Latest / Into the Channel ⚽️ A Podcast Primarily About Women's Football / USWNT Olympic roster reaction and breakdown

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USWNT Olympic roster reaction and breakdown · Into the Channel ⚽️ A Podcast Primarily About Women's Football

0:03
Oh OK, welcome to Into the Channel Podcasts premier about
0:09
wins football. Before we hit the pitch.
0:10
If you enjoy the show or love wins football as much as your
0:13
boys do, what a day to come kick it with us.
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We do this every single week, sometimes twice a week.
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you like to watch or listen. Links to Twitter X Instagram,
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TikTok threads, all of our socials all available in the
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show notes of this episode. I am your host Dean and Suspedes
0:30
and as always I am joined by my Co host Mr. Grant Angle.
0:33
What is up man? I'm feeling fantastic, buddy.
0:36
It's a big day in the news. I'm just I'm, I'm ready to get
0:38
into it. Big day, as you alluded to,
0:41
very, very excited to get into it.
0:42
I think we're going to try to cover this pretty much from as
0:44
many angles as we can. Some ITC oldies, but goodies,
0:47
we'll dust some of those off. We've got some new, new stuff.
0:50
We're going to just new ways to kind of parse the 18 that we got
0:54
and do a little bit of a look ahead to next month's big
0:57
tournament in Paris. If only we had some sort of
1:00
tasty beverage that could just kind of grease the wheels a
1:03
little bit, scoot us into the next part of the show.
1:05
Wow, what an interesting thought.
1:07
That is my good man. I think it is time to get to the
1:10
football. Glad you're prepared as well.
1:12
It's a good sound nicely. Done to you as well, cheers.
1:17
Cheers to you Sir. Stock some football.
1:21
All right, where do you want to start?
1:22
Let's talk about the snubs. So I think there's a couple
1:26
names, maybe some surprise about not being included on the
1:28
roster. There was a big one for your
1:30
boys at the ITC. One Supernova 1, Lily Ohanis not
1:35
included in the final eighteen, not included in the set of
1:37
alternates. How'd you feel about that?
1:39
Not great buddy. I think she played her way from
1:42
her club form to even the the limited time that we saw with
1:46
her on the roster. A player who's capable of being
1:49
like a number six or a #8 or even maybe moving up and playing
1:53
kind of like a number 10 or you know, on the wing in the
1:55
midfield. Just a multi talented midfielder
1:58
like that who you know you can trust to oftentimes make good
2:02
decisions, especially when passing the ball and who has the
2:05
physicality to play some defense as she's shown in the Champions
2:09
League. I think that is a versatile
2:11
midfielder that you would want on your roster.
2:13
I honestly, I understand that she is a young player and that
2:17
she hasn't had a ton of run with this squad.
2:19
I think she's a worthy addition. I mean, seeing what she did in
2:23
that second Korea match after, you know, you were pining for,
2:27
can we get 15, Can we get 20 minutes for Lily?
2:29
And then she just detonates on that whole, that whole game.
2:33
It's not the most common occurrence. 20 minutes and
2:35
you're the player of the match and then also the story the next
2:38
day. And not because you're a
2:39
teenager, You're the story because you were the best, best
2:43
player on the field, the most impactful player on the field.
2:45
Definitely, definitely hurt. I think we'll get into it a
2:48
little bit later on the show what that means for the actual
2:51
football, because I think a lot of Woso Twitter is just sort of
2:54
like, oh, well, that would have been cool to kind of have the
2:57
Christian later on the dream team kind of feel to it.
2:59
But to me, this was not that. This is like a real footballer
3:02
who I wonder if her skill set will be missing a little bit in
3:08
this tournament. I, I hope not, but I kind of
3:10
feel like there is a world where we're sort of looking around.
3:14
I may be in the semifinals or in the final where we're like, I
3:17
wonder if Johannes would have made a, made a difference here
3:19
in this one. But again, we're going to have
3:21
to see what what it looks like when we get there.
3:23
Totally agree. So let's think about this
3:25
because you know, I think I've I've shared on this podcast, I
3:28
met Dino. We worked at a a start up
3:30
together, what like 10 a little more than 10 years ago.
3:33
Now know Dino personally as a as a talented marketing executive
3:37
and a business person. So let's think about this from
3:40
like an organizational decision here.
3:42
What's our like range of things that could have taken place
3:45
inside of US soccer when they're making this call?
3:49
So I think on the one extreme, it is possible that Johannes was
3:53
outright not selected that Emma Hayes and her decision makers
3:57
either decided it's not quite her time yet.
4:00
It could be because of, like we talked about, a lack of run with
4:02
the other players on the quad. It could be maybe they thought
4:06
the positional need was not there and they needed to fill
4:08
other spots. It could be that they just rated
4:11
19 field players 16 on the main roster and three alternates
4:15
ahead of her and thought that she was not one of those 19 best
4:18
field players to be on the squad.
4:21
Or you have the opposite end of the spectrum there, that maybe
4:24
Johannes had reasons to turn down an opportunity.
4:27
Perhaps Lily was not yet ready to commit to possibly cap tying
4:31
herself to the United States, so maybe she turned down an
4:33
invitation to be a part of that eighteen player roster.
4:37
Or maybe she was offered the opportunity to be an alternate
4:41
and she didn't think that would be the best fit for her
4:44
development. There are a range of things that
4:47
that could have happened when when this decision was made.
4:50
I'm glad you brought that up specifically.
4:51
So I did a little bit of reporting, reached out to
4:54
somebody in Lily's camp and got a little bit of Intel for you.
4:58
So I was able to confirm that Lily was selected as one of the
5:03
alternates but not picked for the 18 player roster.
5:08
When you hear that, there's obviously a decision to make.
5:11
I think we all know that Lily Johannes is as a non cap tied
5:15
player she is eligible to have the future of her international
5:19
football played either here for the States or for the
5:22
Netherlands. Now got another piece of pretty
5:27
tasty Intel here. So when asked if Lily would have
5:30
played had she been selected to the 18, the answer to that
5:34
question was maybe when asked. You know, with the Euro
5:36
qualifiers coming up, will Lily test the waters with the Dutch?
5:40
The answer to that also maybe. So think, reading between the
5:44
lines there, I think maybe there could have been potentially some
5:47
disappointment around not making the 18, especially after, you
5:52
know, that performance against South Korea and ultimately, you
5:54
know, her club form as well. Pretty much all year.
5:57
I don't think anybody that has watched all of these players
6:00
play in their domestic leagues in these big time tournaments or
6:03
in somebody's US WNT warmups would have, you know, blinked
6:06
twice at Lily making the squad based on what we saw.
6:09
So yeah, imagine there was some disappointment there.
6:11
I'm sure I know that your boys here at the ITC definitely
6:15
disappointed. And yeah, I think we just have
6:17
to kind of play the waiting game and see what it means for their
6:20
play on the field. Yeah, I mean, look at you.
6:23
You got sources, you got information.
6:26
As we've we've pointed out, the ITC is a journalistic
6:29
enterprise. I would not blame any player who
6:33
has the opportunity to look at two of the world's best programs
6:37
to try to make an informed decision unless they were blown
6:40
away by an opportunity. And I, I will say, let's take a
6:44
look at what Emma Hayes had said at her press conference, quote,
6:48
Lily was a consideration for this roster.
6:50
But yes, at this moment, Lily has not made a decision about
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her future. I really do hope she will be
6:55
part of our future. But at this moment, she was not
6:58
ready to make that decision. And quote, So from some of your
7:02
reporting, I think again, this is a tale as old as time when it
7:05
comes to international football rosters that the truth is a
7:10
little squishy in terms of the way third parties like us can
7:14
kind of determine what's happened.
7:16
I think Emma Hayes chose her words very carefully in that
7:20
press conference on purpose. And Needless to say, I trust the
7:25
reporting of you and the Into the Channel podcast in general.
7:29
So I would just leave that there in terms of what I think the
7:33
most truthful telling of of what happened is.
7:36
But I will just say this, regardless of the end reason why
7:41
Johannes is not on this roster, here is what needs to happen.
7:46
You have a teenager with a skill level, intelligence, physical
7:52
skills that your federation has a responsibility to present with
7:57
a real plan as to how that player is going to fit into your
8:02
future. You should do that for any top
8:04
prospect, let alone a top prospect who has the opportunity
8:08
to go play for another footballing power who you might
8:11
see in the World Cup, just like you saw of a Dutch in this past
8:15
World Cup, just like you've played the Dutch in a World Cup
8:18
final in 2019. So this is a decision that could
8:22
reverberate in World Cups for the foreseeable future.
