Gary Neville on EPL Matchday 1, and USMNT Players Performance Abroad

Summary

Unfiltered Soccer with Landon Donovan and Tim Howard

Episode: Gary Neville on EPL Matchday 1, and USMNT Players Performance Abroad

Date: August 20, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this lively and insight-packed episode, Landon Donovan and Tim Howard give listeners an unfiltered look at the opening weekend of the English Premier League, the current landscape of American players in Europe, and the ever-intriguing US Men’s National Team (USMNT) roster picture—especially with the 2026 World Cup looming. The highlight is a thoughtful, candid conversation with Sky Sports and Manchester United legend Gary Neville, who shares unique perspectives on the EPL's first matchday, club dynamics, major transfers, and what international players can expect in a World Cup year.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. USMNT Players Abroad: Opportunities, Challenges, and Bubble Watch

[03:35–12:25]

• Championship vs. MLS Pipeline:

  • Landon remarks on the USMNT’s shifting player pool, particularly more "bubble" players moving from MLS to English Championship clubs. He questions which players can use this season to cement a spot on new coach Mauricio Pochettino’s roster.
  • Tim: "Given where we are on the front line, like goals are at a premium. I would bring a guy who's scoring." ([05:04])

• Josh Sargent’s Situation:

  • Despite regular scoring in the Championship, Sargent continually misses national team call-ups, suggesting Pochettino may not rate him.
  • Donovan and Howard weigh Pochettino’s views on European second-division leagues vs. MLS and the rise of Americans abroad.

• MLS vs. Championship Quality:

  • Tim considers the leagues comparable, with elite Championship clubs slightly ahead of most MLS sides.
  • "A bottom side Championship club that plays in front of 15,000 people and is a yo-yo team from League One... I think MLS," says Howard ([07:06]).

• USMNT Roster Crunch:

  • The pressure is on all bubble players. If you aren't starting club games, your USMNT window may close quickly:
    • "The hourglass has been flipped and the sand is just trickling at a rapid pace." (Howard, [09:45])
    • Aronson’s and Ajamong’s situations highlighted as cautionary tales for players without regular minutes.

• The Gio Reyna Crossroads:

  • Gio’s likely move to Parma feels dangerously late before the season, and Donovan voices concern if ongoing delays or non-selection indicate Pochettino has "moved on."
    • "He is absolutely at a crossroads right now and needs to get in the team and play regularly if he has any chance." (Donovan, [12:25])

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2. MLS & Leagues Cup Preview

[12:50–16:13]

• Major Leagues Cup matchups: Miami vs. Tigres (standout), Orlando vs. Toluca, Sounders vs. Puebla, Galaxy vs. Pachuca.

• Messi Moment:

  • Donovan's detailed breakdown of Messi’s highlight-reel assist:
    • "This guy’s a joke, dude... at first you go, oh, he didn’t mean to do that. And then you watch it again and you’re like, he absolutely meant to do it." ([13:32])

• General optimism for Seattle and Orlando; uncertainty about the inconsistent Galaxy’s defensive form.

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3. EPL Opening Weekend with Guest Gary Neville

[19:50–47:47]

Manchester United’s Resurgence

[20:20–22:11]

• Gary Neville praises United’s best big-game performance in a decade, emphasizing structural improvements over flukey wins:

  • "That was the best performance I’ve seen against a top-three team for a long time on Sunday... structurally, I felt they were better." (Neville, [21:45])

• Howard highlights how United fans uniquely support the team; Neville explains the Old Trafford mentality.

  • "United fans...they can win, draw, and lose, but they can’t be bored." (Neville, [22:49])

Liverpool & Alexander Isak Transfer Drama

[24:27–26:41]

• Isak likely to join Liverpool post-Newcastle match; Neville details the “down tools” transfer tactic:

  • "He’s acted down tools now...he’s never playing for the club again irrespective of whatever they do." ([27:12])

• Neville sees both player and club perspectives, being both more sympathetic and still instinctively frustrated by transfer disruptions.

  • "Football is a cutthroat business that to be fair, sometimes isn’t friendly to players." (Neville, [26:37])

Arsenal’s Evolution & Title Credentials

[28:24–30:31]

• Arsenal praised for game management but questioned for lacking “star quality up front” to outscore City/Liverpool; midfield and striker concerns linger.
  • "They’re a bit of a throwback to an old Italian team...the big question is...do they have the star quality up front?" (Neville, [29:32])

Everton, Grealish, and Club Challenges

[30:31–32:48]

• Concern over Jack Grealish adjusting from City’s standards to struggling Everton; the club needs reinforcements.
  • "My concern is...he's now going to go into a team that's got obviously inferior players around him and is he going to become disillusioned?" (Neville, [31:23])

Tottenham & Tactical Trends

[33:30–38:03]

• Neville explains why Spurs’ entertainment value stands out amid "methodical," "overcoached" EPL tactics.

  • "Every time I watched them play, I enjoyed the game." (Neville, [34:25])
  • Supports adapting tactics to opponent, not just rigidly following “Plan A.”

• Discusses rise of physical, pragmatic set-ups (see: City, Arsenal) and suggests the EPL is swinging back toward a robust, instinctive style.

New Signings: Who to Watch?

[40:39–43:25]

• Of all summer signings, Neville highlights Wirtz as a likely breakout player, but the pressure is immense on all high-profile arrivals.
• Howard is bullish on Jokeres for Arsenal, emphasizing his unique profile but recognizing the period of adaptation required.

World Cup Fever: The Player Experience

[43:41–47:24]

• Neville provides unique insight into the intensity and nerves around World Cup selection, expecting “enormous” pressure on English players ahead of the US-based 2026 tournament.

  • "There is nothing like the scrutiny of a World Cup. And playing for England in a World Cup for an English football player, it's enormous." (Neville, [47:12])

• Neville recalls his first World Cup game: USA vs. Colombia, Rose Bowl '94, with fellow stars David Beckham and Keith Gillespie.

  • "Honestly, it was the hottest I've ever been in my life...I had to go back outside to the concourse to have an ice cream because I was that warm.” (Neville, [46:34])

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4. Unfiltered Refresh: EPL Chill Performer

[48:06–48:44]

• Howard and Donovan agree: Richarlison, for his two-goal performance and—rarely—"he actually smiled for the first time in like three years." (Howard, [48:25])

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5. Fan Connection Q&A

[52:08–70:47]

Notable Highlights:

• Minor League Model for US Soccer?

  • Both hosts appreciate the concept, but identify major funding, logistical, and competition issues with directly replicating MLB’s farm system. Emphasize importance of "real games" for development (Donovan, [54:55]).

• Luka Modrić as Pulisic’s Mentor:

  • “I can’t imagine a scenario where Luka Modrić is bad for anybody.” (Donovan, [58:58])

• Multilingual Club Dynamics:

  • Entertaining stories of language puzzles in European locker rooms—interpreters, made-up dialects, and tactical translation games.
    • "I've never had a coach where we needed a translator." (Howard, [61:25])
    • “I don’t know if Fellaini ever learned English really, but… they’re very clever with deciding how much they want to learn.” (Donovan, [63:57])

• World Cup Regret: 2010 Ghana Loss

  • Discussion on whether USMNT will ever have that favorable a knockout bracket again, and broader thoughts on judging success in an expanded World Cup.

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• "The hourglass has been flipped and the sand is just trickling at a rapid pace."
  — Tim Howard on USMNT roster urgency ([09:45])

• "He is absolutely at a crossroads right now and needs to get in the team and play regularly if he has any chance."
  — Landon Donovan on Gio Reyna ([12:25])

• "[Messi]...he just like cushions it and flicks it with the inside of his right foot behind his left leg...this guy's a joke, dude."
  — Landon Donovan on Messi’s assist ([13:32])

• "United fans...they can win, draw, and lose, but they can't be bored."
  — Gary Neville ([22:49])

• "If you're playing away at Everton, we knew we had to compete physically with Duncan Ferguson and Tim Cahill...So [Ferguson] would play bigger fullbacks...[We] adapted to the conditions of the opposition."
  — Gary Neville on bygone EPL pragmatism ([35:25])

• "There is nothing like the scrutiny of a World Cup. And playing for England in a World Cup for an English football player, it's enormous."
  — Gary Neville ([47:12])

• "I can’t imagine a scenario where Luka Modrić is bad for anybody.”
  — Landon Donovan ([58:58])

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Timestamps of Important Segments

• USMNT Bubble Watch & Championship Discussion: [03:35–12:25]
• MLS/Leagues Cup Preview and Messi’s Magic: [12:50–16:13]
• Gary Neville Interview: [19:50–47:47]
  • United’s Resurgence: [20:20–22:11]
  • Transfer Drama (Isak/Liverpool): [24:27–27:12]
  • Arsenal, Spurs, Tactical Trends: [28:24–40:39]
  • New Signings Pressure: [40:39–43:25]
  • World Cup Year & US-based Stories: [43:41–47:24]
• EPL "Chill" Performer: [48:06–48:44]
• Fan Connection Q&A: [52:08–70:47]

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Tone and Style

The vibe is casual, candid, knowledgeable—mixing the banter and brotherly ribbing you’d expect from two USMNT legends with deep tactical IQ and respect for the game. Gary Neville elevates the show with dry English wit and sharp analysis.

