Latest / The Guuuzan Show / S1 Ep23 | Stu Holden: USMNT INVADES PREM LEAGUE???

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S1 Ep23 | Stu Holden: USMNT INVADES PREM LEAGUE??? · The Guuuzan Show

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_02: Dude, I didn't even know about this story.
• 0:01
  SPEAKER_02: Three months in, you're getting you're getting beat up outside the bar?
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_02: Dude, I mean I How do you know about this?
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_02: It was all over the BBC.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_02: Listen, I was just I was just this MLS guy.
• 0:10
  SPEAKER_02: You're over there, you're doing your thing.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_02: Well, welcome back to another episode of the Goozan show.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_02: I'm your host, Brackazan.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_02: I'm solo in the studio today, Joe, taking a few days well-earned vacation.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but we've got a very, very special guest, uh, someone that I call uh a very good friend of mine, former teammate, uh the Fox lead analyst, uh, just year after year after year.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, he absolutely is crushing it.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, please welcome to the show, Mr.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_02: Stu Holden.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_02: Stewie, how are we, pal?
• 0:49
  SPEAKER_02: What's up, dude?
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_02: It's great to have you, bro.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_02: I'm good, man.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_02: It's great to have you.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_02: We appreciate you joining.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_02: I know it's been uh a busy summer, and I know you're taking some some well-earned time off uh with the family, seeing the kids.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and before we get into everything, how how are we feeling?
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_02: How are we feeling after after this summer of chaos?
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, I know your travel schedule was was more intense than mine, and I thought mine was crazy, but how are we feeling, man?
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: Well, listen, man, first of all, welcome to the the media club.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: You're a full-blown media guy now, all right?
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: You've you've officially stepped over into the dark side, which uh, as I've learned for the last 12 years is now the light side, man.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: I I I love this career, I love this job.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: I I feel uh privileged, honestly, to have this opportunity to do stuff like this, and we get to chat the chance to speak about the beautiful game.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: I'm currently up uh by the lake, relaxing, trying to recharge.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: I didn't feel like I had any type of uh recharging after the tournament ended.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: You were there Sunday, then Monday, uh you jumped back in with the family, and it just kind of hits you with a different wave of uh energy and intensity, and I don't really feel like I've stopped, if I'm being honest.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: So, this is the first time yesterday, man, I was out by the lake, had a couple of cocktails, relaxed, just felt like uh I was able to reflect on what was just a crazy month and a half for all of us.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: I I think it's it was almost a hangover of sorts.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_00: I've been watching MLS games, I've uh I've I've been watching the continuation of soccer, but still, in some senses, I'm missing that grind.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: Like I loved it.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know how you felt.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: It just it was amazing going from stadium to stadium and game after game, and just seeing the way that this entire country came around soccer, man.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: It was it was really something special.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_02: No, it was.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_02: It wasn't, and I'm the same.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_02: I I I felt the same, you know.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_02: When you're in it, you actually you didn't have that that sense of, you know, you weren't overwhelmed.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_02: It, you know, it was just you're doing it, you're going on to the next game, the next city, the next stadium.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_02: And and like you said, it was a it was a privilege to be able to have that opportunity because you think about us as kids, you think about us as players, to then be able to go to all the games that that we were at.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_02: Uh again, I I know you were at iconic games.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_02: 21 games.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_02: Yes, you know, and and so but not only just 21, but like on the call, iconic, just moments that this country will remember forever.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_02: And and when you look back on that, it's like you're so lucky to be in that seat and and have that opportunity.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: I think one of the things that stood out for me, honestly, in in reflection of what the World Cup was and and what we do in soccer.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_00: We I think as American soccer players, pundits, uh, anybody connected to the game, we we've we've been part of moments where look, my my first ever MLS game on the road was at Kansas City.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: There's 5,000 fans there in Arrowhead Stadium of a 90,000 seater.
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: You're used to moments where people don't care about you.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you're you're shouting from the rooftops of getting people to pay attention to the sport in this country.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_00: And that still hasn't changed in some circles.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: So I I love the stat that somebody told me is that I called a game that had 51 million viewers.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_00: So that that's part of a very few commentary duos of any sport in this country in on TV.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm also part of the only commentary duo that in the same year has called a game for 19,000 people at the beginning of the year in a ConcaCAF Champions Cup.
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_00: And I say that just to kind of give perspective of why, in those moments now, when we're on the biggest stage and we're in World Cups, that I think it gives you a little bit of perspective to enjoy the moment and recognize that we hope this continues.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: We hope it stays big.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: But we were doing something this last summer that that might not be replicated.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: I hope it is.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: I think what it showed us is that the growth of the sport in this country is something beyond any of us really thought.
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it's an important reminder.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: We always judge growth of this sport, I think, in soccer circles of saying, well, look, the US only got to the round of 16 again.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_00: We've done that before.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I say to people for the first time ever, we had 30, 40, 50 million people watching the sport in this country.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: And you had in the Spanish language, the final had more than 70 million viewers.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: That's insane to think about.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_00: That is growth.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_00: Now we we want to continue to improve on the field, but I think to me, it's still now as I'm reflecting upon this tournament and what happened the last month and a half.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: We have to be proud of where we have come and where we continue to go.
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't mean we stop, it means now we just put the foot on the gas even more and keep accelerating.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_02: I I love that, man.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm right there with you.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, you know, people ask the same.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_02: It's oh, well, how how was it a success and why was it a success?
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, going into the tournament, I was nervous.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_02: I I there was a little bit of hesitation because I'm thinking all eyes of the world are gonna be on our our country, along with Mexico and and Canada, but but mainly on the US to see how do we deliver this World Cup.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_02: And and I keep saying, I think it's the been the it was the the best World Cup in history, and it certainly was the biggest.
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but just the excitement and and then the the attention, the viewership, the the the spotlight that was shown on the beautiful game here in our country.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_02: Now it's it's on to the next step.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_02: And and how do we keep that going?
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_02: And you kind of touched on it.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_02: It's MLS, it's now our domestic league, and how do we continue that momentum throughout this summer, man?
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_02: And and so uh I know you started your career.
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_02: Um, you know, obviously going way back when uh at Clemson University, when I think our our paths first crossed.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_02: What what do you remember about Clemson University, dude?
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I'm so glad you brought that up, Goose, actually, because uh you went to uh the rival South Carolina, I forget what they are.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: What are they, Gamecocks or something?