8:27
You can see how tournaments or just matches especially, can
8:31
turn on one play, one, one stroke of brilliance.
8:34
And you know, Johannes is the type of player who was capable
8:37
of providing that moment of brilliance.
8:38
She's already doing it in big matches at 16.
8:42
So I don't want to go too high on the soapbox here.
8:45
But if I was a member of US Soccer, I would do what I had to
8:50
do. To say here is a vision for how
8:53
we see a great young talent with you not only just thriving in
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our system, but continuing to build on the skills that you
9:01
already have. Here's the program, here's the
9:03
vision, here's what we're going to do.
9:05
And I don't think it's out of bounds for Emma Hayes to make
9:08
some kind of assurances, and they're not even really
9:11
difficult assurances to make. Lily, if you continue to play as
9:15
well as you're playing in your club form, you have a spot on
9:18
our roster. Is that like it?
9:20
Would that be a crazy promise to make?
9:23
I don't think so. I mean, if she was, you know,
9:25
selected as an alternate for this, this was a World Cup, then
9:29
obviously she's in, if she, if we understand she's in that pool
9:31
of three or four or five alternates, right?
9:34
The part that really bugs me, I mean, we as a duo, as a show,
9:39
discover Lily Hannis at the at the front end of our Champions
9:42
League coverage. And I think it was just sort of
9:44
like a hey, this is cool. Did you know that there was a
9:46
player, like an American player on the on this IAX team?
9:49
Yeah. To go from that, to watch her
9:52
Champions League journey, watch what she's done in her domestic
9:55
league, watch what she did. I think she was on the she
9:57
believes roster. Didn't, didn't see the field.
9:59
Then you get the 1st South Korea match, no minutes there.
10:03
Second South Korean match, absolute detonation.
10:06
Emma Hayes in this federation couldn't have been in a better
10:10
position. Like, things could not have gone
10:12
better, right? Like, it's an explosion.
10:15
She's sort of like running the Internet, like, you know, for
10:18
those 2-3 days. And then we kind of dropped the
10:21
ball, felt like we had the inside track.
10:23
We being the United States, United States had the inside
10:25
track, no longer have the inside track.
10:27
It feels a little bit like a toss up, feels a little bit like
10:29
a missed opportunity. And that's before we even think
10:31
about there's an actual tournament to be played with at
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least one behemoth out there that's going to keep me up a
10:37
couple nights between now and the end of July.
10:40
So All in all, it's hard not to look at this as not a missed
10:44
opportunity. Yeah, totally agree.
10:46
Even when we started covering the Women's Champions League,
10:49
starting at the group stage, we started covering it closely.
10:52
We always are careful not to heap a ton of pressure on a 16
10:55
year old person, but the potential consequences of
10:59
missing out on a player like this could could really be
11:01
punitive for the for the federation and the team as a
11:04
whole. So I think you're right.
11:05
I think they lost the inside track and now I mean the
11:08
players, they just have to put their head down and focus on the
11:10
football. I don't think that was ever
11:11
going to be a problem, but I think if you're if you're
11:14
walking around in the front offices of the Federation, you'd
11:18
better figure out a way to make this right.
11:20
Yeah, I believe that. I want to scoot ahead to my
11:23
second snub, probably our second snub.
11:25
I feel comfortable saying that, yeah, arguably that the best
11:28
player would be able to sell this season.
11:30
A really strong case could be made.
11:32
Cory Bethune doesn't make the final eighteen, makes it on as
11:35
an alternate. What was your first thought when
11:38
you saw that bit of news? I went back to the same saying
11:41
and I say it every time, I feel like club form has to matter and
11:45
these decisions. I get that that number 10 spot
11:49
is a little crowded with Horan and Lavelle Macario.
11:53
You could play Shaw there also. I also get that Bethune is an
11:57
uncapped player and was an alternate in the last set of
12:02
friendlies. So, you know, I think, I think
12:04
the decision to play Savannah de Mello in the last World Cup as a
12:08
previously uncapped player, I think she had three capped when
12:11
she played in the wood. She started in the World Cup.
12:14
I could understand why that would be tricky, but what's a
12:17
team that you can think of that you could drop Kroy Bethune in
12:20
and she wouldn't find a way to be successful?
12:23
Does it exist? To me, it doesn't exist.
12:26
I mean, obviously they're different players.
12:28
We just talked about Lily getting dropped into that Korea
12:30
match with just as few caps. Like she doesn't even play in
12:35
this domestic league, you know, so she's meeting a lot of these
12:38
people maybe. But to think about Cory Bethune
12:41
and, you know, we'll kind of kind of go unit by unit here.
12:43
But when you think about the midfielders, it really must have
12:47
come down to Corbin, Albert, Rose, Lavelle, Cat, Macario,
12:51
Lily Johannes, cried Bethune. I think the choice ended up
12:55
being three of these five. Now, I gotta say, we did some
13:02
brainstorming about what like a Lily Johannes, Cory Bethune
13:06
midfield would have looked like, how unstoppable that might have
13:08
been. It's looking like we might end
13:09
up with neither if if Cory Bethune stays in the alternate
13:13
pool. And as I thought about, you
13:15
know, this team, I got to say, I am a little bit worried when you
13:18
look at that midfield about a potential lack of creativity,
13:22
maybe a lack of playmaking. Setting aside Sam Coffey, who's
13:25
going to be, I think in a more defensive position.
13:27
You've got 19 year old Jayden Shaw, 13 NWSL appearances, three
13:31
goals, one assist. So she's cooled off a little bit
13:34
from that super high USWT start. Corbin Albert 27 appearances for
13:38
PSG and all comps, zero assist. Lindsay Haran 3 assists, 22
13:43
appearances. Rose Lavelle, she's a genius
13:45
creator. We know that.
13:46
Zero assist and 10 NWSL appearances for Gotham.
13:50
Kat Macario, probably the only player in kind of like assist
13:54
form, you know, So she had 12 appearances for Chelsea, all
13:56
competitions, 6 assists across those 12.
14:00
So recent form, she's been able to distribute play, make, create
14:05
goals from her position on the field.
14:07
Now, I think when we play these more disciplined, higher IQ
14:13
football countries in this tournament, that midfield
14:16
without a Bethune, without Johannes, you know, maybe it's
14:20
not Rose's day, maybe that she's dealing with like a little a
14:22
little calf string, God forbid. Lindsay Horan.
14:25
I think she has obviously her strengths, you know, an amazing
14:28
player with regard to what she does well, but you don't really
14:30
think of her as that pinging the ball like just that offensive
14:33
creative genius, right, You know, to essentially just be
14:36
able to manufacture a goal with her mind.
14:38
So I don't know, man, like, am I, am I losing it a little bit
14:42
with regards to just kind of like processing this news and,
14:45
you know, dealing with some of the disappointment or do you
14:47
think there's any validity to, you know, is our midfield going
14:50
to be creative enough against those absolute giants in that
14:54
tournament? It's a great question.
14:55
I think it's a super valid question.
14:57
I think you wonder what Jenna Neisswanger is going to be able
15:01
to bring from the defense. I think you get some creativity
15:04
there. I think depending on where you
15:06
play Crystal Dunn, Crystal Dunn has an ability to, whether she's
15:10
playing at right back or right wing or on the left, like close
15:14
your eyes and just do a circle and then point to a spot on a
15:17
football field. You could play Crystal done
15:19
there. I think Dunn has an amazing
15:21
ability to get people to ping the ball around.
15:24
I think she has that chemistry with with Haran that kind of
15:27
makes her and go OK, yeah, 1/2 right here.
15:29
Like this is like where where we can play fast, we can make quick
15:32
decisions. But I think overall, I think
15:34
your point is correct, that this midfield with a lack of
15:38
creation, A-Team like Spain that is so smart and so organized in
15:43
defense, A-Team like France, who has Wendy Renard and Sakina
15:47
Karshawi and at least a day, day Almeida, they'll smother you.
15:51
They can figure out where the ball will go if you are not
15:54
playing with like an effervescence and a level of
15:57
creativity. And so when you go against those
16:00
world powers, I think you might be in a little bit of trouble.
16:03
We talked about more in in reference to Barcelona, which is
16:07
loosely almost the same team as the Spanish national team.
16:11
We talked about their ability to not only take away like the
16:15
first pat, like the first outlet, but like the second
16:18
outlet. And most of the times the third
16:20
outlet they were really going to make.
