position locked up that
we've shown him the fans, you know, and the rest
of the locker room honestly that when you come in
and do those right things, the club you know, is
recognizes those things and makes that commitment to players that
come in and do the right things.
Speaker 2 (07:38):
Both Diego, Luna Brian o'heita now back with the squad
after their national team duties. We saw Diego with one
start and then came off the bench against Japan, and
I thought he looked really good. It feels like Pochattino
really likes Diego. Talk to Johnny Russell, as I referenced earlier,
and he said one of the reasons that he wanted
(07:58):
to sign here was to play with Diego, And we
still really need to see Diego with Cruise and all
the tune gi so we can kind of see what
that looks like. So uh, to give us some returns
as far as you know, Diego back on the ground
and hopefully seeing him integrated with the other additions you
made during the summer transfer window.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
Yeah, I mean, it's just about growing that familiarity and
how they play with each other. And you know, Diego
when he has the ball, knowing the types of runs
that olotun G and Rawan will make without really you know,
looking and seeing it, you know, and just having that familiarity,
you know, Rwan knowing knowing that Diego will get in
the ball, Victor knowing that dig can get him the
ball in dangerous scisions. You know, so as they as
(08:40):
they breathe get that familiarity going. They understand what space
is in the field, they like to play in, what
type of runs each of them like to make. You know,
that's I'm looking forward to that. I think everyone should be,
because once they start clicking like that, it's going to
be it's going to be very dangerous.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
So when when you consider the players you have in
the attack, I mean, we haven't even talked about Diogo,
does it feel like and look, I know it's Pablo's choice, Okay,
I know that's it's his choice as far as what
the eleven looks like, But does it feel like you
guys are close to a consensus as far as what
your best group is up top at least what you
(09:18):
would like to see with the with the players who
start to kind of maximize your ability in the attack
has Kurt, I mean, if we're if we're honest, just
it's been the inability to score goals that has kind
of caught you guys. You've been stout defensively with Rafa
having such a great year, but we got to find
the back of the net. Do you feel like you
guys are close to a consensus group you want near
the top of the attack.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
I mean, look honestly, because because of what you just said,
you know that we've been light on goals, and that's
that's the job up there. I can't say yes to
that right because until until there's a player or for
you know, a person or you know two people or
a group of people that are that are showing that
they can produce together, you know, I can't say that
(10:02):
X Y or Z E decision is settled. You know,
the competition is there, and guys have to perform to
keep their jobs and their spots. You know, we obviously
brought into guys in the winter that we think or
in the summer that we think can can help us
score goals and will help the score goals. But you know,
I can't sit here and say the spence we're you know,
we've settled what that attacking group looks like before they've
(10:25):
really you know, shown that they will produce at the
level that we need them to. So we still need
that to gel and come together and show itself in
reality before we can say stuff like that.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
Tell me, Kurt from your perspective, what you saw that
caused that nice little streak. You guys had to come
back down to earth a little bit. You know. It
feels like it's been a combination, unfortunately, of bad luck,
as we've spoken to you and Pablo and Jason about
and others, with some tough calls going against you, and
also some bad form at the wrong time. You guys
really had a tick in for a minute there and
(10:57):
then it kind of came back. I know that's just
the bio rhythm of a season, but any thoughts on
specifically what seemed to happen as the form combined with
the bad luck led to some lack of results.
Speaker 3 (11:09):
Look, I think MLS can be a bit of a
streaky league at times because of the parody that's driven
and there's not a ton always from a talent standpoint,
separating you know, each team on any given day, So
it can be a streaky league where a team will
you know, And I think I think some maybe it
was New England, you know, I think when ten games
unbeaten and ten games winless, you know, back to Backstreet.