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, whatever.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh my freshman year, and you and I didn't stay in college for all four years, but uh I do remember you taking me down for a penalty kick.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't know about one of our seniors, so I didn't get to take the penalty because I was a freshman.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_00: So one of the seniors stepped up and took the penalty.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_00: Remains to be seen whether I would have scored or you would have saved it.
• 7:03
  SPEAKER_00: But let's just say the penalty that I won because you took me down in the box, we then scored and beat you 1-0 at your house, and it was one of my crowning moments in my college career.
• 7:15
  SPEAKER_00: So uh I you have some wonderful producers over there, I'm sure.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_00: Their job from this point is to track down this tape and make sure that the world sees what happened that day because I remember it really well.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_02: He's on, he's on it, he's on it, and I'm pretty sure he looked up the wrong stat because he was telling me, Oh, yeah, I think you guys won 1-0.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_02: And and that might have been the the the maybe the next year?
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_02: No, it must have been the first year because we didn't.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_02: I just remember the year.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_02: I just remember that in the year.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_00: Or or actually I thought it was in Colombia.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: So, unless my memory is incorrect, you took me down somewhere for a penalty.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: It might have been at our place or at your place, but uh that happened.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_02: I don't I don't believe it, Stewie.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_02: I don't believe it.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but listen, and then from there, right?
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_02: Talk talk to us about your journey because I uh besides winning penalties that I don't know if uh actually happened or not, uh, you obviously went on to to have a a really impactful career and and there were bumps and and highs and lows uh along the way.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_02: But I I know then you you ventured over to to England, right?
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_02: And dude, I didn't even know about this story.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_02: Three months in, you're getting you're getting beat up outside the bar?
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_02: Dude, I mean I How did you know about this?
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_02: It was all over the BBC.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_02: Listen, I was just I was just this MLS guy, you're over there, you're doing your thing.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_02: Um, yeah, I mean, I mean, talk talk talk to us about when when you first went over.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: If I look back, my entire, I guess, life, but more so my career is uh it's a story of adversity and uh triumphs in that sense.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_00: I was tested so many different times in so many different ways.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: I had a knee injury in high school.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_00: I I got to Clemson, but that was after a number of uh blue chip schools took away their scholarship offers for me when I was 16 years old.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_00: So then I get to Clemson against the odds, and uh, you know, my freshman year ended up being pretty good.
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: I get over to England as a as an 18 or 19-year-old, but that was I got scouted.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know if it was the same for you in college.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_00: We played a US under 17 friendly as kind of a throwaway spring game.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, the coach from that, I played a really good game.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: He called Thomas Rongan.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_00: I got called up to the U-20s, I got scouted at the milk cup, and then all of a sudden I'm pro.
• 9:24
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that the that's the part of the story where I'm still a kid.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: You know, you're you're 18 years old, you're over in England, you're living in a hotel by yourself, you have nobody to really check you.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, you're not making a lot of money, but you're you're a professional soccer player.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_00: So, in some senses, I felt like I had made it.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, my brother came over to visit for spring break.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_00: We decided to go rip a couple drinks out in Newcastle with a couple teammates.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'm coming out of this bar.
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_00: There's uh it's a little blurry because I was a little inebriated at the time.
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_00: And yes, some things were said between different groups.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_00: This guy walked around the corner and just blindside punched me right in my uh eye socket here.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: And I had what was called an orbital fracture of my eye, which was uh it was a blowout fracture.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_00: So it was like a one in a million, which again, yeah, thanks a lot.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: Uh my my muscle of my eye got caught between the bone.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_00: I wasn't able to look up or down.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_00: So I go into training on Monday morning, and I was in at five o'clock to make sure I avoided everybody because my I had black and blue eye, and I just wanted to talk to the doctor, talk to the coach and go home.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_00: Well, the doctor did the evaluations and he said, Man, you're gonna have to have surgery on this.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_00: So we're gonna have to go talk to the coach.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: So I go upstairs and Mick McCarthy's now waiting for me.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_00: He was like an old school coach.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I remember the first thing he said to me was, listen, Stu, it's unfortunate, but we're gonna find that that, you know what, that that hit you because the guy ran off.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_00: And so we didn't find him.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_00: I kind of regret this part, honestly, is at that point, then they called in the police.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_00: The police took these pictures, they sent out this whole thing in the paper to try to find the guy via CCC uh TV.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_00: They didn't end up finding him, but what instead what happened is now you're able to talk about this moment on a podcast because it was all over the news and it kind of became a thing that was associated with me.
• 11:21
  SPEAKER_00: And I it's not that it really matters, but unfortunately, I didn't get back to playing until the end of that first season.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: I still was seeing doubles.
• 11:29
  SPEAKER_00: So anytime the ball was in the air, I was seeing two different balls.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_00: You can imagine that's pretty difficult uh once again for a footballer play when he's seeing two different, two different objects.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_00: And so we got promoted to the Premier League.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_00: Mick McCarthy brings me back into his office and he said to me, Listen, uh, it's really unfortunate.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_00: I think you have a really big potential, but we're going to the Premier League, we're gonna sign a bunch of new players, and I think the best thing is for you to find a better situation and a team that works for you.
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_00: And that was kind of the point where then I went back to Houston and just decided, look, I needed to play football, I needed to be in a setting where it was familiar and comfortable for me and get my feet wet.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_00: So that's where the Dom Kinnear and the Dynamo came back into play.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: And then years later, I actually got to play against Premier uh Mick McCarthy.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: He was managing Wolves in my Premier League home debut for Bolton, and I was man of the match, and we won.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_00: And he was asked about letting me go as a 19-year-old, and he was fair.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: He just said, Look, I thought he was a great player, it just wasn't the right fit in the right time.
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm so happy to see him having this career now.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: So it was a it was a cool full circle moment.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_00: That's that's awesome, man.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_02: And listen, you still look great, Stewie.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_02: So you know, you can't you can't even tell that you had your face absolutely smash smash.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, dude, that's where Jay Demerrit, when we used to be in uh South Africa, I I would still every now and again when I would get tired, I I started this eye started to like close a little bit.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: So he used to call me wonky eye, and so he'd be like, Stu's got a wonky eye.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_00: But Jay was the one who was seeing double at that time and had to have contact lenses.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_00: So uh there we had one uh two good eyes between our entire room in Studio 214.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, good times, good times.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_02: And it's hey, just to confirm, I just got word from our producer, finish one-one.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_02: You guys had you what no, what was it?
• 13:17
  SPEAKER_02: We yeah, we we lost a game in South Carolina to Clemson, and then we and then we beat you.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_02: Seven saves.