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Summary Takeaway

This episode delivers a sweeping and in-depth exploration of both the macro- and micro-levels of the soccer world: from the trajectories and uncertainties facing American internationals, to the shifting sands of tactical trends and player power in Europe's elite clubs. Whether discussing the fate of Gio Reyna or breaking down Messi's magic, Donovan and Howard's expertise is front-and-center. Gary Neville’s presence provides invaluable perspective from the apex of English football, anchoring the show’s look at the opening of a new EPL season and the feverish build-up to 2026.

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For future episodes, subscribe and follow @UnfilteredSoccer for the best unvarnished takes in the American soccer universe.

Transcript

[A]

My first ever World cup match was actually the USA versus Columbia in the Rose bowl in the 1994 World Cup.

[B]

Were you there? Were you watching it?

[A]

I was there.

[B]

No way.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

It was. Honestly, it was the hottest I've ever been in my life. Has the Rose bowl got a roof on it yet, by the way? Because I can't go nowhere. And I remember after half an hour, I had to go back outside to the concourse to have an ice cream because I was that warm.

[C]

Unfiltered soccer with Landon and Tim presented by Volkswagen. Volkswagen has long been a supporter of soccer in America and has proudly been a partner of US Soccer for over five years.

[B]

LD this feels so weird not looking at you on a computer screen live.

[C]

It's much better.

[B]

Yeah. In the Sinclair LA studios. Like this. This feels weird, but I like it.

[C]

It's nice in here, isn't it?

[B]

We're super casual in our shorts. This is how you roll every day.

[C]

This is how I roll.

[B]

Why are you. You're usually in San Diego. Why are you here? I mean, I know, but tell the audience why you're here.

[C]

Take a wild guess what I was just doing all weekend.

[B]

Guessing. It was golf.

[C]

I was golfing. I went to my childhood friend who I met when I was 10, and two of my buddies, we went to. Of two of our buddies went to Santa Barbara. So we've done like. We went to the desert. We did San Diego, Santa Barbara. We're going to do Orange county next every few months and go golf all weekend.

[B]

So every few months.

[C]

Every few months.

[B]

You live a good life. I love I remind you of that. And I don't. I don't. I don't mind telling you, every time I see you, you live a good life.

[C]

I live a great life.

[B]

And every time I'm out here, I'm like, this is. This is nice.

[C]

You can get used to this a little slower pace.

[B]

Yeah, it's good.

[C]

Okay. So why are you here?

[B]

I'm here, as you can see, wearing my.

[C]

Go Vols.

[B]

Tennessee. Go Vols. They play UCLA tomorrow. Lady Vols play ucla. At ucla. So I was. I was in the uk. Flew over coming in to see my daughter in the Vols. They're flying. They beat. They beat UNC Tar Heels, who were number one in the nation at the time.

[C]

They were number one.

[B]

They were number one. And Tennessee was unranked. And now. And now with another win, they're ranked fifth. Lady Vol.

[C]

So, wow.

[B]

Yeah. Big credit. I need to give a shout out Mac Midgley, the captain, she has a YouTube channel a behind the scenes of Tennessee women's soccer team. It's really fun. They track. They kind of track the team behind the scenes all week, and then they put out episodes.

[C]

She's a player who does the behind. Oh, good.

[B]

Yeah, she's a player. And Kate Runyon, she has a podcast, Everything School with Rock Media. So I asked Kate Runyon to be on her show, and she said there's a wait list. So I said, okay, get me on the wait list, but I'll be on. Here's the funny part. The funny part about. About Mac Midgley and. And her. Her YouTube behind the scenes. She. She said, we want to do a penalty shootout with you for content. I said, okay.

[C]

Like, they're taking shots.

[B]

They're taking shots. I said, you get 10.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

You don't score more than six. So I save or they miss four.

[C]

You don't. You don't dive anymore, dude.

[B]

Listen, I'm going to be limbered up, full kit. Strap the gloves on.

[C]

Are you gonna do it?

[B]

Yeah, definitely. Who do you got? You got me. You got me savings.

[C]

Who. Who's the player shooting?

[B]

It'll be 10 of them, I'm guessing.

[C]

Oh, 10. 10 girls in a row. No, I think they make more. I think they make more.

[B]

You're on their side?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Okay, listen, ladies, Landon has a lot of money, so we're going to wage. We're going to put a wager on this. We're gonna put a wager. No. No chance. You can't beat me for pace. Can't be in for base.

[C]

No, I think they can.

[B]

I. I'm just saying there's a. There's. You.

[C]

You might coached women. Dude, I like. I saw.

[B]

I watch it. This isn't.

[C]

They can hit the ball.

[B]

This isn't a man woman thing. This is a. This is a. It's hard to beat me for pace if I go the right way.

[C]

No, that's not true.

[B]

All right, you're on our.

[C]

They can beat you for pace, dude.

[B]

All right, you heard it here. Landon Donovan is.

[C]

I can't wait to watch this.

[B]

Yeah, you're gonna see it anyway. Let's jump in, man.

[C]

Yeah, let's jump in. All right, guys, as always, follow us on social media. Please subscribe to the show on YouTube. Make sure you follow us on Apple podcasts and Spotify. Lots of bonus content every week on our social media channels. And then you can email jordan@feedbackfiltered soccer.com. all right, Timmy, let's jump straight in. USLNT on USMNT. Look ahead to what's going to be a crucial season for so many players. And it feels like so many of these guys now have gone from MLS to Europe, particularly to the championship. And I think we're trying to. We're trying to figure out who is going to take hold of their club team and put themselves on Mauricio Pochettino's roster. Now we have the obvious guys and some of the guys who scored this weekend. Christian scored again, which was great for him, and he had been nursing an ankle injury, I think, and he was back and scoring. But a lot of these guys, I would say, are firmly on the bubble. And so I guess my question is, which of these guys do you think can really push forward by having a good year? And let's talk about the championship, specifically for a minute in the championship. And my second question we'll get deeper into this is why are so many guys going to the championship? And how do you think Mauricio rates the championship? Because Sergeant hasn't been called in. Aiden Morris, who has gone to Middlesbrough and done a really good job. They win every week. All he does is play and win. I guess we need to try to figure out in his mind how he views that.

[B]

Yeah, the Sergeant thing's interesting. Scores goals, he just keeps scoring championship. He's a really, really good level. He didn't get called in last year. I suspect unless something changes, even if he has a great season, maybe he's not pa's cup of tea. I don't know that for a fact. I personally, given where we are, you know, this. Given where we are on the front line, like goals are, they're at a premium. I would bring a guy who's scoring. So I'm not sure about that. I mean, ajaeng, obviously he needs to have himself a good season because he put himself in the shop window. And you know, again, we, you and I have had this discussion, which is probably right, like if, if he carried on scoring goals at Charlotte, he's on, he's on the plane. And if he go, if, if he goes over and doesn't do the business. So it's, it's a tough one. You know, I, I genuinely think Poch rates the championship. He's been in. He's been in England long enough to like know that that's a, a good.

[C]

Level or does he look down on it because he was in England? Is he like, you know, maybe he had some looks at players from the championship and I'm like, eh, not good enough.

[A]

Right.

[B]

But I think he's also bal. He's. Now that he's the coach of the US Team, he's also balancing a top European league, the championship and mls. Like that's where his players are coming from. So I think he probably says like, look, you're, you're, you're there or thereabouts if you're playing in the MLS or the championship. I don't think he looks down on that. So as long as you're playing, I think he's.

[C]

But Josh Sargent is playing and scoring.

[B]

That's what I'm saying. There must be something else there because.

[C]

The guy scores goals and Aiden Morris is another one. He's been playing and playing well and winning. And so I'm just trying to figure out how do you, I'm curious from your perspective actually, because you spent way more time in England than I did. How do you view MLS versus the championship? If you meshed the leagues together and there were 40, whatever, four teams, no 54 teams. Would MLS teams finish higher on average than championship teams?

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I think it's a comparable level.

[C]

You do?

[B]

Yeah, it's the top championship clubs who are pushing for promotion. Probably better than MLS club. A bottom side championship club that plays in front of 15,000 people and is a yo yo team from, from League one. Yeah, I think mls. So yeah, it's, it's a decent measuring stick. I mean, I think my, I think one, one thing that is that, that I kind of scratch my head is like when the generation before you and I, right, there were like a couple of guys who went, who went abroad to England to the Premier League and, and it was like they were, they were the trailblazers for us.

[C]

Right.

[B]

And then you get our generation. We all played in the Premier League. And my thought was that is just going to keep climbing. Yeah, that's gone down.

[C]

It hasn't.