16:22
They were only going to get beat by some non traditional runs or
16:26
passes that were a little bit tough to see or like a fourth.
16:29
You know, it's like almost like a quarterback where they make
16:30
you go through all the reads and the only thing that they leave
16:32
you with is like the full back and the flat.
16:35
Then you you throw it to him, it knocks off his face mask.
16:37
And then you got to putt one more snub, maybe borderline
16:41
snub. Got to be mentioned, the great
16:43
Alex Morgan. Quick salute to Alex Morgan.
16:45
Obviously, USWNT legend, probably on the Mount Rushmore,
16:49
Greatest American players of all time.
16:51
That's an easy argument to make for sure.
16:53
Tremendous career, glad she didn't make the team.
16:58
Okay, okay, I. Think the form hasn't quite been
17:01
there. You know, we saw a little bit of
17:03
a rocky World Cup last summer and seen some moments, seen some
17:07
flashes. But you know, we talked about
17:08
the roster limit a ton, so I wasn't too disappointed.
17:12
I'll say we're also loaded, you know, in those attacking spots.
17:16
We're going to go unit by unit, kind of like dive in there.
17:18
But just wanted to give Alex Murray a quick shout out.
17:20
Got to. But like you said, one of the
17:22
greatest players in the history of the program.
17:24
That's a hard Mount Rushmore to crack, by the way.
17:27
But like you said, she has an absolute legitimate argument to
17:31
crack it. I think that says that says it
17:34
all right there. Like you said, we're going to
17:35
talk about each unit, but the named forwards, Crystal Dunn,
17:39
Trinity Rodman, Jaden Shaw, Sophia Smith, Mallory Swanson in
17:42
2024, who do you, who do you take?
17:45
Alex Morgan over in that group. I don't think there's a player.
17:49
Yeah, I wouldn't say not a player, not not considering
17:51
current form. Yeah, you could look at Crystal
17:54
Dunn, but to your earlier point, so versatile player anywhere and
17:57
I think you think about the roster limitations, that's an
18:00
incredibly valuable player type to include.
18:03
So yeah, tough to make an argument for any of those
18:05
players giving up that spot for Alex Morgan.
18:08
Let's hear from the legend herself as she posted on Twitter
18:11
quote today. I'm disappointed about not
18:13
having the opportunity to represent our country on the
18:16
Olympic stage. This will always be a tournament
18:18
that is close to my heart and I take immense pride anytime I put
18:21
on the Crest in less than a month, I look forward to
18:24
supporting this team and cheering them on alongside the
18:27
rest of our country. LFG, End Quote.
18:31
Classy response from her. It does.
18:33
It's the right response from her.
18:34
She's a leader in the squad. We've talked about that for a
18:37
while. It's who she is.
18:39
Like you said, salute to Alex Morgan, forever a legend.
18:42
She'll get her retirement tour. She'll get her last matches with
18:46
the US Women's national team wherever they come, and people
18:49
will come out and they'll sell out that stadium and they'll
18:51
celebrate her as they. 100% well deserved and super classy, You
18:55
know, Wouldn't expect anything less from the legend.
18:58
Let's go unit by unit. I want to go back to front, talk
19:01
a little bit about who's in, who's not in, what we think that
19:04
unit's going to be capable of producing and maybe where what
19:07
some of the shortcomings might be something to keep an eye on.
19:10
I think it's going to give us a good chance to really kind of
19:13
talk through who made that final list.
19:15
Let's start with the goalkeepers.
19:16
So we have Alyssa Nair of the Chicago Red Stars and Casey
19:20
Murphy of the North Carolina Courage.
19:23
Par for the course? Is the US women's national team
19:25
playing football? Yes.
19:27
Is Alyssa Nair healthy? Yes.
19:29
Alyssa Nair is goalkeeper 1 Casey Murphy is an excellent
19:32
goalkeeper. Jane Campbell is an excellent
19:34
goalkeeper and she is listed on the alternates.
19:38
I think you could make an argument maybe for Campbell over
19:40
Murphy depending on on who you like and what style you like,
19:44
but this is sewn up from jump street.
19:46
You watch Alyssa Nair play, she's the starting goalkeeper
19:49
for the US Women's national team and you never know when you
19:51
might need to go into penalties in a tournament, so got to have
19:54
her on the roster. Yep, and you already know if we
19:56
do go to penalties, we're already up one nothing 'cause
19:59
pretty much Nair's going to, Nair's going to blast one in in
20:02
addition to denying 2-3, maybe four, who knows?
20:06
Let's have a little fun with the roster.
20:07
So let's also kind of pick a starting unit as we go.
20:11
So you already mentioned goalkeeper.
20:12
Listen, Nair, she's penciled in, penned in, sharpened in, however
20:16
you want to do that as our keeper.
20:18
So let's talk defenders. All right, left back.
20:21
I don't think there's any real difficult decision here.
20:24
I think it's Jenna Neiswonger. I'm going to go ahead and try to
20:26
get the nickname off I think. I think, I think Neiswonger is
20:31
from Huntington Beach, CA. What do you think about the
20:35
nickname California Carmona? If Ola Carmona was born in
20:39
California in the United States, I believe that that player would
20:42
be Jenna Neiswonger. So I'm going to put Neiswonger
20:45
starting at left back. I like that she's also a Florida
20:48
State Seminole, so maybe she could be Seminole Batier.
20:51
Oh, there you go. You.
20:53
Have some fun here. If we're talking defenders, if
20:56
we're talking US women's national team, I've got the
20:58
Sharpie here on deck. There we go.
21:00
I'm going to go Naomi Germa. I don't even know really what
21:03
else we need to say here. Tremendous defender, tremendous
21:07
passer, tremendous settler. Down of things when things are
21:11
getting a little too heated. So Germa's got to be in that
21:14
starting lineup. I can't imagine there would be a
21:17
scenario where you wouldn't start Germa outside of injury.
21:20
Absolute lock. Glad to see her on the team.
21:22
I don't think there was ever going to be any doubt about
21:24
that, so we've got two spots sewn up.
21:26
Yeah, absolutely. Let's think about Girma's centre
21:29
back partner, who I think has looked really good next to Girma
21:34
in certain situations. I already selected Jenna
21:37
Neiswalmer from Gotham FC, let's just double up Tierna Davidson
21:41
also from Gotham FC and has proved herself to be an
21:44
intelligent partner with Girma in the centre back position.
21:48
I think if you're playing four in the back, I feel like it's
21:50
settled and personally I wanted to say Davidson to do the Gotham
21:54
synergy from the two picks that I have.
21:56
I think the next player that you might name, not to spoil it,
21:59
might play for a club that you care about in some ways.
22:02
Absolutely right. And that is my Gunners.
22:06
Emily Fox right back. I mean, she's rock solid as well
22:10
and also pretty dynamic offensively.
22:12
You know, she gets up to field really, really quickly.
22:14
Really smart player. Physically.
22:16
I think she's kind of like a sneaky great athlete too.
22:19
Oh. Yeah, kind of like when you
22:20
watch her turn the heat downturn, the volume down on on
22:23
some of the attacks that she faces.
22:25
Just a cool player to have out there in this type of
22:27
tournament. So I'm glad she made it.
22:29
So we will pencil those in Fox, Grandma, Davidson, Nicewanger as
22:33
our ITC starting four couple of their names to hit.
22:38
We recorded that preview show I think a couple of months back
22:42
that Olympic roster draft that we did.
22:44
So we had Sonnet on our list. Casey Krueger we did not have on
22:48
our list. That was one of the two that we
22:50
missed. What do we need to know about
22:51
Krueger and Sonnet? Say it again, club form matters.
22:54
I think Casey Krueger has just been absolute dynamite for
22:57
Washington Spirit this year. She was listed in that episode.
23:00
Anybody wants to go back and and check the tapes?
23:02
I think that's one of our most watched episodes.
23:05
If I remember correctly. Casey Krueger was one of my
23:08
first cuts. She was one of one of the
23:11
toughest cuts that I had because I love her versatility.
23:14
She started that play in the Spirits last match against
23:18
Gotham where where she is just sprinting up field to get the
23:21
ball over to Bethune eventually lead to the goal.
23:24
Krueger has great instincts, great physicality and she can
23:28
get up the field for you when you need from the right back
23:31
spot. And her age and maturity I am
23:34
less worried about because we have such a deep defender
23:38
roster. I think that she should be just
23:40
fine and she is well deserved in this position.