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_02: So I don't know if I was there for the one you beat.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you probably weren't, so unlucky for you.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_02: Uh but but listen, back back on track.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I mean, that is such a cool full circle moment to be able to then go back and not have your revenge, right?
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_02: But just the fact that you're making your Premier League debut against Mick McCarthy and Wolves, and then to go and be man of the match and uh put together a performance that you're not only proud of, but clearly recognized by by the by the outside voters of saying, yes, you know, he he can be a big time player.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, but that certainly wouldn't have been possible without your stop off in in Houston, where you were highly successful and ultimately earned that move back to England.
• 14:04
  SPEAKER_02: But talk talk to us about that, that, the early days of of the Houston Dynamo, because we were both in the league when when they relocated from from San Jose and moved down there.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_02: And that was kind of the the start of the journey in terms of the success that you were gonna have on the field.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I think my journey is a good reminder of that for young players, I think coming up now, uh, they have more than they've ever been given before in terms of resources, academies, uh, coaching quality, all the rest of the stuff that I there was no academy for me in Houston.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_00: I I was playing local club soccer and it was a very good club soccer scene.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: You played some great youth soccer scenes in Chicago.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_00: Like there were there were good markets, Houston, Chicago, Florida, New York, California.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_00: And I say that to say that look, we both got to go over and play in Europe.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: I think, and it's not me just uh uh making this up, it still is the best leagues in the world and the most prestige and the Champions League and the best players still for the most part play there.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_00: But I I get frustrated sometimes when I see the conversation around young players who think that they have to get to Europe at this given moment or they have to go here.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_00: And you're not seen as a real soccer player until you do that.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: Without Major League Soccer, without Houston Dynamo, I don't have the career that I have.
• 15:27
  SPEAKER_00: Because I was a young player.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I was talented, I had uh a gift that was some of which was natural talent, but a lot of my what I felt helped me get to the next level came through my hard work, my determination.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_00: But a lot of that stuff, I don't really feel like hit that next gear until I was a part of that Houston Dynamo team, which was a winning culture with really good players and guys that held you accountable in a really, really good way.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_00: And that was from everything.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_00: Your your habits off the field, how you trained, how you played, and how you had to earn it every single day.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: I didn't quite feel that until that point, until I'm behind Dwayne Derosario and Ricardo Clark and Brad Davis and Brad Mullen and these guys that set this real bar of this is what it takes every single day.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_00: And I remember knocking on Dom Kinnir's uh door every every other week saying, Why am I not playing?
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_00: And he said, Well, have you seen the guys in front of you?
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_00: These guys have won 18 games in a row.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's your job to prove every single day in training.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_00: And then when you get the opportunities on the field that you want to play, and then when you get that chance, you have to, you can't let it go.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_00: And so I remember, man, it was like watching the way Dane Dwayne Derosario and Eddie Robinson would get into fights in training.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_00: I'm thinking, dude, these guys are psychopaths.
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: And Brian Mullen slide tackling me from behind on just a routine play, getting up, kicking me when I was down.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_00: And it wasn't that we weren't a really close team off the field.
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_00: We really were.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_00: Like it was a really close band of brothers.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_00: But when that when that whistle went in training and in games, it was this relentless competitiveness of we wanted to be the best.
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: And I would not have reached the levels that I I ended up reaching without those guys pushing me, without Dominic Kaneer checking me, without John Spencer and assistant coach telling me to stop partying in Houston because it's my hometown.
• 17:21
  SPEAKER_00: And he could see that I was tired in training because I'd been out all night.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_00: And he, you know, he pulled me aside one time and said, Look, you're gonna waste all this talent and everything that you have if you don't get your shit together.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_00: And it was a really important moment for me, honestly, in my career because I kind of had that look in the mirror.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_00: And then I looked at what those guys were doing every week in Houston and I said, I want to do that.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_00: And I remember John Spencer and Dom Kinnear saying to me, Look, we know you want to go play in the Premier League again.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_00: You've already been over in Europe, you grew up in Scotland.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like, we know that that's what you want to do.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_00: But you have to understand MLS and the Premier League, there's different levels there, and you need to be the best midfielder in MLS before you even think you're gonna have a chance to make an impact in the Premier League.
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I set that as my goal.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_00: And when I left on that final year, I was in the all-star team, I was in the best 11, and we were a two-time champion at that point.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_00: So it I was fortunate to be a part of a good team.
• 18:19
  SPEAKER_00: I was a role player in the beginning, and then I slowly worked my way into becoming one of the main players of the team.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_00: But it was a transitional process for me.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_00: And had I gone back to Europe, I think in 2021, I don't know if I would have ever ended up being the impact player I was for Bolton and been on the national team in the same level.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_00: I I don't know if if you think about it in the same way.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_00: Had you not had Major League Soccer, would you have been the standout player for Aston Villa and and done what you had done over in Europe?
• 18:47
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's it's interesting to think about, right?
• 18:49
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's all timing, and you have to find the right circumstance and the right team and the right coach, I think, to challenge you in the right way.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_02: Dude, you're spot on.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, I mean, listen, I remember those those Houston teams with Pat Onstadt and Goal, Ching, Brian Ching up top.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, you guys, you guys were a force to be reckoned with.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_02: And I remember, now, granted, you know, Chiefs USA, we we weren't great.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, but even after that first year, and you'd have to go to Houston and play those games.
• 19:17
  SPEAKER_02: And those were those were always tough games.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_02: And you just knew what you were gonna go up against, and you knew how you guys wanted to play, what type of team you were, and it was always gonna make for a hard 90 minutes.
• 19:29
  SPEAKER_02: But I I agree wholeheartedly, man.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_02: It's it's about timing, it's about the the right environment for for kids, and and us specifically, right?
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_02: If we didn't have Major League Soccer, I certainly wouldn't would not have been able to make a jump from from college to the Premier League, and and you know, I wouldn't have been seen and wouldn't I wouldn't have had that opportunity with without a shadow of a doubt without Major League Soccer.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_02: So eternally grateful.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_02: And and I agree that every kid needs you need to find the right place for you at the right time and a coach that's gonna push you, that's gonna believe in you and give you that confidence to go and do it.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_02: Because if you don't have that in coming from your manager, from your coaching staff, it becomes really difficult, you know?
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, no, I agree, man.
• 20:11
  SPEAKER_00: And I think this is the next challenge now for Major League Soccer is that we have the resources, we have the academies, we have the infrastructure, uh, we have clearly, as we've learned this last summer, uh a fan base and an appetite and a consumer for the sport in a different way than we've ever had in the past.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: And the amount of people I meet on the youth soccer fields now with my daughter at these fields, and these parents have become fans of the game through their kids.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_00: Their kids play soccer, they start watching soccer, they've started to love soccer.