[B]

And, and so, and so I scratched my head a little bit. Now that, now saying that Christian Pulisic is a, is a Premier league player. West McKinney is a Premier League player. Timothy Wayer can play in the Premier League. Gio Reyna had a sniff in the Premier League. Whether it worked out or not. Obviously Tyler plays every week. Chris Richards plays every week. Anthony Robinson plays every week. So there's a few. And in fairness to this group, a bunch of them have gone to Italy, which really was only Gooch in our group. Right. So we didn't have five or six players in Italy. And then the rest of our top players played at German clubs in the Bundesliga So it feels as if we had. There was more Premier League presence, but there are premier league caliber players in this generation. They're just not there at the moment.

[C]

Right. They've been playing in other clubs. Yeah. Any players that you feel like, I guess, concerned about right now heading into this year, And I have a couple, but I'm just like, I am concerned about Ajamong, and I think he's fantastic and he's. He's now building an amazing life for himself. But I do wonder, man, if it doesn't go well, if he doesn't play, what happens, right. Or anyone else that falls in that mold.

[B]

Well, I don't mean to paint this with a broad stroke brush, but you and I and anyone else who knows soccer has been beating the drum that, like, when the Gold cup is over, there's like 10 to 13 games that you're going to get an opportunity to get evaluated. Right?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

So I'm a little bit curious on. So I'm worried for everyone. That's what I'm saying about. No, here's what I mean. If, like, let's say you start this season in Europe, right? In the championship or wherever, and you're not playing, let's say you don't get selected for the first one or two.

[C]

Games, the national team game, September.

[B]

Right. Well, for your club team. Right? So.

[C]

Oh, oh, right, right, right.

[B]

So. So then. So now. So now I'm thinking, does pot say you haven't had a long preseason, you haven't played the first couple games, I'm gonna leave you out in September. Like, is that his thinking? Because if that's his thinking, minus one, minus two, those games are gone, right? So now. So now you gotta break into your club team, hopefully get called into the October games. Right? So, like, the hourglass has been flipped and the sand is just trickling at a rapid pace. And so I worry for all these guys who aren't literally bang on the team sheet every week where they're saying, I'm going to get an opportunity to perform, because I'm basically playing every week and I'm important to my team, I'm definitely going to get an opportunity with the national team. Outside of that, I worry for you. I worry for you. Because if Pochettino takes a stance which we don't know, we'll see, we'll see. With his selection in the upcoming friendlies, if he's like, well, you've been slow out of the gate. I can't call you into this game. Okay, he set standard now. So now you're thinking you pretty much have to be perfect. Perfect in terms of minutes logged over the next 12 months. So I worry for all of them. I do.

[C]

Yeah. I mean, like, Brendan Aronson's another one. Yeah, right. He's. Now he's in the Premier League. Great. That's exciting. Whatever he got. Did he play yesterday? Yeah, he had some time yesterday, but yeah, you just. You start to wonder like if. If it. If you become a. Just a guy off the bench for 20 minutes.

[B]

Yeah, well, that's the thing. Right. So he, so he's. Again, this goes back to our conversation. He's playing in the Championship, right? Not this year. Last year. Gets called in the Gold cup squad. He's a squad player for that team. His team now goes into the Premier League.

[C]

Right.

[B]

If he logs less minutes and he was already on the. On the cusp. Now, now where, where does that like. Like being in the Premier League doesn't mean then now you're going to be on the World cup squad.

[C]

So. Right.

[B]

It's an interesting one.

[C]

Okay. Well, that's going to lead us perfectly to our crossroads. Presented by nhtsa. NHTSA is here to remind you to drive sober or get pulled over. Number one guy, I think, for me, Tim, at a crossroads this season, and we haven't talked about him yet is Gio. We haven't talked about him in a while. He's been off the radar. It looks like he's going to land at Parma. My struggle right now is why has this taken so long? I understand things take time, contracts, all that. This should have been done a month ago, six weeks ago, so that he had a preseason with Parma. He was. Who knows what shape he's in. Hopefully he stayed fit and can go in there if that is the place he goes and can hit the ground running. But for me, he is absolutely at a crossroads right now and he needs to get in the team and play and play regularly if he has any chance. I don't know, Maybe Pochettino's moved on. We don't know. He might have just said, I'm done with him.

[B]

Maybe. But I do think the crossroads is an interesting one because he is there and he's the one player. Even if, let's say, which I don't know if he has, if Pacha's moved on from Giorena G Arena, has the type ability where if he tears it up, if it is Parm. If he tears it up, he's. He's right. Right in your face. I mean, he's Such a talent player. It's hard not to. It's hard not to be, you know, take him on the squad. So interesting one to watch.

[C]

Yeah. Okay. All right, let's move on to mls. MLS is in full force right now, middle of the season, but we now have Leagues Cup Wednesday night. Very interesting matchup. So Miami vs. Tigres. It's important to remember all these games are at the home field of MLS teams. Toluca, Orlando City, that'll be in Orlando, obviously. Sounders versus Puebla, that will be in Seattle. And then the Galaxy versus Pachuca. It's amazing that the Galaxy are still alive in this competition.

[B]

Your squad, bro, you guys got the cheat code. It's like a video game.

[C]

It's amazing. They're like the Spurs, Tottenham's Hotspurs from last year. All right, so Miami Tigres, to me, feels like the marquee matchup. Those.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Tigres is a historic club, an iconic club in Mexico, and it's going to be so fun. I. This. This assist from Messi. Like, if you haven't watched it, go watch it. I feel like we say this every week. I'm like, Go, YouTube. What Messi did this week. This guy, dude, he. It's on his right foot. He's got his back to goal. Suarez is running across the back of him. And as the ball gets played into him, he just like cushions it and flicks it with. With the inside of his right foot behind his left leg, which would be hard for someone who's right footed, probably impossible for someone who's right footed, but he's so dominantly left footed. And when you first watch it, you go, oh, he didn't mean to do that. And then you watch it again and you're like, he absolutely meant to do it. This guy's a joke, dude. I. There were some times, Tim, where a ball would come into me as a forward and I knew someone was running behind me and, like, they were running, let's say, from my right to my left, behind me, one of my striker attackers. And I would try to, like, flick it around the corner or something and, like, 1 out of 15 would come off and, like, Bruce would yell me.

[A]

What the hell are you doing?

[C]

Keep the ball. You know? But this guy does it in a game into Swartz. It's insane, man.

[B]

It's special. I saw it and I just thought, like, you, you. I find myself, and I probably said this on the podcast before, I find myself laughing at him when I watch the game. Because you're like, well, yeah, we all saw it, but it's impossible for you to have seen it. And then, bang, he just pulls something off. This is so stupid. It's crazy.

[C]

It's so ridiculous. Orlando, Toluca, I expect. I mean, Orlando are playing really well right now. I expect Orlando actually to win there. It's hard to imagine Sounders, they're in a good run of form. They smashed Crusoe in the. In the group stage. They won all three matches, so I think they beat Puebla.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, random anecdote, you know, when we're looking at this, when we're talking about the matchups, and obviously they're at the home of the. Of the MLS club. I was. And I just. I've just come this weekend from England in the Premier League games, and they were incredible atmospheres, and I thought, I'd love to be at that Seattle game. Like, they just put on. They put on such a show in Seattle. The Sounders fans forever and always have just been incredible. I mean, it's such an incredible atmosphere and place to play that. Yeah, on nights like this, they win. They win a lot of games. They understand big moments. It's a cool place.

[C]

It's fun. When you walk out at whatever it's called now at the Sounders Stadium, the walkout's so cool, and it feels like ceremonial, you know, like, it feels like you're, like, going to the Coliseum and, like, it's so. They do such a great job. Galaxy, Pachuca, man, I have no idea what to. I think they've given up seven goals in their last two league games. The Galaxy have.

[B]

Yeah. What's going on here?

[C]

I don't know. I mean, we don't need to dive.

[B]

Into it, but, like, jab you. But.

[C]

But it'll be interesting to see if they can. Can get through that. And I think they have. I think they have a good chance. I mean, they're playing at home. They're a better team than Pachuca. They really are overall. And so I think. I think they have a good chance. We will be following that and of course, follow up with the semis and finals as they come. All right, let's take a break. When we come back, we have. We have good guests these days, man. We have a former teammate of yours, a former Manchester United legend and superstar. Current Prem commentator Gary Neville will be joining us right here on Unfiltered Soccer with Landon and Tim, presented as always by Volkswagen. Stay right there.

[B]

The Unfiltered Soccer podcast is brought to you by Volkswagen. The presenting partner of U.S. soccer as.

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The U.S. gets ready to host the world for soccer's biggest moment, Volkswagen is helping people discover new turfs and new ways to play the beautiful game right here in the US from deaf and.

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Keep an eye out for that launching soon alongside the all new redesigned 2025 Tiguan. It's a beautiful car. We've even had one with us at our recent live show. Make sure to check it out in person and learn [e-mail] Drinking and driving.

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Is a decision that will change your whole world.

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[C]

All right, Timmy. This episode is brought to you by our friends at Virgin Atlantic.