23:42
She's one of these players that advanced stage.
23:44
I think we're OK saying that, but she can still fly.
23:49
She can still absolutely cook when she sees something.
23:52
So ultimately, you know, if she could still, you know, scorch
23:55
defenders like that and make the right plays, make the right
23:57
passes. I don't think age is really any
24:00
kind of factor here. She's also kind of like rock
24:02
solid health wise. So I think that was a great call
24:04
getting her on. And I think it's safe to say her
24:07
play. I don't want to say that maybe
24:09
it elevated, but she's been playing at a very, very high
24:11
level since our Olympic show. So I think if we if we want to
24:15
run that back, I think it's probably a different
24:17
conversation. I think we had Eva Guytino in
24:19
that spot who was probably having a moment.
24:21
But yeah, Casey Crew, one of those first names that we called
24:23
out for our our toughest cuts. Any defenders that you were
24:28
surprised not to see on the list?
24:30
You know, obviously Sam Stubb got a little bit of run in some
24:33
of these warm up type matches. Abby Dahlkemper, I think was
24:36
loosely kind of in the conversation as well.
24:39
Yep. Any surprises there?
24:40
I think it came down to Stubb and Kruger, likely just because
24:45
Emily Sonnet's versatility where you could play her at defensive
24:48
mid or center back if you need. I think Sonnet was probably a
24:52
lock. Her experience, her leadership.
24:55
So I think it was probably between Staub and Kruger, and I
25:00
think maybe there's a little bit of duplication between what
25:03
Staub can give you and what Davidson can give you.
25:07
And that may have been the tiebreaker.
25:09
You could just station Kruger out there at right back and
25:12
you'll be a OK. So I think that's probably the
25:14
nod. But it doesn't take anything
25:16
away from what Sam Staub has been able to accomplish this
25:19
season. Great run.
25:20
She'll have another look at the national team the next time
25:23
they're picking them. I'm certain of it.
25:25
Yeah, super well deserved to. Yeah, I think we landed on the
25:28
right six defenders. Let's shift gears to the
25:30
midfield. So we talked a little bit about
25:32
that when we talked about our couple biggest snubs, Lily,
25:35
Kerr, Bethune. Let's pick our starters here.
25:38
So kick us off with who you think needs to be sharpied in to
25:42
this US Women's national team midfield.
25:44
I know you got your Sharpie over there, buddy.
25:45
You know, I keep one on deck myself.
25:48
Sam Coffey in the defensive midfield has to be there.
25:51
The creativity, the chemistry with Lindsay Duran that we've
25:55
seen mean the chemistry, frankly, with Naomi Germa that
25:59
we've seen. She's a player that can play
26:01
physical, can get forward when you need, but is really just
26:05
going to be a defensive stalwart back there.
26:07
No brainer for me. Makes sense.
26:09
I'm going to take the easy Rd. here and give you leave you with
26:11
the hard pick. Give me Lindsay Haran in the
26:13
midfield. We talked about that Haran
26:15
coffee pairing and then I'm just going straight Bulldog on on
26:19
these teams, just harassing and let's win the ball back ASAP.
26:23
I kind of like that that new spot for Lindsay Haran, like a
26:26
little little deeper, a little bit more aggressive, a little
26:28
bit more defensive, get the ball upfield to some of those more,
26:31
you know, dynamic runners and players.
26:33
I think Haran's probably pencil in as a starter as well on my
26:37
end. Yeah, for sure.
26:38
I I think she might be stronger than pencil.
26:40
I think she'll I think she'll wear the captain's armband when
26:43
you send her out there. I mean, and when Haran comes
26:45
off, you give the armband to grandma.
26:47
OK. Can we agree on on this?
26:50
We're likely to play a 4231. Yes.
26:54
So we have our four defenders, we have Coffee who will be one
26:57
of the defensive midfielders and then you have Haran.
27:01
Are you envisioning Haran as the other defensive midfielder?
27:05
I actually am, yeah. I love that.
27:07
We obviously watched a ton of Leon this year, Champions
27:09
League, where she was the most dangerous, was kind of in the
27:14
midfield more in defensive postures, just making it
27:17
difficult, winning balls back, you know, moving the ball up
27:20
field. She obviously had her moments
27:22
where you know, she's more in attacking spaces, but she can do
27:25
that where other midfielders can't necessarily do that.
27:28
She's so good. Yep.
27:30
So I think you just want to utilize that and especially if
27:32
they're if we're going 4231, that makes a ton in a sense pair
27:36
up the same coffee a little bit deeper.
27:37
And that pairing looked great in that first match up against
27:41
South Korea, understanding the level of competition there.
27:44
But I think you're spot on if you play her ran a little
27:47
deeper. She can get forward on on set
27:49
pieces, quarter kicks, things like that.
27:51
She can also help kind of drive the offense, kind of help create
27:54
some space for your attacking players up there when needed.
27:57
I think that'll suit her just fine.
27:59
OK, so let's think about our our three across.
28:02
So this will be an easy pick for me on the left wing.
28:06
You play Sophia Smith there. No, no doubt.
28:08
About it, no doubt about it. My MVP pick, she's definitely in
28:11
that top two or three MVP conversation at NWSL.
28:14
She's absolutely cooking. Scored another goal for Portland
28:17
from distance. She's obviously racking up
28:20
assists left and right this season.
28:22
I am definitely envisioning a different Sophie Smith this
28:24
tournament than we saw in the World Cup.
28:27
Smith might be the player that looks the most different from
28:30
the World Cup. I think I went below half a take
28:32
chip on that. Nice.
28:34
I'll go on the right side, a little bit of a cheat here as
28:37
well. Dust off the old Sharpie here,
28:38
pop the top, and we'll go a little Trinity Rodman, and I
28:44
think she's an absolute lock in that spot.
28:46
Yeah, I mean, what's not to like?
28:47
I've loved her chemistry with Emily Fox on that right hand
28:50
side also. Now you just have two.
28:52
You talk about Fox's physicality, which is such a
28:55
great point by you. I know we talked about it when I
28:57
was over there and I watched Arsenal take on Manchester City
29:00
and Emily Fox was just engaged in a wrestling match with Lauren
29:04
Hemp for 70 minutes while she was on the field.
29:07
You're going to get that from Fox.
29:09
And now you put Rodman on that right side when Fox makes those
29:12
four runs and she's trying to create some mismatches and
29:16
create some player advantages up there, Rodman will just Sprint
29:21
back on defense. If you need her to Rodman's
29:23
service into into the attacking penalty area, her smarts and her
29:28
kind of ability to like pull back and then kick it back to
29:31
Fox, who then can play it to Haran and you can kind of reset
29:34
from there. You're totally right.
29:35
Rodman is a no brainer. So let me ask you this for our
29:39
number 10 for the the center attacking midfielder here are we
29:44
doing who we would put in or who we believe Emma Hayes is going
29:48
to put in that spot? Let's go.
29:49
We would put in. I'm still a Jaden Shaw true
29:52
believer. I know she's young, I just feel
29:55
like she's been put in in a tricky situation at times with
29:58
the San Diego Wave. Obviously with the addition of
30:00
Maria Sanchez, the Wave have have been able to put Shaw a
30:04
little more centrally. She needs more time.
30:06
She's a dynamic player, she's a brilliant player, she has great
30:09
pace, she can pass. Will she be the absolute central
30:12
hub of your offense? Probably not.
30:15
But when you have Haran in that position and you have Smith and
30:19
Rodman on the ends and you have nice longer contributing to
30:21
that, I still just count me as, like I said, a Jaden Shaw true
30:26
believer. Put her at #10 let her cook and
30:29
let's see how she does. I like it and I appreciate you
30:32
taking the tougher, the tougher challenge of that number 10
30:35
spot. See who's going to go there.
30:37
All right, so Shaw's in R11 and then up front got to go Mal
30:41
Swanson. I think she's just having an
30:44
unbelievable year. Her A+ plus is as good or better
30:49
than anybody else's A+ plus. Like when she's on and she's
30:52
making a play or making plays, plural.
30:55
I mean, she's just a marvel to watch and I think she just can
30:59
hit heights that you just don't see other players hit, so I
31:02
think she's got to be there as well.
31:04
We actually landed on the exact 11 that I had written in my hand
31:07
Dandy Notebook, which also double s as the ITC record book.
31:10
Excellent. Let's talk about a couple of
31:13
those players. Actually, we didn't mention a
31:15
couple in the midfield. So I want to rewind back a
31:17
little bit. Roosevelt, Corbin, Albert, what
31:21
do you see as their roles on the team?