(11:31):
So it can be a league like that and things
can happen, And I think you know, you noted the
some of the calls and certainly, you know, not that
it's anything is purely the fault of the referees, but
but there were some calls in there that that were
very dubious, to say the least, and you know, it
certainly affected some results. And look, you know, momentum is
(11:51):
a real thing. The mentality of the players is a
real thing. And whether the referee made a bad call
or or your team just you know, didn't play well
to win the game, the end result. You know, if
the end results a win, then everyone feels good. If
the end results a loss, everyone feels worse. And you know,
those things have real impact on training, on games, on
(12:12):
on momentum and how we carry things forward. So you know,
I think I think we've struggled, you know, at times
to keep the momentum going, and sometimes through you know,
our fault, sometimes through no fault of our own or
little fault of our own. And you know, and I
think we've we've really needed to be better at holding
our focus and key moments of some games, especially more recently,
(12:35):
whether that's set pieces or you know, key points in
the game, beginning of the game, end of the game,
you know, beginning and end of each half, you know,
so I think there's been some some mental focus. I
guess issues that they're they're at some point as well.
Speaker 2 (12:50):
The art of talent evaluation and professional sports has always
fascinated me. I did it on the pro basketball level
for a couple of years. And you get a lot right,
you get a lot wrong, but you do the best
analyze and then you make the decision. You see what happens.
And since you and I last spoke, Urge, you have
loaned Dom mark Zuke to Cincinnati, and it to me,
(13:10):
I'll just speak for myself, it was a reminder of
how little I know about the sport because the first
few matches after you acquired him last year, I thought
you had some juice with him, and there were moments
so quite frankly, brilliance. Honestly, why do you think it
didn't work out with Tom as he has moved on
to Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (13:28):
Yeah, and look and Dom's on loan and you know,
the future is not set in stone with him in
terms of what he does on his loan, and you
know what happens come January. But you know when when
we sign young players and when when you do sign
young players and your developmental club, whether those players come
from the academy or from abroad, you need to realize
(13:50):
like what that entails. And obviously, you know, youthful energy
and exuberants, you know, that's some of the positives maybe,
but there's also negatives in terms of inconsistency and experience maturity.
And so you know, Tom's not alone. I think, you know,
I think you're right in terms of what you said
you saw last season. I think in preseason this year
(14:11):
he was. He was also phenomenal, you know. And it's
it's worth noting that we never know always what's going
on inside a player's head and what's going on in
his personal life or at home or with his family
or anything that could obviously always affect what they're doing
on the field, because all we see is them, you know,
on the field every every weekend, and it's like, you know, hey,
(14:32):
nobody's really interested in that. You got to go perform
and do your thing, and sometimes it becomes difficult for
them to do that. And sometimes young players, you know,
they have a bad game or two and that's never
happened to them before, right, you know, And it's this
is the first time I've had I've struggled, and I
don't really you know, I can't look back on the
last time I struggled and how did I get myself
out of it, because that's never happened before. So they're
(14:52):
learning how to deal with those situations in real time.
So Tom, Tom, you know, and there's a few other
guys too that we've had and whether they're in this
patch now where they've gone through it and come out
of it. But you know, young players will go through
rough patches, and you know, I think down with Us
was going through a bit of a rough patch, and
I think a little bit of a change of scenery
and maybe a change of role for for Cincinnati can
(15:15):
hopefully help him rediscover his form. And then you know
what that means term going forward, whether whether they exercise
or you know, try to the purchase option at the
end of the loan, or he comes back to us,
or you know some other thing. You know that's that's
all in the future and yet to get to be written.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
Is gozo with you guys. This weekend, the U twenty
World Cup is coming up, right curtin Chile is is
going I don't even know is Gozo with you guys
for the weekend.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
And tell yes, he is with us this weekend.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
And and then he will go with the U twenties
to the World Cup in Chile.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Yes, uh, he will go soon. Yeah, but he with
us for the time being. Off the up my head,
I believe it's it's somewhere around the week and a
half is from now, if I can do mass so, yeah,
he's he's with us right now for the time being.
He just got back from U twenty camp over the window.