[B]

Yeah, we're here at the Virgin Atlantic clubhouse at jfk. Honestly, it makes you rethink what an airport lounge can be.

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It's beautiful. It's what Virgin does. They've been bringing joy back to flying since day one.

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Yeah, I know. You travel back and forth across the pond all the time. The food's amazing, all the little amenities. They have their mile high tea. If you want tea at 35,000 Fe, you can have the jam, the Scones, the finger sandwiches, all the things that you loved about British times when you were playing.

[B]

Yeah, and speaking of the food, you can pre order your meal before you fly. Not just talking about the chicken or the fish. I had the Thai curry last time and it was absolutely amazing.

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Yeah, everything's been thought through. It's flying the way you wish it always was.

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So if you're headed to the UK soon, do it in style. After the pod, go to virginatlantic.com to learn more about their amazing experience.

[A]

Tim, have you gone quiet or am I not hearing you?

[B]

No, we're on, we're on. Listen, welcome back.

[A]

You're supposed to ask me questions. Guys, he's a podcast.

[B]

Listen, this is how it goes with Gary Neville. He is our star guest. A man who has won everything. Premier League, Champions League, FA cup, there's more things than we can even name. He is now the lead everything for Sky Sports over in the uk and he is a friend of ours and a friend of the show. So Gary, welcome.

[A]

Great to be here. Hi, both. Are you both good?

[B]

Amazing.

[C]

Great. Thanks, Gary. Great.

[A]

Good, Good.

[B]

Guys, I want to jump in obviously with Manchester United. I read a piece that you did, I think today, and we're in agreeance. I watched the game, we were both there at Old Trafford on Sunday and I just thought, it's not perfect, but boy, this is much, much better. This is much better on so many levels. And I thought Manchester United on the day were good and in all the lead major statistical categories, they dominated. Now, I know, I know people are going to say, not the one that counts, I get it. But they were so far away for so long that currently you feel really good about this Manchester United team.

[A]

Josh something. A week ago I had them in sort of sixth to eighth and that might still happen. They could even finish low. But I felt like I was watching a team on Sunday that can do better than that. And the reason I think that is I don't think they can. I don't think they can stop Arsenal, Liverpool and City finishing above them. But when I look at Chelsea being in Europe and the fact they're in the world club championship, Aston Villa and Newcastle at this moment in time have got challenges. Tottenham, I don't think, have sort of proven themselves. I don't think they're better than Manchester United, Tottenham. So I feel they've got a real chance. And I have to say that was the best performance I've seen against a top three team for a long time on Sunday. Look, the bars, the Bar has been set at an incredibly low place over the last sort of 10 years with United. So sometimes you're a bit conscious that you see one performance and you might be getting carried away. But I was talking when I was feeling that performance on Sunday, it's almost structurally, I felt they were better. And I think performance matters. You know, when they were winning sometimes these games in the last few years, they were playing smash and grab, defending deep counterattack, win the game one nil, two one, and we win that game. But you really knew deep down that's the only way United could win that game. Whereas if they carry on playing like this did on Sunday, I think they'll win a lot of football matches.

[B]

Yeah, I agree with that. And, and guys, something that was interesting, you always touch on this and it's hard for people to. On the outside to understand. So if you could give our listeners a sense of place. You often talk about because you've, You're. You're part of the fabric At Old Trafford, United fans always back their team. The people say that a lot. And they say, well, what does that mean after the game they lost one nil. I mean, the ovation that that United team got walking off the field and then subsequently for minutes after was special. At United, they. They support the team first and complain second. Can you talk to kind of that. That mind mindset?

[A]

Yeah, look, I think there are quite a few clubs, English football are similar, but United fans, particularly with the managers, I mean, Amari has struggled to win games since he's come in, but they sing his name constantly throughout the whole match. They believe in him. They, at the end of the game on Sunday, stayed, a lot of them stayed behind and clapped the team and sort of supported them. The one thing I think with United fans, Tim, and you know this as well, I think they can win, they can draw and they can lose, but they can't be bored. And I actually, interestingly saw Amarim the other day say after the game that, you know, it wasn't boring. And I'm not quite sure whether that's an achievement, but he's at Manchester United. It is important that they can't be bored. And I think Cunha and then Burma on Sunday day, I think did some things that really give them confidence and the fans confidence. Look, we might be looking stupid next weekend. They might get beat by Fulham and Burnley the week after. They might obviously slip up and we might be sat here thinking we got it wrong. And I could be sat here with egg on my face thinking that Was just stupid. Same old United. They raised the game against the top team. Arsenal weren't at the best. They got beat and yet they can't beat the lower teams that to be fair they can't get up for. But I think that they are very loyal and I think if they can keep Shaw De Lit Maguire Euro fit and Burmo Cunha Mount and Sesko fit most of the time and then in midfield Bruno fit they've got a chance I think of finishing in the top five because I think it's a bit of a transition year for a couple of those teams that I've mentioned before like Villa, Newcastle Tottenham are not quite at it either.

[B]

Yeah, I want to just transition a little bit to Liverpool in an odd way. So Alexander Isak is A lot of rumors surrounding him and the possible link to Liverpool. I'm just curious. I sat in the dressing room with you and one thing I learned from you and some of the other guys that were in that dressroom at the time who were serial winners. There was only one way to handle yourself and that was the right way. How do you think the Alexander Isak rumor mill is gonna pan out? Is he gonna stay? Is he gonna go? And how has he handled himself?

[A]

Look, I think when I first came out of football pyrm and out of the united dressing room 15 years ago I would have been very blunt about Isaac's actions. I'd have said it's a disgrace. I'd have said that he's letting himself down, he's letting his family down, he's letting football down, he's letting Newcastle fans down. And I would have given him a very difficult time. I think as you get a little bit older and you recognize that football is a very cutthroat business. And clubs to be fair, you know they do what they want with players at times and treat them like pieces of meat. And the football player's career is only probably 10 to 12 years long. And they've got to try and maximize that career. Not just in money terms and financial terms but obviously in trophies. I've maybe got a little bit more sympathy in terms of players wanting to go and better themselves and go and play for clubs that they can win trophies at and earn more money. And you've got to say Liverpool is one of the great clubs in the world. And to get. He may have to be a of bad employee shall we say for. For the next few weeks to get what he wants. You know, if he'd have carried on training, carried on playing and not agitated. Would Newcastle have sold and they'd have probably said no, he's been okay, let's keep him. I think he may feel that he's probably had to do what he needed to do to get where he wants to. But this part of me hates. Yeah you know instinctively we know we do our jobs properly. We get up in the morning. We're proud to basically sort of go and represent ourselves. We're paid in our contracts assigned. You stand by that and you should honor it. However, football is a cutthroat business that to be fair sometimes isn't friendly to players.

[B]

Well said. One. One word answer. Is he wearing Liverpool red this season?

[A]

I think he's wearing Liverpool. I think that Monday Night Football next week is obviously Newcastle versus Liverpool. I think they're waiting for that game to finish and I think they'll do the business later on that week.

[C]

Gary, can you just. For people who don't understand this on a deep level. So what exactly is happening behind the scenes now? Is he. Is he just not. Is he not showing up to training? Is he showing up and being annoying? Are they putting him with the reserves? Is his agent in his ear? Are people. Can you just walk? I think people find that interesting to know how that process works.

[A]

He's actually going to step further than that. Landon. What apparently he's done. He's not turning up for training. But he's also said irrespective of whatever happens in the window if Newcastle don't sell him he's not wearing a Newcastle United shirt ever again. He's acted down tools now. I've seen players agitate for leaves. I think a couple did it at United over the years and you know they. Sometimes you'll have seen it you guys. Where player wants to leave and he'll get his agent to put some statements out and he'll maybe be a little bit disruptive and he'll not maybe he'll throw an injury in and say his back hurts. You know a part of the body that you can't really sort of spot whether it is hurting or not. But I've never seen and look you might remind me of someone. I've never seen a player of this prominence down tools and say that they're not playing for their football club again and they're not turning up to do their job. And he's I think categorically told them he's never playing for the club again irrespective of whatever they do.

[B]

Well it's so I'm just. I'm just jumping off the back of it. It's so interesting, our industry guys, because it's a great question from Landon. These players are assets and that's what people forget because if my dad said, don't like my wages, I'm not coming to work. They go, well, brilliant. Chuck off, we'll see you later. Because they're not asset, but these players are assets and people forget that.

[C]

Yeah. Guys, what are your first impressions on the other side of the field with Arsenal? It wasn't a great performance, but obviously they've learned how to win games like that.