31:22
And obviously we hit the snubs already.
31:24
I don't know if we have any extra, any snubs above and
31:27
beyond we already did. But anything to note with regard
31:29
to what you're expecting from a Lavell Corbin, Albert?
31:32
I think you nailed it earlier when you talked about Lavelle.
31:34
I think if you're in a group stage match and you need to play
31:37
Lavelle at #10 instead of Jaden Shaw, if Shaw gives you a really
31:42
tough 90, let me just couch it by saying this.
31:44
The reason I asked, is this who we're putting in or who we
31:47
think? Emma Hayes is going to put in is
31:49
because I'm pretty sure Kat Macario is going to play in that
31:51
number 10 role. I mean, if we're just being
31:53
honest with ourselves and, and you brought up her assist
31:56
numbers, Kat Macario is a brilliant player.
31:58
I I do not mean any shade to her in in any way.
32:01
I just I am in the tank for Jaden Shaw.
32:03
I think her speed and her intelligence is fantastic and I
32:07
want to see her develop more. And how are you going to develop
32:10
her more player in the big spots and let her cook.
32:13
But I do think Macario will be there and if Macario needs some
32:18
rest, you could absolutely play Lavelle in that number 10 spot.
32:21
But where I most likely see Lavelle is a super sub in the
32:26
second-half to give you 30 minutes to give you 25 minutes
32:29
if she needs to. If things are going really S she
32:32
can give you 45. You just bring her in after the
32:34
half. So, you know, I think that kind
32:37
of rotation of Shaw, Macario, Lavelle, I think that's what
32:43
we're probably in for in the center of the field.
32:46
That makes a lot of sense. I could definitely see Macario
32:48
starting. Obviously the Chelsea connection
32:50
there has got to be strong with her and Emma Hayes switching
32:53
gears back to the forwards, The one player left that is on the
32:56
roster didn't make our starting 11, but obviously I'm sure he's
32:59
going to see a ton of the field. Crystal Dunn, you talked about
33:02
her a little bit earlier. What do you think her role is
33:05
going to be on the squad? You'll be really interesting
33:08
when you are playing some teams that are just going to be, you
33:11
know, play that European style of football that could be real
33:14
physical with Trinity Rodman. And you know, I wouldn't be
33:17
surprised if you see Crystal Dunn play some right wing in
33:21
this setup. I wouldn't be surprised if you
33:23
have some players getting physical with Jenna Neiswalm or
33:25
you could play Crystal Dunn at left back.
33:27
Also, I think you could play Crystal Crystal Dunn if you want
33:31
to set up in a more traditional 433 or even A343 depending on
33:36
what the situation calls for. You could play Crystal Dunn at
33:39
right midfield if you need to. So the pivot points of Dunn and
33:43
Sonnets versatility and frankly alongside with with Macario and
33:48
Shaw of like, OK, where are you going to be in the attack?
33:52
Or do we need to float you a little further back in the field
33:55
and kind of have a more of a defensive posture?
33:57
It's an easy bet to say we see Crystal Dunn play both at the
34:03
forward spot and as a defender in this tournament.
34:07
Well. Yeah, I think she's just an
34:09
extremely valuable piece. The 18 players really just does
34:12
make it interesting because it's like you really have to be
34:14
thinking through all these different scenarios.
34:17
You mentioned something that's kind of been knocking around my
34:20
head since you said it when you were talking about Jayden Shaw
34:24
maybe not necessarily being a central hub of the offense.
34:28
Central hub of the offense. You look that up in the
34:30
dictionary picture of Cory Bethune.
34:32
That's true. With regard to like that type of
34:36
of persona. Does this US roster have that
34:40
profile of a player, Central hub of the offense?
34:43
It's the person you always kind of look for.
34:45
Obviously Lily Honest has that profile.
34:47
Cory Bethune also has that profile.
34:49
It does kind of feel like the roster that's been put together
34:52
is maybe missing that. Maybe that is a little bit of a
34:55
hint as to what kind of style we want to play.
34:58
We talked about like the Orlando Pride last week where it just
35:01
felt like, OK, they've got eight players that are going forward
35:04
and the goal can come from any combination of any 2, two, or
35:07
any three or maybe one if there's like a turnover in a bad
35:10
spot. It does feel like the way that
35:12
this roster is constructed is a little bit along those lines,
35:15
like let's get smart, fast, physical, attacking players that
35:19
can make quick decisions like you were talking about Horan and
35:22
done earlier that can just run, ping the ball, fire the ball and
35:26
like we'll live with 18202324 shots and maybe possession.
35:32
I don't know. Is that such a such a big deal?
35:34
It doesn't feel like with this roster, that sort of European
35:38
possession style that we're talking to Leanne Sorenson about
35:40
two, It doesn't feel like this is the exact roster for that
35:43
type of vision. I think you're totally right,
35:45
man. I think without Bethune, I think
35:47
it's harder to play that kind of style.
35:48
But I, I always kind of jokingly point out that you and I have
35:51
not yet been signed to a coaching staff.
35:54
So I, I do think perhaps go out on a limb on this one.
35:58
Emma Hayes knows a little bit more about football than us.
36:01
And maybe she would just look at both of us and say, that's what
36:04
I have Kat Macario for. That's why I signed her to
36:07
Chelsea Football Club. That's who she is and that's
36:10
what she's going to prove to everybody.
36:12
So if I could just kind of go off on on my own, like mini
36:16
topic here in terms of the player, I'm most excited to see
36:20
how they're used. Number one with a bullet is Kat
36:24
Macario, because I think that Emma Hayes has a vision for her
36:28
that we do not yet see. And now it is a matter of did we
36:32
not see her in that vision because we want to see a player
36:36
more of the profile of Bethune fill that void.
36:39
Or, and I know this is would sound crazy to everybody who
36:42
watches the show, perhaps Emma Hayes knows better than us.
36:45
Yeah, I'm not ready to say that. Can't be no.
36:51
I mean, that could very well be the case.
36:52
Let's juxtapose Shaw and Macario.
36:54
I think over the last 12 months for the US women's national team
36:57
wearing that jersey, Shaw's been a more impactful player.
37:01
Does that mean she's a better player?
37:02
Who knows. Does that mean she's going to be
37:04
playing better than the Olympics?
37:05
Who knows. But I think Macario, we're still
37:08
kind of waiting to see it post injury for this U.S. team,
37:12
right? So I think we're all hoping to
37:15
see it. And to your point, maybe no
37:17
better coach, no better manager than Emma Hayes to construct a
37:21
scenario, a situation where Macario can actually shine and
37:26
really be, you know, a real linchpin for this team.
37:28
Because now if you've got her in that spot and you've got her
37:31
vision, you've got Smith, you've got Rodman, you've got Swanson,
37:34
you know, maybe other players kind of streaking through a nice
37:37
Wong or a fox who likes to they they both like to kind of creep
37:39
up. That could be the recipe and I
37:41
think, you know, to your point, absolutely on the board, super
37:44
duper live that Emma Hayes got some stuff up her sleeve.
37:47
So folks can please chime in and correct me if I'm wrong, but I
37:51
believe Gab Macario returned from injury.
37:54
I believe it was the March 3rd match against Leicester City
37:57
where she scored a goal in the 18 minutes that she played in
38:00
that match. It looks like she appeared in
38:03
another 123-4567 matches in league play in that time.
38:09
In those seven matches that she played in and she had the one
38:12
goal in the first match she returned and five assists in the
38:16
WSL, a tough league. So it was one goal, 5 assists
38:21
and four matches started in a total of eight matches played,
38:24
358 total minutes. So she was able to make a pretty
38:28
quick impact upon her return there in the WSL.
38:31
But I think you're right. I think what Hayes is banking on
38:34
here is this is just the tip of the iceberg.
38:37
She's not even all the way back yet.
38:38
The date you come back is not the date you're in your full
38:42
prime again. So I think she's she's very
38:45
clearly counting on that. That's what makes me so excited
38:48
to see how it looks when she's on the field. 100%, I think I
38:53
agree with you. Emma Hayes got some up her
38:55
sleeve. I think I agree with you that
38:56
Emma Hayes will start Macario in that number 10 spot and give her
39:00
those 3 attacking players to pick out.
39:02
I want to Fast forward here. I know it's early.
39:05
I know we only got this this roster news a few hours ago.