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's been the next uh opening of uh the exposure to the game that has grown this fan and this this user.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_00: Now the challenge I said though is for now Major League Soccer, not just to be the sport of the future, but to be the league of choice.
• 21:02
  SPEAKER_00: And that's that's going to take some major changes, I think, in uh a little bit more risk.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: Now, we've taken risk in this sport in this country.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: You're you and I were just talking about a major league soccer where franchises were five million dollars, we're playing in front of empty stadiums, we're we're playing in and beating up uh baseball, olive stadiums, you're having to convince people to come watch you.
• 21:24
  SPEAKER_00: The tickets are 20 bucks or less.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, you're still not filling out stadiums at that point.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_00: But yet there was there was what we felt was real potential, right?
• 21:33
  SPEAKER_00: But now when you're looking at it, you're not just like the other sports in the United States and baseball.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_00: If we're thinking MLB, NBA, NFL, you're competing in a North American market.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_00: Soccer's competing globally.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_00: So now you have to change the perception of the sports fan that soccer in this country and this league in this country can be seen in the upper tiers and the upper echelons, not just from an attendance standpoint and not just from a branding marketing standpoint.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_00: Standpoint, but from a competitive standpoint.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_00: So you have to go and spend.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_00: You have to unleash, I think, a little bit more on the salary cab side.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_00: You have to take a little bit more risk and invest more in the academy.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_00: And at that point, I think you can start to attract more top-end talent, which will then challenge more of our lower end talent to go to that next level.
• 22:21
  SPEAKER_00: That's how we became better players.
• 22:23
  SPEAKER_00: Once we played against better players.
• 22:26
  SPEAKER_00: And so once I got to England, it wasn't like just because taking a flight and crossing the Atlantic, I became instantly a better soccer player.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: It was because in the first day of training, I'm playing against 25 international soccer players from around the world.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_00: And that was sink or swim.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_00: I decided to swim and I decided to push myself a little bit further and get more out of myself.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_00: But I wouldn't have done that had I stayed in MLS at that time.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_00: So if we can increase the level and we can continue to push that level, I think it will take the sport in this country, at least even perception-wise, for people in this country to pay more of attention in a real way to say, look, we are real.
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_00: That was the biggest bummer for me, honestly, in that Belgium game for the US, is I know we could beat that Belgian team.
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_00: But to the people that kind of dip their toe into soccer this summer, they look at that game and they think, ah, we're a joke still.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: We're never going to compete with these guys.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_00: And that bugged the heck out of me because I know these guys can.
• 23:20
  SPEAKER_00: And that's that's the perception we're really trying to now, this next frontier of soccer in this country, really change.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_02: Well, you talk about bringing, you know, better talent here here to the league, right?
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_02: And we both have friends that are are, you know, foreigners that have constantly said, Oh, I would love to come to Major League Soccer.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_02: I I want to come to uh to America.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_02: I love the lifestyle of living in the US.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_02: And it's like if all of a sudden now that ability, whether it's it's from the payments, whether it's from the the salaries, whether it's uh just the the the lifestyle, now all of a sudden you're you're you're saying to to top top players around the world, yeah, come in and and play and be a part of Major League Soccer at 25, 26, 27.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_02: And now they're raising the bar for our younger players to to be in an environment that is sink or swim.
• 24:10
  SPEAKER_02: And and like you said, man, you you you certainly started swimming and and you absolutely smashed it.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_02: And I know that led to obviously great things, not only on the club, you know, your club career path, but but also with the national team, the Olympics, where obviously we were sweating like crazy over in Beijing and have so many great memories uh from that tournament.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_02: Obviously, the results didn't go our way in terms of advancing, uh, but then South Africa as well.
• 24:36
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, Stu, you you've you've played in the in the biggest tournaments in world soccer and world football.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_02: And to be able to then transition, I know they were cut short.
• 24:46
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, I know you've you've, you know, trials and tribulations through injuries, um, through being let go and and saying you've got to go and earn your place, and and you've done that, man.
• 24:56
  SPEAKER_02: You you absolutely crushed it.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, because I think you said it perfectly in the way that this is my perspective on life now.
• 25:04
  SPEAKER_00: And when people ask me about uh the injuries and how my career ended, and my last professional game, I think, was the Gold Cup final officially, first team game was in 2013.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_00: I played a reserve game, tore my ACL again in 2014.
• 25:19
  SPEAKER_00: I I don't really count that.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_00: So if we think about that, that's 13 years ago.
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_00: You just retired last year.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_00: Uh and so when I think about that, we're the same age.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_00: My career was cut way short.
• 25:33
  SPEAKER_00: But I I've managed over the years, and and this was pretty instantaneous because I ended up finding broadcasting to say, hey, if I was eight-year-old Stu or 10-year-old Stu, and I said, here's what I wanted to do in life.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_00: I wanted to play in a World Cup, I want to play in an Olympics, I wanted to play in the Premier League.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_00: I I checked all of those boxes.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_00: Was it as long as I would have wanted?
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_00: No.
• 25:56
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, did I reach the heights that probably in the in a perfect world I would have wanted to?
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_00: No.
• 26:02
  SPEAKER_00: But I got to do everything I would have ever wanted to do, and that so many millions of kids dream about.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_00: And that is my perspective now to this day as a 41-year-old, thinking about that life.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I get that perspective the most honestly at use soccer fields when I'm out at these fields, and there's thousands of kids that are playing the sport in this country on any given day.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_00: And I look around and I think, man, I was one of those kids.
• 26:27
  SPEAKER_00: We were one of those kids that was just playing soccer because it was fun and we loved it and we watched it and we consumed it.
• 26:33
  SPEAKER_00: But yet we got to go all the way.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_00: And that is a pretty powerful, I think, perspective to have for me to be able to have that.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_00: Because yeah, I you live in the moment as a player.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_00: You you just go from game to game, just kind of as we just did as broadcasters, where you go from game to game.
• 26:49
  SPEAKER_00: And you, as a as a 19, 20, 21-year-old professional soccer player, you don't have perspective.
• 26:54
  SPEAKER_00: Are you kidding me?
• 26:55
  SPEAKER_00: You're just you're going to practice, you're playing soccer with your buddies, you're in a locker room, you're pranking each other, you're you're you're competitive in the way that you want to try to reach the highest possible heights, but still at the same time, you're really just you're grinding, but in a really fun and and and in a way that is it's just second nature because that's all you've ever known.