[A]

Yeah, there's a lot to admire about Arsenal, if you remember that period where we were all criticizing them a good few years back when they were quite flimsy and they concede goals and they sort of give give leads away. I think now probably the only team that I can think of in the lead the league and one of actually the very few and rare teams I think in world football that really you can trust when they go a goal up. It's an old principle of teams that maybe 15, 20 years ago they could defend leads and they could be really focused and concentrated on the defensive side of the game. They like a little bit of a throwback to an old Italian team at times, the way they're long throws, set pieces, compact, don't give a lot of space away. They've got the dark arts of the game where the managers sort of trying to waste time and the players are going down, feigning injury. They've got a bit of that going on. So the wise they're cute. The big question is, and Cara actually said something actually interesting yesterday. He said, do they remind him of that Rafa Benitez Liverpool team that had those quality, that had those qualities, but they didn't have the star quality up front and the flare to be able to score the goals to win a league over a 38 game season. And it started to play on my mind a little bit because I've gone for Arsenal again this year. I've gone for them the last three years and they finished second and I've gone for them again this year just because the fear of missing out. If I didn't go for them and they won it, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself. But there's part of me looks at them and think, Martinelli looks like he's dipped a little bit. Odegaard, he's a good player, but is he going to score the goals that they need? Joker as actually, I think he'll do okay. But is he going to score 20 goals? And Saka's obviously got to stay fit. So there are question marks up front, up top about them and that's the big question. Can they get the goals and can they be expansive enough to win games and basically do what I think City and Liverpool will do, which is go and outscore teams at times?

[C]

All right, let's move on to a club you probably don't care anything about, but your brother certainly did. Everton, a club that Timmy and I played for for a long time. The grealish move, obviously on the tip of everyone's tongue. Your thoughts on, on the move and can he get himself back into, I guess, the graces of Tuchel and and have a chance now to play in the World cup next summer?

[A]

I hope so because I like Jack and actually like Everton from a point of view. It's been painful watching him at times in the last 10 or 12 years. When you think about the fact of this great football club and fighting relegation for, for the last few years. I thought they were really poor last night and they were really basic and that was the word I used to describe them on television. Basic, whereby there wasn't really a lot of anything. I mean, yeah, they've got a couple of defenders that'll throw their head at it and put their bodies on the line, but they lacked a lot of flair. And Jack came on for about 25 minutes. He didn't get too much involvement in the game. Look, my concern is that he's going to end up from going from a treble winning Manchester City team, playing with Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden hurling Haaland and Rodri and he's now going to go into a team that's got obviously inferior players around him and is he going to become disillusioned with it and feel that they're not up to the standard of him? So I think he's going to have to show patience. I think he's going to have to show leadership. When you think about when Cristiano Ronaldo came back to United and it's quite clear he became frustrated playing with a player that whereby wasn't at the standard he'd been used to at Real Madrid and the other clubs he played at and United previously, I wonder whether Jack, you know, is he going to be a shining light and a beacon in that Everton team or is he going to become frustrated, a little bit snappy, someone who basically gets, you know, booked quite regularly because he's not quite getting the service that he's Used to. And playing with the players that he's used to. So I hope it's the former. I think if you can score 10 or 12 goals for them, win a lot of free kicks for them, get those free kicks delivered into the box. Because Everton are good at set pieces. Pieces. But Everton have got a lot of work to do. And David Moyes, and I was looking at him last night, he needs four or five players coming in in this next couple of weeks. And I think he almost said as much on the television.

[B]

Yeah. And he seemed frustrated in the summer series as well, just in regards to the fact that they, you know, the club had been mismanaged for so long that 12 players are out of contract. And you, you know, it's easy to get rid of 12 players. It's hard to bring 12 players in, so they definitely need more players. Tottenham is a team that you have been on record saying, like, you enjoy watching them and they're run in a pretty decent way in terms of how the stadium is structured and so forth. Just kind of curious, your thoughts as they transition from what was a weird and wild Premier League season to, you know, winning a European trophy, the sacking of Ange Postecoglou and then bringing in Thomas Frank. Like, where do you stand on Tottenham as a whole?

[A]

I mean, the reason I said that I like watching them, Tim, was because, I don't know if he said, because I'm getting older. Maybe the last two or three, maybe the last two or three years. You know, I value every football match that I go and watch, and I love being in the stadiums, but I've seen quite a bit of formulaic football. You know, this idea of recycling the ball, always not taking risks, wide players becoming a little bit rigid and not, you know, going and dribbling and attacking defenders and passing it back and, you know, the idea of being overcoached, I think it's become a little bit of a thing. And I think in this last few months, I'm seeing it change a little bit. I think that I feel like the game's changing. It's become a little bit more instinctive and sort of a bit more spontaneity. And the thing about Postecoglou's Tottenham, I mean, there were things that obviously you could criticize heavily about them defensively and some of the things that they would do on a football pitch, you go, what are you doing? How are you leaving yourself so open? But every time I watched them play, I enjoyed the game. And that counts for a lot. I do Think it counts as something. Maybe it is, as we're getting older. You know, you talk about 442 a lot. You talk about defensive resilience, you talk about compactness and shape, but what about expression and risk? And I played under a manager, Tim, you'll know this, that our manager talked constantly about expression and risk and going to win games. And every time you made a substitution, it felt like it was a positive one. So that's coming back into me a little bit about, you know, this last few years. And I've seen the game become methodical and I've not liked parts of it, that when I watch a Tottenham team, and I think even Thomas Frank's last couple of weeks have been interesting. They played five at the back against psg, which I think was obviously what he did at Brentford, but then they went with 4, 4 at the back against Burnley, and it was a lot more attacking. Jamie Carragher did a really good piece on it last night. And if they're pragmatic in big games against good opposition, but they're expressive against the teams that you would expect them to be, I think I'm fine with that. You know, we've been told over this last, all conditioned over this last 10, 12 years that these coaches now have to have a Plan A, they have to have a philosophy.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But whatever happened to adapting to what the needs of the game are and the opponent that you're playing against, that's what ultimately happened. In our day, if we were playing away at Everton, we knew we had to compete physically with Duncan Ferguson and Tim Cahill, because if we didn't deal with those crosses into the box, we were dead. So he would play bigger fullbacks. He might play John o' Shea at left back instead of Patrice Evra. He might play, you know, Nikki, but in midfield instead of Paul Scholes, and go more physical. That we adapted to the conditions of the opposition and Goodison park and what the challenges of Goodison park were. It's almost become like a thing now whereby you do Plan A and if Plan A doesn't work, you have to try and do Plan A better, which is mad. I mean, why can't you be a bit more direct? Why can't you counterattack? Why can't you sit a bit deeper? Why can't you press at certain points? So I think Tottenham, to be fair to them, they thrill. I think they look like they're going to have a good balance this season. They've got a good manager.

[B]

Yeah. I think the caveat, it's an interesting point. It's one we talk about quite a lot on NBC. And here my question for Thomas Frank is. Everything you said is spot on. He did such a brilliant job at Brentford getting them into the Premier League and solidifying them. And the way he solidified them, Gaz, was he hand picked games. He said, we are not going to be in this game, okay? So we're going to play five at the back and this is a game next week that we think we can get at them. So we'll go to four in the back. I don't disagree with it. I like it. My question to Thomas Frank would be, you're now at a big club, right? So you're no longer at, you're no longer at a Brentford. Does that work? You know, will that work on a weekly basis or do they need to get to a point where they are on the front foot constantly? So it's an interesting balance.

[A]

Yeah, it's a good point, Tim. But I think, I just think back when we used to play against Arsenal with the, you know, Henry Perez and all those great players, they were a better football, they were a better football team than us. And we would sit behind the ball very deep, play Darren Fletcher in a midfield three. We would pack midfield and particularly that right hand side where they had those Henri Perez and Ashley Cole or whoever else it was. So I don't think fans mind in certain matches sitting deeper and being more pragmatic and going on the counter attack. I agree with you. You couldn't do it every single week at Tottenham. If they were playing against Burnley or they were playing against Sunderland and they played like that, they would get criticised. So I think this idea of sort of interchanging with this sort of idea of how he plays as the big teams and the good teams versus the sort of teams that are a bit more sort of beatable. I think Tottenham fans will be okay with it as long as they see some good goals and some good and good victories. Basically.

[C]

Well, we've seen, yeah, just to dive in a little bit deep. We've seen Arsenal do it too. Right. And they did it on the weekend. And so do you think, guys, do you think the pendulum then is swinging back a little bit? Because you're right. For, for a long time it went to game model, attacking, how we build, how we do. And now it feels like maybe some of the big teams are saying, okay, let's swing the pendulum back a little bit.