39:09
It's been a crazy day at one of our ITC headquarters satellite
39:12
offices, Florida Division. Nice.
39:15
I want to make some predictions. I want to do a little look
39:17
ahead, sure, and I want to look at the field.
39:20
This is early, I understand way, way, way too early.
39:23
But I want to start projecting forward again against some of
39:26
these big dogs in the tournament and kind of see how we feel.
39:30
My first question, we'll just kind of cut right to the chase.
39:33
Spain. Can this team beat them?
39:35
Has this team been constructed in such a way that you feel
39:39
confident that this team can get past a Spain?
39:43
I don't think there's a team in the world that I would say I
39:45
feel confident who can get past Spain in a semi final or a
39:49
final. They're the best team in the
39:50
world. They won the World Cup.
39:52
They beat the Lionesses in that World Cup final.
39:55
I wish it was a little closer in that final.
39:58
We played them well. I mean, I'm just going full we
40:00
here. I think people who watch this
40:02
podcast know I'm an England supporter.
40:05
I thought the. Lioness says we're going to win
40:06
the win the World Cup. From the start of the tournament
40:08
we had a great team, we have a great manager and we went up
40:11
against Spain and it's just like, God, what do you do
40:14
against this team? They're just so smart, they're
40:17
physical, they're more skilled than you are.
40:20
They have a great goalkeeper, they have the best, the single
40:23
best player in the world. They might have the 3rd and 4th
40:26
and the 5th best player in the world also.
40:28
I think it would be crazy to feel confident that any team
40:31
could beat them. But is it on the board?
40:35
That's why they play the games. I got to say this was a weird
40:40
feeling. And you know, I always like to
40:41
try to keep it really real. I'm not here to just throw out
40:44
takes Willy nilly, you know, just for the clicks or the views
40:47
or the, the watch hours. I'm not really, you know,
40:49
playing that game, of course. But I got to say, no, Johannes,
40:53
no Bethune made me less enthusiastic about challenging
40:57
Spain. Just flat out like those
41:00
players, their ability to receive the ball, pivot, make a
41:04
smart pass, make a quick pass, make a long pass and put it on
41:08
the money. Those are the skills that you
41:10
need against the Spain because like we talked about, they'll
41:13
take away your first outlet, they'll take away your second
41:16
outlet, and most of the time they've got a beat on the third
41:19
outlet. So you've you've got to be crisp
41:22
with regard to your precision, your decision making and really
41:26
like your ball skills, loose touch, like they will gobble
41:30
that shit up like immediately, instantaneously, that ball's
41:33
gone. We obviously covered the World
41:35
Cup last summer. So we were familiar.
41:37
Well, we got familiar with these players, but obviously like a
41:39
full Champions League cycle. I just want to name some dudes
41:42
or dudettes that play for the Spanish, the Spanish national
41:45
team. So it made the news today
41:47
battery. She returned to the Spanish
41:49
national team almost two years after first declaring herself
41:52
unavailable. With the whole sort of Spanish
41:55
Football Federation foolishness that was going on there.
41:58
You know, obviously, they've done a lot of work to kind of
41:59
try to clean things up. So a lot of work to do for sure.
42:02
But she's back, and she'll be joining Salma Pariello, Itana
42:05
Bonetti, Olga Carmona, Mariana Caldente, Ode Battier, Irene
42:09
Peretas, Alexia Puteus, Jenny Hermoso Katakoi, Esther
42:13
Gonzalez, Alber Redondo, Atenea del Castillo from Errol Madrid,
42:17
Teresa Albaya, Claudia Zornosa, Leia Codina, Ivana Andres Jesus
42:23
They. A lot of good players, man.
42:26
There's a lot of great players. I didn't.
42:29
I wasn't counting. Maybe we'll just do the Dings
42:30
and the edit, but I feel like I named 18 players, right?
42:34
They're just like 18 All Stars, like God that they've got.
42:37
And the key is they play the same brand of football.
42:41
They're all in the same wavelength.
42:42
They all know what they're doing.
42:44
There's a chemistry and a synergy and a synchronicity to
42:47
their game that you look at this US roster.
42:50
I kind of feel like things have to break EU s s way for them to
42:54
kind of take home the gold medal here, even with this super
42:57
stacked a team that MAS put together.
42:59
I mean, you list off those players.
43:01
I, I just don't know how anybody's going to be able to
43:05
beat them. And I, I realize like, you know,
43:08
no team is invincible, but we saw the way France looked
43:12
against Spain in the Nations League final.
43:16
And France, you could rattle off their roster, too, just like you
43:19
rattle off the names on Team USA's roster, and they're
43:24
stacked. And they couldn't do anything
43:27
against Spain in that Nations League final.
43:29
Everything was way wide. They couldn't get anybody into
43:32
any kind of space where they were really threatening on goal
43:36
and they were just suffocated throughout the match.
43:38
I think, you know, Spanish football, you think about a
43:41
level of creativity and you think about the passing, but
43:45
just you have such an organized defense back there and an
43:49
organized defense that not only shuts you down, but when you
43:52
talk about they have the ability to take away all of your
43:55
outlets. Somehow they're able to take
43:57
away all of your outlets. And then they always have one
44:00
outlet that you're like, Oh no, over there and you can't get to
44:04
it. And they turn defense into
44:06
offense so quickly. I am very, very, very interested
44:11
to see how they line up in their group stage matches.
44:15
And it's not going to be easy for Spain.
44:17
As great of a team as they are, as an overwhelming favorite as I
44:20
believe they are in their group, they have Japan, Brazil and
44:25
Nigeria. None of those three teams are
44:28
going to make it easy on them. None of them are going to let
44:31
them off the hook. They're going to play physical.
44:33
Japan is going to be extremely organized.
44:35
We saw Japan blast Spain 4 to nil in their only loss in the in
44:40
the 2023 World Cup. So you know, Spain is going to
44:43
be way up for that match. I mean, we are just in for an
44:47
all timer and now we're looking at Spain.
44:50
How much of an all timer are you?
44:53
Are you going to be like the Spanish men's team that won that
44:57
2008 Euro, the 2010 World Cup and the 2012 year old?
45:03
Can you put yourself in that stratosphere?
45:05
They can see it, I know they can feel that, they can do it.
45:09
It's just a matter of getting it done.
45:11
I think I agree with that. Last I checked, the US is
45:15
actually the betting favorite. So they're at sitting at plus
45:17
175 Spain's at +200 France plus 450 Japan.
45:21
To your point, being a tough squad, they're the fourth lowest
45:24
odds plus 7:50 to win the tournament.
45:26
So Spain's gonna have their work cut out for them.
45:28
But to your point, they are the best team in the world.
45:30
It's so funny because we got Spain, France in the Nations
45:32
League final. We got Barcelona, Leone in the
45:34
Champions League final. In both of those matches, the
45:37
French sides couldn't hold the ball.
45:39
Yeah. And they had wild attacking
45:42
players. You know, you look at France,
45:44
Cascarino, Diani, Kototo. You look at Leon, the same
45:49
Cascarino Diani. And then who did they have du
45:51
Morne in the middle and like, a role in the midfield?
45:54
They had, you know, Basha running up the left.
45:56
So like, they had real, real attacking options.
45:59
Barcelona and Spain, however you want to look at it, made them
46:02
look like the JV team, right? There was a level of surprise
46:05
with the Nations League and then there was a bigger level of
46:08
surprise when we saw the almost the exact same outcome in the
46:11
Champs League final. So the last thing I'll say about
46:13
the Spanish side is you're not going to beat them on pure
46:17
physicality. You're not just going to be able
46:18
to kick it over the top, run onto it or Trinity Rodman is
46:21
just not going to be able to run past whoever they've got their
46:24
Bhattier or Carmen or wherever because they're so smart that
46:27
they'll just take away your angle, right?
46:30
They'll just say, hey, I'm not going to give you the edge.
46:32
I'm going to take away the sideline.
46:35
I'm going to force you back inside and Peretta is going to
46:38
step up, you know, or Bhati is going to step up or Carmen is
46:41
going to step up or any of those midfield players that that love
46:44
to mix it up defensively as well.
46:45
So it's going to be interesting to see.
46:47
Emma Hayes obviously saw that Barcelona side up close in the
46:50
back-to-back Champions League semifinals.
46:52
So she got a good look at a lot of these Spanish players and
46:56
obviously has her finger on the pulse of what's happening in
46:59
Europe. I think one of the reasons why
47:01
we're so excited, I know you like to kind of put your pep hat
47:04
on and, you know, start thinking formations and, you know, some
47:07
of these matchups and, you know, start playing, playing, playing
47:09
a little bit of that. Is there an area where you think
47:13
the US might have an advantage or or somewhere on the Spain
47:17
side where they could be exploited?