(16:15):
He and Marcus Sombrono, you know, who's the other player
we have at the U twenties did really well and uh,
and we're we're excited for both of them to hopefully
represent the US at the Youth World Cup.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Does it feel like Diego is solidified? We're nine months away,
Kurt from the World Cup, and like I said earlier,
Pochettino seems to love Diego and every time he's given
a chance, I feel like he's one of the brighter
players for the US men's national team. Does it feel
like he's locked in a spot for the World Cup.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
I mean, look, he Pochettino does seem to like him
and has shown a lot of faith in him, and
that's great, and I hope it continues. And you know,
it's up to Diego to keep doing the right things
to make sure it continues, because that, you know, the
faith isn't that you're a good player and that's it,
don't worry about it. The faith is that you're going
(17:06):
to continue to do the things that brought you to
my attention, right That's that's the faith that that Pachtino
has in him. And you know, as soon as you know,
as soon as if you're a player like Diego, as
soon as you think like, oh yeah, I'm you know,
I got this is that's when that slips through your fingers.
So I wouldn't say anyone, you know, I especially the
way things have gone for the national team lately, it's
(17:27):
hard to say that anyone, like you know, is a
lock for for anything right now, to be honest, because
I think there even though this window worked out where
we're coming out of it on the positive having been
in Japan, but it's it's, you know, it's still something
where they've got a lot to work through to find
the right group and the right mix of players, because
(17:47):
it's not always the you know, eleven or twenty best
players in the country. It's about the best team. And
so what is the right you know, the best fit
for individuals with each other that can help us be
success with the World Cup. And that's what Pochettino is
doing right now. And the reality is as much as
you want to win every game and fans, you know,
I'm a fan right and and I'd love the US
(18:10):
to win every game, but you know, if you're if
you're learning things, you're gonna go through struggles. You're gonna
lose games you don't. You don't learn as much when
you win as when you as when you lose. And
you know, hopefully he Pochettino and his staff will learn
some things and learn some lessons from from those experiences
that'll that'll serve them well going forward. And you know
there's gonna be mistakes that won't be repeated come come
(18:31):
time for the World Cup.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Last thing before I said, you lose, Kurt, here's some analysis.
Saturday feels like a big game. There you go, You're welcome,
Kansas City, nailed it. I hate you know, we get
on the interview, but what do you guys ever do?
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Every game is a big game? You know what I mean.
I think, I think, I think the cliche I guess
would be that the playoffs start now for us.
Speaker 2 (18:53):
There you go, so how do you how do you
get three on Saturday against Casey?
Speaker 3 (18:58):
We score the wholes like kind of you kind of
you kind of hit the nail head before. But you know, look,
I think if if our guys are are clicking together,
if you know, if the last couple of weeks have
helped us gel you know, and become more familiar with
each other, you know, I know we'll create chances. I
know we'll score goals. You know, We've got to be
locked in defensively, and I think more in those dead
(19:20):
ball and critical moments of the game. So I think
it's important that Rafa and the guys you know, get
the shutout and give us a chance to win the game,
you know. And I think that's that's what it's about.
And we're you know, way back when we you know,
beat Seattle in the playoffs without taking a shot. You know,
I think are you know, Pablo and I are discussions
before that game. Was was just like, hey man, we
(19:42):
got to set the team up to give us a
chance to win the game. You know, like if we
if we can see goals here, like you know, then
that's going to make it that much harder. So we
got to give us a chance to win the game.
And I think that's the same thing with our defense
down the stretch here is if they give us a
chance to win the game, the attacks got to come through,
do their job and win. It's the game. But you know,
we know that we want to make We want to
(20:03):
make one gold enough and if we can score two
or three, we'll do that. But you know, we don't
want to put ourselves in positions where we have to.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
All right, buddy, you're the man. Appreciate the time, Good
luck on Saturday. We'll chat soon.
Speaker 3 (20:14):
Okay, Yeah, I appreciate it, man. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (20:16):
Gurch Schmid from RSL. It's been three weeks, but they're
playing a match coming up and it is a big one.
If they lose this one, the playoffs might not be
in the cards this year. Coming up Saturday, seven thirty,
America First Field against Sporting KC.
Popular Podcasts
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.