• 27:15
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not until many, many years later you end up having this perspective, and kids really help you have this perspective in a special way.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_00: So I think for me, when when I think about us in South Africa, man, like what a time that was in our lives.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_00: Six weeks of just hanging with the boys, playing soccer, representing our country.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, one of the 23 best players in our country at that time that got to go do that.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_00: Like, that's that's awesome.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_00: Is the Olympics?
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_00: You're you're you're going with a bunch of boys.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_00: We've been parting with this previous summer in Vegas and just hanging out with the boys, doing doing stuff that you know 21-year-olds do, except we are kids that are at the Olympics now representing our country.
• 27:55
  SPEAKER_00: That's that's the stuff that now I I look back on and I miss, quite frankly.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_00: I said to you right before we came on, I found the DVDs, DVDs, that's how long ago it was, of us playing in Beijing.
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm gonna fire these up and watch it with the kids at some point because uh yeah, you you you have to find ways to enjoy it.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_00: And I did this last summer, even broadcasting.
• 28:17
  SPEAKER_00: I was I was looking out, taking my headset off in moments, looking at a stadium of 80, 90,000 people watching soccer, you know, U.S.
• 28:25
  SPEAKER_00: national team playing in front of 40 million people.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_00: What a what a time to be alive, man.
• 28:29
  SPEAKER_00: Just that whole that whole energy and feeling that we were kind of part of that that journey, right?
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, we were we got to do it, and we we feel that in some ways we laid the foundation for for the next generation.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_02: No, 100%, man.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_02: And and listen, we're just soccer dads now.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_02: You know, we're out, we're out at the soccer fields, we've got our our lawn chairs, we're we're just watching watching the kids uh take part, have the joy and excitement, and and it gives you that that sense of appreciation for for our journey and and what we went through and and to be able to have the experiences that we had.
• 28:59
  SPEAKER_02: And you certainly have transitioned in an unbelievable way, man.
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_02: You are the voice of soccer here in the United States.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_02: You have been so successful uh transitioning into the broadcasting side of things.
• 29:11
  SPEAKER_02: But when you go back to the start, right?
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_02: And obviously things didn't finish how you would have liked in terms of playing, but then to be able to go into the broadcasting, do you remember those early days of of getting into the booth and and calling games and doing that?
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_00: Do I?
• 29:27
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, buddy, do I?
• 29:29
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, of course you do.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_00: I I still uh I still look at the tape.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_00: My first ever interview was Mike McGee on a Thursday night, San Jose versus Chicago.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_00: It was NBC.
• 29:38
  SPEAKER_00: I was nervous as heck.
• 29:40
  SPEAKER_00: I fumbled through uh a ton of different words.
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_00: I mispronounced Frank Yallop's name.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_00: I uh I just look you have to you have to just do it and understand that your first game will be your worst game.
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_00: I remember you and I talked after you first retired, and I I said to you, I said, just do just do everything at the beginning and and find out what you like.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_00: Do what you're doing now, doing podcasts and doing these different things because you learn how to say things, you learn about cadence, you watch the tape back, you listen to yourself, um and uh, and pause and all of the different stuff is is part of a learning process of getting to a point where you feel like you're good and you can get better always.
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm gonna watch back this World Cup final that I just called in probably eight years, and I'm gonna be so critical of the way that I said things and did things and missed plays or didn't explain the thing in a certain way.
• 30:33
  SPEAKER_00: This was my third World Cup final, and it's kind of crazy to think that I was given that opportunity in 2018.
• 30:39
  SPEAKER_02: That's unbelievable.
• 30:39
  SPEAKER_00: No, to to to be, I was a lead in 2018 where I was what 30, 32 years old or something like that.
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: I should never have probably been in that seat.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_00: I don't want to say never because I don't want my bosses to have regrets over this over the years, but I I just kind of knew straight away.
• 30:57
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know if you feel this way, but I I knew it was something I really enjoyed.
• 31:01
  SPEAKER_00: I knew it's something I had a little bit more uh again, similar to a player.
• 31:05
  SPEAKER_00: I had felt a bit of a little bit of a natural ability to uh I don't know, articulate different things and explain things that I was seeing on the field.
• 31:15
  SPEAKER_00: We have different perspectives as players from our positions that we played.
• 31:18
  SPEAKER_00: I felt as a center mid, I saw the game in a different way.
• 31:22
  SPEAKER_00: I I feel retrospectively looking at myself as a player, one of the things that I think helped me in my career was the ability to anticipate and see things develop.
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_00: And I wasn't the fastest guy, but I could be there to jump a passing lane or to stop a player or to read a situation to make a pass.
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_00: So now when I'm in the booth, I kind of see things unfolding that to me feel very natural.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_00: I was even as a kid a guy that knew all the different players.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_00: I watched soccer, I played uh football champ manager, I played FC.
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_00: So I knew like every single player.
• 31:55
  SPEAKER_00: And so to get into this career, I realized it was something I wanted to work at.
• 32:00
  SPEAKER_00: As we all know, man, you have to grind.
• 32:02
  SPEAKER_00: I was doing games at the Club World Cup where we're, you know, 3 a.m.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_00: in LA calling a game off the tube, uh, Europa League, Conference League, uh MLS circuit, traveling every single weekend, doing games.
• 32:14
  SPEAKER_00: I was I was grinding.
• 32:16
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's the thing that people quite easily forget when they say, you know, you just got to be the lead team for the biggest event this world has ever seen.
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I said, man, I I feel so fortunate and privileged.
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_00: But there's a lot of work that went in behind the scenes for me to be in this career and also reminding people that I lost my main career way too early.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_00: And so I think that gave me a motivation to really try to work hard at this to be the best at this and give myself an edge ahead of guys that wanted to do this now.
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I'm I'm looking at guys now in the media, which I'm so happy to see you, Mo, Dax, Sasha.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I mean, I could go on with all these guys, Charlie, um tons of guys that we played with that are now prominent voices for the sport in this country, which is awesome because when I retired, it was Winalda, Lala, John Hart, uh Marcelo Balboa, like a lot of guys that are still doing media, but it was nobody my age.
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_00: So now it's kind of fun that I get to do TV with my boys, thinking about the post-game segments where it's in the World Cup.
• 33:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's me, you, Mo, uh, Melly.
• 33:28
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's it's fun.
• 33:31
  SPEAKER_00: It's friends, it's it's guys that we have a lot of memories with, and we see the game in the same way.