47:19
Did the Spanish team announce their roster?
47:22
They haven't announced their roster, but you could.
47:24
You can see I think the 2425 players that they have in camp.
47:29
So of the players that I mentioned, all those players
47:31
that I mentioned are in camp. Did you mention Mappy?
47:34
Is Mappy Leon going to play? I think it's still TBD.
47:38
OK, because, buddy, it might be right up the middle of the
47:40
field. If Mappy's not there, then maybe
47:44
you got a shot there. And like you've talked about Mel
47:46
Swanson, you and I are firmly entrenched in the Mallory
47:49
Swanson fan club. If you can work the ball from
47:53
Nice Swung or maybe into Macario, try to create some
47:57
mismatches there. Try to get the ball to Swanson.
47:59
I mean, maybe you have Smith running in there and she draws
48:03
some attention and she dishes it to Swanson.
48:06
Middle of the field might be your best bet.
48:08
I mean, but like you talked about, you still got Perez in
48:10
there. You're going to have Andres in
48:12
there if you don't have Mappy in there.
48:14
And then you know you're going to have Aitana Bonamati lurking
48:16
to take the ball off you if you're not paying close
48:19
attention. And it might even be Patri or
48:21
Alexia back there who who can track back on defense or just be
48:25
in the right position and take the ball off you.
48:27
But I'll be real interested to see the potential for a Rodman
48:31
car Mona matchup. You got to explore that.
48:33
I mean, Emma Hayes isn't going to be afraid to try to go to
48:36
that Trinity Rodman for damn sure is not going to be afraid
48:39
to match up with anybody in the world.
48:41
She'll like her chances. If I had to put on the pep hat,
48:46
as you know I'm one to do, I would wonder where can we find
48:51
joy in the middle of the field? I like that, yeah.
48:54
And I hate to kind of go back to the snub piece, but would be
48:57
really nice to have Bethune there or Johannes there that you
49:00
could just get the ball and, you know, it's going to get pinged
49:03
right, right in the right direction to kind of keep it
49:05
moving. Because we've talked about this
49:07
in the NWSL, too. Like the chances, because of the
49:10
physicality in that league, the chances fizzle very, very
49:13
quickly. I think against the Spain side,
49:15
it's the same. They're just smothering.
49:17
And you know, Lindsay Haran, who we had penned in borderline
49:20
Sharpied into our starting lineup, we saw her struggle,
49:22
yeah, against that Barcelona side and not really be able to
49:25
make an impact. So it is a little scary.
49:27
Well, let me backtrack and say I think it's gonna be really,
49:30
really exciting if we get to see these two teams lock up.
49:33
That's just some some real, real championship football being
49:37
played and I'm going to be excited to see that.
49:39
Hell yeah. I mean, there's just between
49:41
these these groups. Let's just go over real quick.
49:44
Group A, Canada, Colombia, France, New Zealand, Group B,
49:47
Australia, Germany, USA, Zambia, Group C, as we mentioned,
49:51
Brazil, Japan, Nigeria, Spain, bangers all up and down the
49:55
slate. I mean, tell me you're not in to
49:57
watch USA, Zambia or USA, Germany, USA, Australia, just to
50:02
be able to get the opportunity to maybe see that match up
50:05
against Japan, Spain, France, Colombia, Canada.
50:10
This is just going to be a banger all the way throughout.
50:13
I think also with the quick turnarounds, the short rosters,
50:16
I think we're going to see upsets pretty much up and down
50:19
the bracket. We're going to be surprised by
50:21
which teams make it out of the group stage.
50:23
I would say any of those 12 teams, you know, minus maybe, I
50:28
don't know, like a New Zealand against like a Spain, it kind of
50:31
feels like any result is in play.
50:33
Yeah, totally fair. And I yeah, it's a great point
50:36
about the quick turn around. It's going to be very
50:38
interesting to see how these managers are are rotating the
50:41
squads, how the substitution patterns look.
50:44
So while like in the traditional football calendar, the Olympics
50:48
is kind of looked at as an afterthought, I think women's
50:51
football has done a great job of making this a massive tournament
50:56
with the very best teams in the world save Great Britain, but
51:00
with the all of the rest of the greatest teams in the world that
51:03
you just have to get excited about.
51:05
Like you said, any result is possible in pretty much any of
51:09
these matches. Absolutely.
51:10
All right, man. I think we thoroughly covered.
51:14
Well, actually really quick prediction this US Swim
51:16
International team. Do we meddle?
51:18
What kind of metal is that metal made out of?
51:21
Is this kind of like a ring the alarm type catastrophe with a
51:26
group stage exit? What's your official, way too
51:28
early prediction for this USMS Asheville team?
51:31
Two beer show? Gotta do it.
51:33
Too thirsty. Got too excited for this
51:36
tournament. Just crack that.
51:39
I think USA. I mean, I guess we got to think
51:42
about like where the draw ends up.
51:45
Let's do some quick, quick maths here.
51:48
All right, so USA is in Group B. Let's go through the thought
51:51
exercise. Can USA win Group B with
51:54
Australia, Germany and Zambia? Yes, let's put them as the
51:59
winners of Group B. Germany is plus 1000 to win the
52:02
tournament. USA is plus 175.
52:04
That's pretty hefty spread between those two.
52:07
OK, so 1B in the knockout stage is going to play the 2nd place
52:12
team in Group C, so who do we think is going to finish second
52:17
in Group C? That group is Brazil, Japan,
52:20
Nigeria and Spain. I feel comfortable saying Spain
52:24
is likely going to win that group.
52:26
We like Brazil, we love Japan, we love the Super Falcons out of
52:31
Nigeria. Who do you got coming second
52:34
place in Group C? I think it's got to be Japan.
52:37
I mean, Brazil's got great players.
52:39
I think internationally they just haven't been able to put it
52:41
all the way together for whatever reason.
52:43
So give me Japan 2nd place finishers.
52:46
Man, that is a tough draw for the USA coming out of the group,
52:52
man, man, I think. Quarterfinal exit.
52:58
I mean, that would be that would be disappointing.
53:01
I think even though, I mean, you got to really think like is
53:04
losing to Japan that disappointing?
53:06
Let's say they make it past Japan.
53:08
Let's say they're able to use the physicality, they're able to
53:12
win some set pieces and they're able to get it through.
53:16
They would then play the winner of the 2nd place team from Group
53:20
A and the 2nd place team from Group B.
53:23
What are you thinking? Probably Germany, I don't know.
53:25
You got the Copper Queens in there?
53:27
Let's let's say Germany. All right, so that that one's
53:29
going to end up being Germany versus the 2nd place team from
53:32
Group A. What do you say in Group A?
53:35
Maybe Canada win or pardon me, France probably wins Group A at
53:39
home in Paris. Who do you like between Canada,
53:41
Colombia and New Zealand? I think Canada's been coming on,
53:44
but I think Colombia, I think if Vermeer's is right, I think
53:48
Colombia would have what it takes to to maybe outduel
53:53
Canada, take that second spot. So Germany, Colombia.
53:56
Is that the? Yeah, Jeez.
53:58
OK. Germany versus Colombia, that
54:00
sounds familiar. Oh yes, these teams met in the
54:03
World Cup group stage where Linda Kaiseto scored an absolute
54:07
banger in the 52nd minute and then Venegas scores in 90 + 7 to
54:12
defeat Germany. So now you ask yourself, do we
54:15
have a revenge game for Germany over in Europe or do we have
54:19
Colombia getting the better of them once again?
54:22
I gotta feel like 23 World Cup, maybe Colombia was being
54:26
overlooked a little bit because they just seemed to catch
54:29
everybody by surprise. Like it was just like, oh, wow,
54:31
this. They're playing really hard and
54:33
they're playing really physical and we weren't quite ready for
54:37
this. I have to think Germany's one of
54:40
those teams kind of along with France, where it's like, all
54:42
right, one of these, you know, you look at the look at the
54:44
roster, they are always the dark horses, right?
54:46
Germany and France. So fully knowing that I'm still
54:49
gonna walk right into that trap and say, I think Germany, you
54:53
know, maybe could be a little dangerous, put something
54:54
together here. I would have them getting past
54:57
Colombia, little bit of a revenge game.