[A]

Yeah, absolutely. If you look at the, if you look at the City back four not necessarily at the weekend because I think at the weekend they had obviously Rico Lewis playing. But over the last few years they've had Guardiola left back who's effectively a left footed center back. They've had obviously the two center backs and that could be Ake and Stones or Diaz and Stones. And at right back they've had Kyle Walker. If you look at Arsenal's back four at the weekend they had Ben White who's been a centre back. They had Califiori who's like a left centre back, he's 6 foot 2 and they had Gabriel and Saliba. So you think about these teams now going with more of a physical back fours. Liverpool slightly different obviously they've gone for Frimpong and Kirkjes obviously at fullbacks which is a little bit more traditional in terms of them being smaller. But Liverpool are electric, they take risks. They definitely aren't formulaic. Arsenal I think have changed the way in which they play. Manchester City are nowhere near as tick attacker as they were four, five, six years ago. When you think about that team that they had with David Silva, De Bruyne, Fernandinho and then they had Sterling, Sane and Aguero. They were all very small diminutive players who were playing basically perfect football. It was amazing to watch. You watch City now with Haaland, with Rinders, with Rodri that you know when they, when he plays and the others that they're actual giants. So I do think the games change. Forest obviously played differently last season. I think that Manchester United have gotten rid of Sancho Anthony. Oh, who's the other one? Sancho Anthony and Garnacho three jinkers, I call them jinkers. Like small players who do this sort of little thing. They've now gone for Embermo, Cunha and Sesko who were, you know, Cunha's 6 foot 1, Sesko 6 foot 5 and Burma's powerful and strong. They've gone for a profile of a player that's more physical. So I do think there is a change happening. The teams that are coming up from the championship, Sunderland and Leeds have gone for real physical players. I think leeds have signed seven players or six players that are over 6 foot 1, 6 foot 2. So I feel like the game's changing again and going a little bit back to how it was and to me that's the Premier League. Of course we want technical football but we want a little bit of that excitement and that thrill and that physicality.

[B]

Well, I mean the fact of the matter is The Premier League has always been robust and even when it got away from that a little bit, you still had to figure out a way to compete. Just curious. You don't have to give me a take on all of them, but in terms of, like, who you're expecting a big year from, I'm thinking of Joker as Reinders, Shesco, Ekatike at Liverpool. Of the big players that have been signed into the league, who are you expecting the most from?

[A]

I mean, the one that to be fair looks like he's closest to world class and got the potential is Wirtz. I think he's the one that really sort of stands out. The other ones that you mentioned that the big clubs have signed in Burma, Kunya, Sesko, Yokerez, Dilap and Joao Pedro at Chelsea and Estevao, they've all got Ekatike probably as well. They've all got, I think, I mean, some of them I think will emerge as being top class players. Which of those do we'll find out because they've all got to make that next jump. They're all being asked a big question this season. Can you go and play at a top four club, a top five club with high expectation where you will be expected to score goals every single week, you will be expected to win games every single week and if you don't, it's a crisis. So can they handle that pressure? I mean, Tim, you've been at Old Trafford. You know what it's like if Sesko and Burma and Cuny don't score in the first 10 games, if one of the, you know, the pressure builds and all of a sudden you've got that confidence, those doubts starting to build up, the media start to ask questions. So it's really important for these players to settle in. Ekatike settled in on Friday night. Anfield, you were there, had a really good night. Yokerez and Sesko cesco only played 20 minutes, but Yokerez yesterday got a bit of criticism. I felt for his performance. I don't know what you thought, Tim. I thought he looked a handful to me. I thought he looked like he made some decent runs.

[B]

I'm on board with you. I thought he was. He's different. He's different. He's a, you know, when have we known an Arsenal striker to come short, dig his heels in and hold the ball up? It's great. And ultimately, yeah, he took some stick. But I'm with you. I think he put a good shift in. You know, Mikel Arteta came to the desk after the Game said, look, we're still trying to get him to understand how to press in the way we want to press. Right. And so you probably saw this as well. Jocher has spent half the game looking over at the touchline, trying to figure out what, you know. So, like, once he gets in a flow the way Arsenal play, as you know, the ball's going to get served on a silver platter in and around the penalty area. All he's going to have to do is stick it in the back of net. So, yeah, I quite like the sign.

[A]

Yeah, me too. And I thought the lit, to be fair, did a really good job on him. I think he had one of his best games tonight. He was really physical, so. And United played well. He sort of really did push up the pitch. And Shaw, Luke Shaw is an excellent, excellent defender. He's obviously got the massive issue with injury, but he is a top player. Luke Shaw, he's one of the very best left backs that you could see when he's actually fully fit. And he's flying.

[C]

Guys, just a few more and we really appreciate you taking time. You're. I think I thought Tim was the busiest man in the world, but I think you might be. Now, did. Did people in England, just from a broader perspective, how much did people in England pay attention to the club World cup this summer? Just curious.

[A]

You know something? I always think we're a country that's skeptical, Landon, in terms of we only if it's not got heritage or it's not got tradition, we tend to sort of say, oh, it's. What is this? What's this new competition? And we always come late to the party. I actually think this competition will take off. I think that it was good that an English club won it. I think that really sort of heightened interest in it. I think the prize money makes a big difference in respect to the seriousness of the competition. It's not just nostalgia and sort of what would be ceremony that you're playing for. You're playing for real prize money, which means that teams are going to pay a lot of attention to try and get in that competition. I think that teams should compete against each other from all different parts of the world. So there needs to be. There's been many different iterations of this trophy over the last 20 years. Years where they've tried to sort of get the format right. I had to think it was the best one and I think they'll stick with it and I think it'll become an excellent tournament. And, you know, it was slow pick up, being honest with you, but I think that when people realize that you saw the likes of PSG and Chelsea and you saw, you know, great games towards the end, I think people realized this could be a competition that's here to stay.

[B]

Yeah, guys, the last one from me, we talk about on this show constantly because our listeners, they love the US Men's national team. They're so passionate and obviously the ins and outs and are our guys playing and are they fit and will they make the World cup team? That is on the tip of everybody's tongue on this show. Just curious because you've also lived it in the Premier League going to World Cups. What's it going to be like for players this year who are in and around the squad, on the fringes with the media, with the hype, with the scrutiny that goes into every single match? Just talk to us what that. What is that like for England international going into a World cup year?

[A]

Yeah, it gets really serious, I think after Christmas, probably January, February, when you're really looking at sort of what would be that. The. The selection of the squad, the big decisions, it becomes massive. And I think the World cup next year, particularly with it being in the U.S. predominantly, I think it's. It's. Honestly, it's enormous for the players, for English players. I always remember I was quite nervous when I made my debut for Manchester United. But when I made my debut in the World cup in 1998 over in France, it was another level of nerves that I experienced. This idea of this tournament that you've grown up watching. The 1982 World Cup, 86, 90 with Gaza and Italy. These are some of the greatest moments of my life. That. My first ever World cup match, by the way, just as a sort of a. A bit of interest was actually the USA versus Columbia in the Rose bowl in the 1994 World Cup.

[B]

Wow.

[C]

Wow.

[B]

Were you there? Were you watching it?

[A]

I was there.

[B]

No way.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

It was. Honestly, it was the hottest I've ever been in my life. Has the Rose bowl got a roof on it yet, by the way?

[B]

Because I can't get a roof yet. I was at that game as well, by the way. I was at that game.

[A]

Wow. Yeah, I was at that game, Tim. And if you remember the tragedy that came out of that game, obviously, with the Columbia player after. But yeah, that was my first ever World cup game. I went with David Beckham and Keith Gillespie.

[B]

That's amazing.

[A]

And we went to the Rose, but. And my brother and Phil was there with me and we went to The Rose bowl to watch USA versus Columbia. And I remember after half an hour, I had to go. I had to go back outside to the concourse to have an ice cream because I was that warm.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

But it was a great experience. It's going to be incredible next year for the English players. You know, there is nothing like the scrutiny of a World Cup. And playing for England in a World cup for an English football player, it's enormous.

[B]

Amen to that. And listen for our. For our. For our listeners who are concerned, Gary will be in a very air conditioned, gorgeous box at the next World cup this summer. So he'll be fine.

[C]

No doubt about that. All right, Gary? Yeah, you will be. We know you will. Well, look, we. We really appreciate it. Thank you for taking the time. Hopefully we can have you back on again, especially as we get nearer to the World cup next summer.

[A]

No problem. Anytime. Yeah, no problem at all.

[B]

Thank you.

[C]

Cheers, Gary.

[B]

It's time for the unfiltered refresh sponsored by Coors Light. Choose Chill. Get Coors Light delivered. Go to coorslight.com USLNT all right, LD, who do we think chose Chill from the opening weekend of the Premier League? I have my thoughts. What do you think?

[C]

Yeah, there are some great candidates, but I think we're going to agree. I mean, Erling Holland was great. The assist from Messi you said to John Tajani Reinders was excellent. But I think Richarlison getting the Thomas Frank era off in the right way. Two goals. Two great goals. And now he's kind of making the case, like, I can be the guy.

[B]

100%. Yeah, 100%. He listen, he plays with a scowl on his face. And one of the reasons I'm giving him the chill is because the goals were amazing. But he actually smiled for the first time in like three years.

[C]

That makes him chill.

[B]

It makes him super chill. So, Charleston, here's to you, my friend.

[C]

Cheers. To you. All right, let's take a break. When we come back, we will get into all of your Questions in the AT&T fan connection, which are right here on Unfiltered Soccer with Landon and Tim, as always, presented by Voltage Volkswagen. Stay right there. All right, Timmy. It's summertime. You remember these days, kids are home. It's exhausting. You're babysitting all day. I know you don't think it's babysitting. It is babysitting. In order to choose chill, I'm on the golf course, man. My wife knows when it's time to get away and choose chill. See you later. I'm gonna go play golf.