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_00: So it's kind of I'm I'm now on this second evolution of trying to remain relevant with you guys who have played more recently than me.
• 33:43
  SPEAKER_02: Well, I'd I love that you mentioned that, man, because we're all looking at you as as the guy that is the front and center, just leading this pack, and and you are doing an unbelievable job, man.
• 33:54
  SPEAKER_02: We we are so thankful and appreciative, not only for for your friendship and what you do on camera, but um what you're doing for obviously the sport and whole.
• 34:03
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, obviously, you know, you you talk about soccer in this country, whether it's the league and and changing and taking a little bit of risk, but uh obviously there's been uh uh some big news over the last day uh with Mauricio Pachatino and the U.S.
• 34:19
  SPEAKER_02: national team.
• 34:20
  SPEAKER_02: And we you mentioned how it finished with Belgium and that performance.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_02: It it left uh uh certainly a sour taste in our mouth uh in terms of just kind of the the performance because the the team had set the bar so high throughout the tournament, right?
• 34:35
  SPEAKER_02: And and their performances were so good.
• 34:37
  SPEAKER_02: Um but I I just have to ask, man.
• 34:39
  SPEAKER_02: I listen, I'll I'll I'll give you my my point.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, I'm excited.
• 34:44
  SPEAKER_02: I'm excited for the future of this team.
• 34:45
  SPEAKER_02: I'm excited for Mauricio Pachotino and and where he he could take this team.
• 34:50
  SPEAKER_02: Um, but I just wanted to get your thoughts as well.
• 34:54
  SPEAKER_00: I'm excited to have Mauricio Pochettino back.
• 34:57
  SPEAKER_00: I think you need as a national team coach a full cycle.
• 35:01
  SPEAKER_00: I I firmly believe that.
• 35:03
  SPEAKER_00: And that that's the four years to develop the player pool, uh, to develop the culture, quite frankly, because I think he spent the good part of a year and a half trying to create the type of team culture, the type of connection with the fans, the type of style of play, uh, the cohesiveness and the energy that is necessary for the national team.
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_00: But I think what he brought back was just a different expectation and level of standards for what it means to represent the national team.
• 35:31
  SPEAKER_00: And it's not that Greg Burrhalter didn't.
• 35:34
  SPEAKER_00: I think what Greg did was perfect for that moment in time where he had to almost father a generation of players that were part of some of, but not really the ones that ended up playing the majority, coming off the greatest failure in the U.S.
• 35:50
  SPEAKER_00: national team's recent modern history, where we didn't qualify for the World Cup in 2018.
• 35:55
  SPEAKER_00: So then he had to empower this young generation of the Polisics, the McKenney's, the the Tyler Adams, these guys to make them feel loved, to make them feel a part of a team that they were important, but more importantly, that they couldn't they could perform on the field.
• 36:10
  SPEAKER_00: That's what he did, but then what ended up happening, I think, by the second cycle was that there was no accountability within that team uh at the very highest level.
• 36:19
  SPEAKER_00: So what I'm excited for, Mauricio Pochettino, now, is a continuation of what we did in the World Cup.
• 36:27
  SPEAKER_00: But now it's about pushing this team to a level of mentality and quality and the style of play that we can compete with the best teams in the world, because that's what it's about.
• 36:39
  SPEAKER_00: It's not about winning gold cups.
• 36:41
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, if we get a joint Copa America uh coming in two years, that's gonna be for the US to make a statement to compete against the Brazil's, the Argentinas, the uh the South American teams, the Colombias, and in the biggest games.
• 36:54
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's about that now.
• 36:56
  SPEAKER_00: So now it becomes about results for me for Mauricio Pochettino.
• 37:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's always about results in this business.
• 37:02
  SPEAKER_00: We know that.
• 37:03
  SPEAKER_00: It was about performing in the World Cup.
• 37:04
  SPEAKER_00: And I think he did it in a way that still at the end of the day, I look back on that and say it was a very positive tournament.
• 37:11
  SPEAKER_00: The game against the Belgium team was a major letdown.
• 37:14
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that'll be a blip on his resume.
• 37:16
  SPEAKER_00: And for him now, it's to take that to the next level and have people forget about that game.
• 37:21
  SPEAKER_00: And that's going to be in 2030, quite frankly, or in or in the in the Copa America.
• 37:25
  SPEAKER_00: But the other thing I think for Pochettino, that if you're getting paid that amount of money and you're the head of US soccer and you're the face of it, your number one objective and primary is to coach the national team.
• 37:36
  SPEAKER_00: But I do still think there is a big part of that of setting the tone and the culture for everything below that from a national team perspective and having involvement with youth national teams, uh, finding ways to challenge us.
• 37:50
  SPEAKER_00: Look, one of the things I've said, Goose, is I would love for our youth 13, 14, 15s to go to a residency and live in Spain and England for an entire year and train there and play there and travel around Europe and play against the best teams and the best countries in the world.
• 38:06
  SPEAKER_00: Because I think at that age, if you're 13 and 14 in the US, you're already the best player.
• 38:11
  SPEAKER_00: You're not, you're not going to be getting better competition on a on a daily, weekly basis.
• 38:15
  SPEAKER_00: So I think for now, let's get, let's go do that.
• 38:18
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go live in South America for a year.
• 38:20
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go get our butts kicked in in Argentina and Colombia and experience different styles of play.
• 38:25
  SPEAKER_00: And I just think we have to start thinking outside the box a little bit when it comes to youth development.
• 38:30
  SPEAKER_00: And so I would love to see that from Pochettino.
• 38:32
  SPEAKER_00: We don't have any depth at the national team level.
• 38:34
  SPEAKER_00: And I think we have to continue to, why don't we have 16, 17, 18-year-olds pushing into our national team?
• 38:41
  SPEAKER_00: We just had two 19-year-olds starting for Spain in the World Cup final.
• 38:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Gilberto Mora in Mexico, 17-year-old.
• 38:47
  SPEAKER_00: The kid is a stud.
• 38:48
  SPEAKER_00: We need our guys now being tested on the very best level to show that they can compete.
• 38:54
  SPEAKER_00: And then we need the mentality, I think, more so from the very top level for our guys not to walk on the field against Belgium and be scared, but instead be like, we are the United States and we can play with you guys.
• 39:05
  SPEAKER_00: And that's that's gonna be the I think the greatest challenge and how we're gonna judge this next four years for Mauricio Pochettino.
• 39:11
  SPEAKER_02: I love that, man.
• 39:12
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, when you look back at our national team, and we touched on a little bit, right?