54:59
I like that. They'll be ready, they'll have
55:01
some tape and then we'll get a group stage rematch.
55:05
Looks like maybe with Germany and the old USA.
55:08
There you go. And so second time seeing each
55:11
other, I wouldn't be shocked if in the first match it ended as a
55:14
draw. You know, as long as we're going
55:16
down the full prediction rabbit hole, I think the states could
55:19
get past Germany. I I respect a lot of the players
55:22
on the on the German national team, obviously saw a lot of
55:25
them in the Champions League and we've got to see a lot of them
55:27
in frown Bundesliga for Wolfsburg as well.
55:30
But I think the states could probably get past them in a
55:33
semifinal matchup. So that would likely lead us to
55:37
play either France or Spain in the final.
55:40
That OK, that works for me because I wanted to make sure
55:44
that I checked out that we weren't like, I mean, if if
55:47
something weird happens and we have to face Spain because they
55:50
finished second in Group C, that is worst case scenario if you
55:55
ask me. But let's say they play Spain in
55:57
the final. I am going to predict United
56:01
States Women's National Team will be your silver medalists in
56:07
the 2024 Summer Olympics. I'd love to have a different
56:11
take than that, but I I think I also have them as a silver.
56:15
I mean, you look at that stretch, Japan, Germany, Spain
56:19
slash France or even if it's Colombia, Colombia would be
56:22
tough as well. That's just a tough road and
56:25
that's if you finish first in the group.
56:27
I think they do catch a break with regard to Spain and France
56:30
going at each other. But Spain just walked right over
56:34
France in the Nations League final.
56:36
I don't expect anything different.
56:38
They just seem to have their number.
56:39
I don't think I would pick in our way too early predictions.
56:42
I don't think I would pick pick this U.S. team to get past
56:45
Spain. So I I agree with you.
56:46
I think silver medal's the right look here.
56:48
All right. And that's nothing to be ashamed
56:49
of. I, I think at this point of the
56:52
footballing journey, after you kind of have the reset of the
56:54
2023 World Cup, you lose some players who have just aged out
56:58
of the the golden generation or at this point it's like the
57:01
second or third golden generation in the history of the
57:04
US women's national team. I don't think there's any shame
57:07
in the silver medal in an Olympics that is this
57:09
competitive. Yeah, I think that would be a
57:11
positive outcome. And to your early point about
57:13
the Japan matchup, if you lose that one, that's one of those
57:16
where I think the casuals be really upset.
57:20
But it's a real hoopers no kind of situation where it's like,
57:23
you know, Japan, that's a tough team is good.
57:26
That's a very losable game, yes, and I think the same with
57:29
Germany as well. Germany, I think is actually a
57:31
sneaky dangerous matchup. I'm kind of glad that we're
57:33
going to see that in the group stage because that's a very
57:36
technical squad and also very explosive scoring wise.
57:39
But I think it is a benefit to the US that we will potentially
57:42
play them twice, group stage and then maybe in that knockout
57:45
round. That is a really great point
57:48
because you actually could you could lose to Germany in the
57:53
group stage very live. And then you you kind of get
57:57
that, OK, now we got the speed of their team.
58:00
Now we kind of know what to look for in the knockout stage.
58:03
That could be very, very interesting.
58:05
So even if they switch sides of the bracket where USA finishes
58:09
second in in Group B and Germany wins the group, you might still
58:13
see them in the semis. Yeah, that's a great call by
58:17
you, Germany. I mean, Alexandra pop up top.
58:19
You just have a lot of smarts, a lot of skill, and no, no
58:24
shortage of toughness and physicality in that team either.
58:27
Yeah, you mentioned Alex Pop. I mean that German team, a lot
58:30
of good attacking talent that we also got to see a little bit in
58:33
the Champions League. Leah Schuler, Leno Oberdorf,
58:36
Laura Fry gang, Sarah Dorsuna defense.
58:40
I think if she's if she's on that final 18 Fromms and goal,
58:43
backup goal, Katrin Berger, we've got to see pretty close
58:46
NWSL. So that is definitely not a
58:49
bullshit team. Shuka nu skin ball in a Chelsea
58:52
still just 23 years old. That's that's a real squad.
58:55
That's a real squad with real players.
58:56
And Yomi's a good young player. Hopefully we get to see her.
58:59
Julia Gwynn. I mean that, yeah, they got a
59:02
lot of great players over there, so.
59:05
Absolutely. Something to be super excited
59:07
about right from jump Street, and we haven't even really got
59:10
that much into the states playing the Copper Queens to
59:13
start the proceedings. That's going to be exciting.
59:17
It's going to be exciting. I mean, I think, yeah, Zambia
59:20
left a lot to be desired in last year's World Cup, but obviously
59:24
they've got those two sticks of dynamite up front, Kundanagi and
59:28
Barba, Banda and some other really great players as well,
59:31
Chanda, and I think they're really growing up as a
59:33
footballing nation. They've obviously got a ton of
59:35
like bullshit that they're dealing with their federation
59:37
back home. So hopefully situation improves
59:41
a little bit for that squad. But yeah, they could be
59:43
dangerous in a group stage setting where these results
59:45
matter. You you get a bond goal, you get
59:47
a Kundanaji goal in the 1st 10 or 12 minutes and they're able
59:50
to just sit back and defend. And and your your athletic
59:53
advantage is, you know, not what it not what it might be against
59:57
another team like a Japan. That could get interesting as
59:59
well. This field is just really,
1:00:01
really exciting. Going to be a really great
1:00:03
tournament. All right, man, I think we
1:00:05
thoroughly, thoroughly now covered.
1:00:08
This US WNT roster announcement, Anything else you want to hit
1:00:11
before? We get out of here.
1:00:12
I think that's it for the US women's national team, the
1:00:15
Olympic roster, quick little preview of what we're going to
1:00:19
do at the Olympics. We got more stuff coming on the
1:00:21
Olympics, by the way. We got Speaking of stars,
1:00:24
speaking about a great lineup. We have some absolute stars
1:00:28
coming up to join this very program.
1:00:31
I don't know how we've talked to these people into coming on to
1:00:33
our program, but apparently they've seen enough.
1:00:36
I mean, look, if Leanne Sanderson is coming on the show,
1:00:40
I guess we're certified in some way.
1:00:41
Maybe I should stop acting like it's, it's so crazy that people
1:00:44
are coming on, but I it's hard. It's honestly hard to compute
1:00:47
still that people like Leanne Sanderson and Chris Sharples,
1:00:51
Cam Pope, a seal to Filey, like real footballers, like real
1:00:55
announcers have come on the show.
1:00:56
So let me just say before I ramble too much, we got a lot of
1:01:00
people coming on to help preview the Olympics, to talk about
1:01:02
these squads that we've been discussing very much looking
1:01:05
forward to. It it's going to be awesome.
1:01:07
So yeah, definitely make sure that you're subscribed.
1:01:10
It's been another episode of Into the Channel.
1:01:12
Thank you, thank you, thank you for watching, listening, liking,
1:01:14
subscribing, chiming in, following.
1:01:17
Without you guys, there's really no show, no community, no fun
1:01:21
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1:01:23
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you help elevate the show. I always kind of say that our
1:01:28
comments section is a very high IQ space on the Internet.
1:01:32
You know, we talked about real hoopers.
1:01:33
These are whatever the whatever the soccer equivalent of real
1:01:36
hoopers is. All of that is all up in our
1:01:38
comment section. We appreciate it to no end.
1:01:41
Thank you for rocking with us. If you're an OG, thank you for
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1:01:54
host Mr. Green Angle for. Oh wow, just what an honour.
1:02:00
In Sharpie, no doubt. That's why we keep the Sharpie
1:02:03
on deck, just in case we've got a jot our guy's name down in the
1:02:06
book here. Likewise, buddy, you know, I
1:02:08
got, you know, I've got you penciled in, in Sharpie as well,
1:02:10
written in in Sharpie as well. You could maybe say that we are
1:02:14
the Sophia Smith and Trinity Rodman of the podcasting game.
1:02:18
Hell yeah. That's that sounds about right.
1:02:21
Good speed, good skill, can pass back and forth, can score.
1:02:24
You never know. Well, however, the podcasting
1:02:27
game works. But yeah, like Dino always says,
1:02:29
thank you guys for rocking with us.
1:02:30
We appreciate you tuning into the show.
1:02:32
Hit us up in the comments, let us know maybe what we missed,
1:02:35
what kind of formation you would want to play and we will see you
1:02:37
guys next time.