[B]

I gotta be honest. I choose chill a lot in the summer. Going to concerts, family barbecues. I spend a ton of time on the beach. I reach into the cooler, get a Coors Light. For me, I choose chill very, very often.

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There's nothing better than feeling like someone has your back and that things are going to get done without you even having to ask.

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Like fans who start to sing and chant at the exact moment their team needs to rally.

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A coach who can change strategies at halftime to help their team win.

[C]

A keeper you know is defending your goal.

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[B]

It's time for the Fan connection, presented by AT&T. Every week, we invite you, the listener, to connect with us by submitting your questions. The best way to grow the game of soccer in the US is to keep asking questions and keep talking about the sport we all love. At, AT and T. Connecting changes everything. And on uslnt, our connections with you will help grow the game. Welcome back into the AT&T fan Connection. I was gonna say this is our first time doing it together, but we did it at the live show.

[C]

Yeah, we did. We did.

[B]

It's fun. And we also get to see Jordan. Jordan, how are you?

[D]

I'm great, guys. How are you?

[C]

Hi, J.R. amazing. Hello.

[B]

What shirt are you wearing? Talk us through this. You always have some wild shirts.

[D]

I am wearing a Flower City 1872 shirt from Rochester, New York. One of our listeners sent some shirts. I think you guys got the Flower City Union shirts and I got the women. I specifically asked for the women's team shirt, but I thought it's cool. They're called 1872 because Susan B. Anthony, suffragette who helped get women the right to vote, she was arrested in her native city of Rochester in 1872 for trying to vote at a time when it was still illegal. And I think that's pretty cool.

[B]

Love that homage.

[D]

Yeah, that's very cool.

[B]

Always.

[D]

How are you guys? You're there together. I wish I was there.

[B]

I know, I know. We wish you were here, but you're not, so, I mean, unfortunate. What do you got for us? Heat or what?

[D]

I got a couple of things. Let's start, actually, someone else who has offered to send us some shirts for a team called Firelands United Football Club in Sandusky, Ohio. I don't know where that is. I'm gonna have to get.

[B]

What's the name of it?

[D]

Firelands United Football Club.

[C]

Fire.

[D]

They're a grassroots team. Yeah.

[C]

Where is that?

[D]

Sandusky, Ohio.

[B]

All right. We're.

[C]

Wow.

[B]

We show love no matter what.

[D]

Firelands send us. Send us the shirts and we'll wear them.

[C]

Jordan just uses this segment to get shirts.

[B]

This is her part. It's literally what she says, which is amazing.

[D]

I'm here. Here for the. Here for the kids. So this is Andrew, who sent this question in via email and who is involved with Ireland's United Football Club there. I've gotten it in like three times, so I'm good now.

[B]

He.

[D]

His question is, would a structure similar to that of Major League Baseball work for soccer here in the US Every major league team has several minor league teams affiliated with them. These teams are used to train and develop players for the majors. Would a structure like this be beneficial for the growth of the game and player development? I know MLS has somewhat attempted to do this with MLS Next Pro, but it doesn't seem to be the best or most exciting structure. And there are tons of grassroots programs across the country, so why not partner with those?

[C]

It's actually a great question. It's a really good question. So in the past, MLS tried to do some version of that with usl, and so you would have in this. It feels like so long ago, but it wasn't that long ago where an MLS club would have literally an affiliation with the USL club. And you could send. All your players would go there like Houston had it with Rio Grande Valley with rgv, and they would send players there either for a few games or for a half season or for a full season. And it was actually a great development tool because RGV might travel to San Diego loyal and play in front of 5,000 people. And it felt like it was still like a real game. I don't know. I think the divide now between MLS and USL is too big in just in the way they view each other. I think they. They went away from that. They were, you know, they were more collaborative in the past, and now they're more competitive. And so I think unless MLS itself creates some of these, which, you know, the Galaxy have Ventura County. So it's some version of that. The problem is, is from a development perspective, MLS Next Pro, the games aren't real. They're just not. A lot of the games had been played in the past on like a Sunday morning. Now they're trying to play them at night, but there's very few games where you go into and it's a real game. So you don't get real development. But I'm not saying it wouldn't work.

[B]

Yeah, no. It comes back down to money. And I hate. I hate that I have to say that all the time. But like, I think about. I think about the structure of Minor League Baseball, which is a good one, but everything is. Everything is funded and funneled from the Major League Baseball, from the MLB team. And the same goes when you talk about youth systems and academies throughout Europe, whether it be England or Germany or wherever else that's funded by the top club. And so there has to be an investment like Bayern Munich invests in their 18s, 19s, under 12s. They fully, heavily invest in that. And so, you know, I, I would say the size of our country is a challenge. It's not for, for baseball. So you know, that can be overcome. But I still think it's about money and return on investment and, and, and we don't quite have that yet.

[C]

And you know, the, the Gap JR2, the Gap that for a long time everyone in US Soccer and, and I think still worries about is sort of like that 16 year old to basically 19 year old, 20 year old where you're, you're now a pro but you're not ready to play at the top. So where do you play where you're getting really good competition and really high level games. And from when I was in Germany, if you didn't. I didn't play for Leverkusen's first team. So I'd play for their reserve team and the reserve team, we'd go away to some of these teams in the third league or the fourth league where there were 10,000 people and you were playing against men who were real pros. Real pros. And that's, you know, that's what USL has now. Those games are real games. In a lot of instances people are playing for their livelihood. And I think MLS is struggling now to try to figure out how do they bridge that gap because some very few kids are going to play at 18, 19. And so how do you fill that gap?

[B]

You made a good point. Because I also think like some of these jr some of these partnerships are just partnerships in name only, right? It's like they don't own the club. So we're going to send five players to you and we're going to demand that you play them. And someone within the organization who owns the organization and maybe rightfully so is going to go, I don't really like you. The partnership sounded great in the spring when we signed the contract. But I don't really like you dictating to me who's going to play for.

[C]

My team or the coach of that go, I'm not playing him. Right. He's not good enough to play. So it is a challenge. It's a, it's a really good question.

[D]

Here is a question from Brian via email, who says greetings from Alaska. Love that he's listening to us in Alaska. He asks, will Luka Modric be good for Christian Pulisic?

[C]

First of all, can we do a live show in Alaska rather?

[B]

You would love that. I'm not sure I would.

[C]

How far is a flight from New York to Alaska, by the way? That's got to be.

[D]

How long can we go in the summer? Because I do not want to go when it's dark all year round.

[C]

I can't imagine a scenario where Luka Modric is bad for anybody.

[B]

Sure.

[C]

But in particular with Christian, I think it's going to be fantastic. They, they share that, obviously, that relative Croatian heritage. Obviously Luka is much more Croatian, I think, than Christian would admit even to being. But that's a fantastic mentor to have. I can't imagine many guys in the world who would be better for an American in their prime than Luka Modric. So I think it'd be fantastic.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I share that. I think they're not the same player, but still a player who kind of skates across the grass and ball, dominant, looks to go get, get on the ball, make the game, you know, has played at the highest level, won everything there is to win for the most part. That's a, that's a big thing.

[C]

And probably as much off the field as. As on the field. Sure.

[B]

And, and, and, and look, these men, these people who are meant to come in and give advice or mentor, they're only as good as the person receiving the information. If, if Christian, and I don't have any reason to think he isn't, if he's open to receiving that advice and that guidance, it'll pay dividends for sure.

[C]

Yeah, of course he is.

[B]

Yeah.

[D]

Here is a question via YouTube from another person named Andrew. What is the language dynamic in clubs where so many players are from different countries and speak different languages?

[C]

Such a great question.

[D]

How does the quote unquote, common ground for language get established if it does? And what is that communication dynamic like playing with players who don't speak your language?

[B]

It's amazing.

[C]

That's a great question. So there's levels to this. So if, for instance, I went to Leverkusen at 16, I didn't speak a word of German, so it was incumbent upon me to learn German. Right. The coach was German. 99% of the players I played with on the youth teams were German. And so I just had to learn German. The bigger question, and I don't know how much insight you have to this is if you go to, like, well, you go to Saudi Arabia and you've got Dutch coaches there and there's a bunch of Brazilians and there's a bunch of, you know, Norwegians. And how, what happens? How does that work? And half the team are Saudi and speak Arabic. I actually don't have the perfect answer because when I was in England, like, you just learn English, you're there. But in some countries it's such a mix and I wouldn't even know where to start.