• 39:16
  SPEAKER_02: But there was certainly this understanding from the the first team into the Olympic team, into the youth national teams.
• 39:22
  SPEAKER_02: And there is a certain amount of responsibility that that falls on the national team manager of the full team to then say, right, this is how it's going to, we're gonna bring younger players into the group and they're gonna understand what it means to be a part of the first team, understand how we want to play and what that culture is.
• 39:40
  SPEAKER_02: And and that's certainly part of that responsibility when when you are at the top.
• 39:43
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, as as someone, Stu, that is at the very top of club ownership, you know, you you certainly have that that that responsibility for Majorca.
• 39:54
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, what what how did you get involved in that, dude?
• 39:58
  SPEAKER_02: Uh and listen, I I think I know a little bit of the backstory, but I mean, how how's that been for you?
• 40:04
  SPEAKER_00: It's been one of the most rewarding experiences in my life, honestly, because it came about via a pickup soccer game in LA that I used to play in with Steve Nash.
• 40:13
  SPEAKER_00: And Steve has become uh my best friend in life, and he is obviously a world-renowned, all-timer Hall of Famer basketball player, but also a huge soccer fan.
• 40:26
  SPEAKER_00: And the ownership group from the Phoenix Suns, where he played the majority of his career, they called him and said, Look, you we're interested in buying a soccer team in Spain.
• 40:35
  SPEAKER_00: Are you interested?
• 40:36
  SPEAKER_00: And Steve said, I would love to.
• 40:38
  SPEAKER_00: I'd also love to bring uh a buddy of mine along with me.
• 40:42
  SPEAKER_00: And so he called me, said, Hey man, I think your uh your expertise in this field, your your history, your background would be additive.
• 40:50
  SPEAKER_00: Let's have dinner with the ownership group and see if uh this is something we want to do.
• 40:54
  SPEAKER_00: At that time, we were looking at clubs all across Europe, and then we landed on Mallorca.
• 40:58
  SPEAKER_00: Now, if you've been to Mallorca, you understand why we picked Mallorca.
• 41:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's one of the best places in the world to visit from a vacation standpoint, and it's just a beautiful island, great people.
• 41:09
  SPEAKER_00: So that's been now this is the 11th year we've been involved.
• 41:11
  SPEAKER_00: We actually just got relegated last year, which I think speaks to part of what the project is.
• 41:16
  SPEAKER_00: We we took over the team in the second division, we went down to the third straight away, then we went second first, back to second, and then first for six straight seasons, and we were just relegated this last year.
• 41:27
  SPEAKER_00: Now, relegation's challenging.
• 41:30
  SPEAKER_00: I I think it's it's something eventually I think we will get to at this at this point in this country with the sport.
• 41:37
  SPEAKER_00: I think once the sport has matured a little bit more, you'll start to see, and I hope, the game open up uh and it becomes more of a meritocracy where you you have to win to be the best.
• 41:48
  SPEAKER_00: And if you are the best, you're in the top division.
• 41:51
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I think look, that's for another podcast.
• 41:53
  SPEAKER_00: You and I can discuss ProRel.
• 41:55
  SPEAKER_00: But I think one of the things I love about it in Spain is that the culture there, it is football.
• 42:03
  SPEAKER_00: Football is religion, it is, it is life.
• 42:05
  SPEAKER_00: And on a small island, you have to understand too the challenges of an academy and recruiting players from the big island, because otherwise you're, you know, you're just part of this uh this small community and pool of players.
• 42:18
  SPEAKER_00: And we take pride in our academy.
• 42:20
  SPEAKER_00: We've developed some great players over the year, but we've had a real connection with the fans, and I think that is is really important.
• 42:27
  SPEAKER_00: And we found that out again once we got relegated.
• 42:30
  SPEAKER_00: It was really difficult for people because we've been in the top division now for six seasons, and you get used to that.
• 42:35
  SPEAKER_00: Well, we we have announced that recently we've got over 19,000 season ticket holders for this coming season in the second division, and that's only a minimal drop-off from the league.
• 42:46
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that that's what tells you is that we've really developed a bond with our fans that they feel a part of that.
• 42:53
  SPEAKER_00: In my perspective, look, my my role has been most sort of an advisor to ownership.
• 42:58
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm part of the ownership group.
• 43:00
  SPEAKER_00: I invested money in the group, but I I'm mostly involved on the higher level of decision making and setting cultural things and uh talking to our sporting director and our club CEO and our club president about big decisions and transfers and how we want to be, what we want to look like identity-wise, coaching-wise, interviewing coaches that we hire, uh, getting to the island.
• 43:23
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's the number one thing I've I've learned as part of this.
• 43:26
  SPEAKER_00: When you try to make decisions from thousands and thousands of miles away, you can't make those decisions unless you understand the people and uh you understand what's going on in a day-to-day basis.
• 43:38
  SPEAKER_00: And it's not telling those people to do without being there.
• 43:40
  SPEAKER_00: It's it's it's being an ear to those people, but also showing that you care and visiting and being a part of immersing yourself in the culture.
• 43:48
  SPEAKER_00: And so that's that's been a nice part where I've said, Hey, honey, we've got to travel to Majorca again this year because you know, we need we need to go check on the team.
• 43:56
  SPEAKER_00: Uh it's been fun to do that with Steve because he's again a best friend.
• 44:00
  SPEAKER_00: Our families are close.
• 44:01
  SPEAKER_00: We, you know, we go, we go stay on the island.
• 44:03
  SPEAKER_00: We go visit training.
• 44:04
  SPEAKER_00: We try to play with the team when we can.
• 44:06
  SPEAKER_00: And it's a ton of fun, man.
• 44:07
  SPEAKER_02: I love it, man.
• 44:08
  SPEAKER_02: I love it.
• 44:09
  SPEAKER_02: Story, listen, I I appreciate you jumping on and sharing all of your stories, all of your wisdom, your knowledge.
• 44:17
  SPEAKER_02: You are leading this pack here in the United States, all over the world.
• 44:22
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, your uh impact on the game itself has been unbelievable.
• 44:28
  SPEAKER_02: And I can assess you are such a good dude.
• 44:30
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, one that I'm proud to call my my friend, uh, former teammate.
• 44:35
  SPEAKER_02: And I can't thank you enough for jumping on the show.
• 44:38
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, I'll let you get back to relaxing lakeside and and enjoying a few cocktails.
• 44:43
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and yeah, man, uh I I appreciate you.