[B]

Yeah, I've never had a coach that where we needed a translator. And people think that's funny. They do so in certain clubs, depending on where they recruit from. Let's say you had an English manager. Wolves is a good example. Right. If you had an English manager and you recruited a lot of players from Portugal, they might actually have someone on staff who is an interpreter. And that interpreter is just everywhere. He sits with the players. When the team huddles up on the pitch, he's around them. What I would say is in the dressroom, and Landon made a really good point. When you're a younger player and you're going into a club as a young reserve, it's really hard. It is far easier when you're an established pro and you come into a first team dress room. Because in a first team dressroom, everybody just wants to get their arm around you. Everybody's gonna help you in some sort of way. They're not gonna like test you and go, this kid can't hack it. And so like in the dressroom, let's say at Everton, which again, some of this you witnessed, you have the English speaking players. Okay, no problem. So you come in and you'd have Sylvan Distin, who's a French, French speaking player but speaks really good English. So Marwan Fellaini, who only speaks French, comes in and all the French speaking players will be together and one of them will be the alpha, one of them will be the translator. And they'll say, this is what he wants. And so it kind of becomes this brotherhood. I mean, the funniest one for me was we had the Nigerians, right? So we had Yakubu an Yobo. And then Steven Pienaar came into the mix. All these guys I love, Stephen Pienaar, South African. And they'd be speaking this language. And I would say to them, seriously, guys, what language are you speaking? Because if I'm, if I'm not mistaken, three of you from Nigeria and Stephen's from South Africa. Stephen doesn't speak Nigerian. And they told me there was just like this made up, kind of dialect that they all kind of understood. It was amazing. And so really good question. It's a hard dynamic when you don't know the language.

[C]

And I will tell you, like, as a young player in Germany, my coach, God, I loved him, Peter Herman, he, on Friday before the Saturday game, after training, we'd sit in the locker room and he'd do, I swear to God, he'd do like a 45 minute philosophical speech in German. And you can imagine. And I was sitting there like, oh my God, I've didn't understand a word and just sat there. The players who spoke German hated it. Yeah, Imagine me sitting there. Oh, it was miserable. And by the way, players are very clever with, like, I don't know if Fellaini ever learned English really, but like, he should have learned enough English. But they're very clever with, you know, deciding how much they actually want to learn and not learn.

[B]

It's funny you say that because I don't know how, I don't know the ages or if they make a senior player do this, but I know in Holland, from what I've heard, they make you. No, like, nobody wants to take English or Dutch lessons or whatever. Right. I think Josie was telling us this Josie outdoor. And he said, everybody hates going to their Dutch tutor. Like, it's like one more thing on my plate. And so the team rule was, you can stop going to Dutch lessons when you give your first interview in Dutch.

[C]

Oh, that's brilliant.

[B]

So basically expedited. You go into your Dutch lessons so that you can give your first and.

[C]

You try to speak. That's part of it, is just putting yourself out there. Yeah, that's great. That's a great question.

[D]

I mean, honestly, guys, if I was working underneath Moyes, I would need a translator in English.

[C]

I told you some of those first meetings, I had no clue what he was saying.

[B]

0 didn't know what Moise was saying. You go in the city of Liverpool, you need a translator. For people who speak Scouse. It's the whole God bless me.

[D]

Okay, last question. This one's from DJ via email. I have a question for both of you. Looking back at your past World cup experiences, would you say losing to Ghana in 2010 was the biggest World cup disappointment due to the way the bracket lined up? I can't see the US ever getting a knockout draw like we did in 2010.

[C]

I wonder what was the. What was the bracket after that?

[D]

Maybe like, like, are you saying in 2014.

[C]

Oh, just getting Ghana in a knockout.

[D]

Yeah, like having the bracket Work out in. In, I guess what he's insinuating.

[C]

I mean, in O2, we had Mexico and like, that was a dream because Mexico was a good team, but we knew them, we weren't scared of them.

[B]

Yeah, there's going to be a time where it lines up again also. I mean, we won that group in 2010 as well. Right. And when you win a group, which is hard, you then are going to get maybe not a world power.

[C]

Right.

[B]

You know, and look, quite frankly, we can say how things lined up. And let's be brutally honest, it's not like we were favorites just because we won the group. Like, Ghana was a good team, very evenly matched. Like. Yeah. So, you know, I think we have to remember who we are and where we kind of sit in the football landscape.

[C]

I was with someone last night who was at U.S. soccer for forever, and we were at dinner and they were saying, talking about 20, 26, and we were talking about all the things, everything that went on this summer, Pochettino, whatever. And he said, it's going to come down to two games. Right. It's going to come down to we'll get out of our group, I think. And he's like, then you have a round of 32 game, either win or lose, and if you win it, it's going to come down to one more game. And that, like, everything is going to be judged.

[B]

Sure.

[C]

And he has such perspective because he's been in the sport. You know, he's working for somebody on TV in 86 in Mexico. Right. So, like, he's seen it forever and he's like. And it always does. I mean, the Algeria game came down to two minutes, not two games. Right. And so everything's going to be judged on that. And so it's important to keep that all into context because the bracket, how it all plays out, whatever, I mean, it does matter. But then it's coming down to, do we win that round of 32 game, do we run a round of 16 game, do we get to a quarterfinal?

[B]

We'll see such a stupid. So if we. I'm racking my brain. We won the group and I'm thinking. I'm thinking 2010, but we. We won the group and we had five points. Is that right?

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Anyway. Okay.

[C]

You know, just that game too, I was. I remember that. The Ghana game, I think it was three days later. I remember it came really fast. Yeah. And that was a weird thing too, with how it was set up, like, because we won, we played late, we were one of the later groups, we played three days. It was a little bit of a punishment too.

[B]

It's so interesting.

[D]

Anyway, sorry, now I'm like looking at how the whole thing.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

You had three days. Three days.

[C]

Three days, Right. Yeah.

[D]

Yeah. Cuz you were the first. You were like one of the first games in the round of 16.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

So who didn't go. Who didn't go through from your group? Yeah.

[C]

Slovenia. Slovenia and Algeria.

[B]

It's such a weird thing to be. To be on the cusp of winning your group or going out. That's just a strange.

[C]

I mean, that's the world.

[B]

Strange mix, though. Like normal. Going out and just getting through, I can understand. But going out and winning the group.

[C]

Are like both extremes because of how it played out.

[B]

Yeah, it's weird.

[D]

Yeah. And ironically, the other team to come out of your group, England, also didn't win their round of 16 game. Germany.

[B]

Ooh, yeah, that's tough.

[C]

Yikes.

[D]

Also just. Tim, I feel like you've mentioned this before, that one of the benefits of an expanded World cup is getting more great teams into the World Cup. But by the same token, there's also going to be some teams that are just getting through based on numbers. Right. So there's more opportunity for, like you said, great teams to make great appearances. But also there's always a chance that you're going to end up either in a group or, you know, with. With someone who's making it easier for you to move on.

[B]

We're going to have to. We're going to have to readjust the margins because I. And we'll get into this over the next year at nauseum. Someone mentioned to me who. Who is who I respect a ton in the U.S. soccer landscape. And, and, and they're saying, like, round of 16 is. Is success. And, and I said to them, but hang on a minute. Round of 16 is the old quarterfinal.

[C]

Correct.

[B]

So I'm like, correct. I don't think that's. I don't. I. I would give. I would think this team is successful even if they don't get to the round of 16 depending on. Because there's one more game.

[C]

Right.

[B]

So maybe, maybe they believe on the.

[C]

Inside, but if you. And look, we don't need to get into the weeds too much. But there are 12 teams who are seeded. The top nine teams in the world, plus the US, Canada, Mexico. So we're going to avoid the top nine teams in the world, and then you're going to get one of the next 12 best teams. And if it's the worst of those teams and then it goes down and down. So I mean getting out of a group is an absolute must and will be and it will happen. But then from there you're right. I mean it depends on who you get drawn against, whatever. But that is the old round of 16.

[B]

But that's the whole point about being the host is there's nine best teams in the world and I don't necessarily know, Mexico aside, but maybe in the same group like Mexico, US and Canada, they don't have any God given right to then go, oh, we're getting the second best if they play a team like if they play, let's say they play Nigeria, Canada or us. I'm not saying like, oh, this is a nailed on win.

[C]

No.

[B]

Right. Get what I'm saying? Just given.

[C]

Or you play Norway or. Yeah, no, I know that's true. Yeah.

[D]

Because you could play the 10th best team in the world.

[B]

Correct. Correct. Correct.

[C]

And may all of those terrible teams you talked about be in the US's group next summer.

[D]

Jordan. Yes, please. All right, that was great. Thanks, guys.

[C]

All right, Timmy, great to be here with you. Thanks for making the trip. You are the second busiest man in the world after Gary Neville. Thanks to Gary for being on the show. We appreciate all of you guys. We love doing this in person. It's been a lot of fun. As always, Please subscribe on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, anywhere you get your pods and follow all of our social media for more content.

[B]

Thank you Gary, so much. Appreciate it. Had a great time spending some time with you this weekend at the games over in the uk and the insight that you provide is second to none. So you are the busiest man in football, no doubt. Thanks to all of our listeners. Thank you to our presenting sponsor, VW, our Fan Connection sponsor AT&T NHTSA, our Crossroads sponsor, our unfiltered refresh sponsor, Coors Light and our newest sponsors, Cafe Bustelo and Virgin Atlantic. Have a great week. We'll be back on Tuesday, September 2nd with another edition of unfiltered soccer.