• 44:47
  SPEAKER_02: We're gonna have a uh a follow-up episode at some point.
• 44:49
  SPEAKER_02: We got a lot more to talk about.
• 44:51
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, but yeah, man, I appreciate you.
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_00: Dude, I love you, man.
• 44:54
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, appreciate you.
• 44:55
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for having me on.
• 44:56
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, I uh uh I always value our friendships and our team team camaraderie.
• 45:02
  SPEAKER_00: You're the uh the life of the locker room.
• 45:04
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I'll share all the pictures with your producer of you after uh, you know, with your your your hairy beard, the songs we've got about you.
• 45:11
  SPEAKER_00: I love it.
• 45:12
  SPEAKER_00: I love it.
• 45:12
  SPEAKER_00: I think what I realized is at the end of this, man, is all that we take away at the very end is our our memories and our friendships.
• 45:18
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it speaks volumes to the teams that we were on and the cultures we were a part of that all of us are still so close to this day, man.
• 45:25
  SPEAKER_00: So appreciate you, brother.
• 45:27
  SPEAKER_00: Happy belated birthday, dude.
• 45:28
  SPEAKER_02: Love it.
• 45:29
  SPEAKER_02: Go enjoy.
• 45:31
  SPEAKER_02: All right, welcome back to the goose and show.
• 45:34
  SPEAKER_02: We have the Home Depot mailbag.
• 45:36
  SPEAKER_02: Home Depot always delivered on time.
• 45:38
  SPEAKER_02: And because I'm solo, gonna get a little bit of help from our control room.
• 45:43
  SPEAKER_02: So, guys, welcome in.
• 45:45
  SPEAKER_02: Big thank you, big shout out to Home Depot.
• 45:47
  SPEAKER_01: All right, Brad.
• 45:48
  SPEAKER_01: We've got some good questions here in the Home Depot mailbox.
• 45:54
  SPEAKER_01: First one, which teammate has been the easiest to yell at?
• 46:00
  SPEAKER_01: And who could yell right back at you?
• 46:03
  SPEAKER_01: Uh you know what?
• 46:06
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, there's certainly been a few that that are easy to yell at.
• 46:10
  SPEAKER_02: Um and I don't mind the yelling back as well.
• 46:14
  SPEAKER_02: And so the the first one that comes to mind is former Atlanta United teammate and captain Mr.
• 46:21
  SPEAKER_02: Michael Parkhurst.
• 46:23
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, you know, there's certainly an uh a respect and an understanding between goalkeeper and defender when out on the field.
• 46:30
  SPEAKER_02: Obviously, as a goalkeeper, you're giving instruction, trying to give information as much as you can because you see the entire field in front of you.
• 46:37
  SPEAKER_02: Uh and and there's certainly times when you're yelling at a defender to do this or do that, and they turn around and they just they just tell you, listen, I'm gonna need you to shut up.
• 46:46
  SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna need you to be quiet back there.
• 46:47
  SPEAKER_02: Stop yelling at me.
• 46:49
  SPEAKER_02: And at the same time, when you then make a mistake or or concede a goal, the the words of, well, you save the ball already, uh, certainly would come out of his mouth once or twice.
• 47:00
  SPEAKER_02: Uh, but again, it it was all for the greater good.
• 47:02
  SPEAKER_02: And so the the first name, uh, like I mentioned, I think would be Michael Parkhurst.
• 47:08
  SPEAKER_02: A lot of times it's you're yelling stuff that's not even being heard by defenders.
• 47:12
  SPEAKER_02: They're like, What is this guy yelling about back there?
• 47:14
  SPEAKER_02: But it helps you stay engaged in the game as a goalkeeper.
• 47:16
  SPEAKER_01: I was gonna ask that.
• 47:18
  SPEAKER_01: Sometimes you're just screaming things just to scream things, right?
• 47:20
  SPEAKER_01: I notice that with goalkeepers a lot.
• 47:22
  SPEAKER_01: They're just you're just yelling just to yell.
• 47:24
  SPEAKER_02: Well, it it again, it helps you stay involved in the game, mentally clued in.
• 47:28
  SPEAKER_02: And so, you know, there's times I'm yelling stuff and I'm thinking, there's no way they're hearing me say this or that with 50, 60, 70,000 fans in the building, and um then all of a sudden they get it, you know, a little bit closer and they turn around and be like, Will you stop yelling all the time?
• 47:45
  SPEAKER_01: I think this is kind of a good segue to uh this next question here.
• 47:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um, what have you ever blamed a defender for a goal?
• 47:56
  SPEAKER_01: It was actually your fault.
• 47:58
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I don't I don't think I've blamed the defender if it was clearly my fault.
• 48:07
  SPEAKER_02: Um, listen, the thing about a team sport is everyone has a part to play, everyone has a responsibility in in certain actions.
• 48:15
  SPEAKER_02: Um and when conceding a goal, more times than not, it it can certainly be stopped at different areas on the pitch.
• 48:24
  SPEAKER_02: Um, and ultimately the goalkeeper is there to make saves.
• 48:27
  SPEAKER_02: And so when the goalkeeper has a blunder, which I've had plenty, I hold my I hold my hands up.
• 48:33
  SPEAKER_02: And, you know, as my kids uh like to remind me and and show me every now and then on YouTube the the different blunders that I've certainly made over the course of my career.
• 48:42
  SPEAKER_02: Um, you know, it's it's hard to then turn around and blame the guys in front of you when when you're on a team sport, you've got to hold up your end of the bargain, you're you gotta carry your weight and and come up with uh with big saves and big moments.
• 48:55
  SPEAKER_01: I think you just triggered my brain for a couple of questions for another mailbag about maybe some howlers and um there's definitely cakes going the wrong way.
• 49:03
  SPEAKER_02: That might be an entire episode, Maddie.
• 49:06
  SPEAKER_01: Last one.
• 49:08
  SPEAKER_01: Uh did you have any bloopers or mistakes while broadcasting the World Cup on Fox this summer?
• 49:15
  SPEAKER_01: And did you have any close calls with bad language?
• 49:18
  SPEAKER_02: Uh good question.
• 49:20
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I don't think I had any close calls with language.
• 49:25
  SPEAKER_02: Being on the digital side of things for Fox, I wouldn't say bad language was encouraged, but it certainly wasn't you know frowned upon.
• 49:35
  SPEAKER_02: It it it it if it came out, it came out and it it was it it it is what it is.
• 49:40
  SPEAKER_02: Uh and so uh but I don't think I had any had any of those run-ins.
• 49:44
  SPEAKER_02: I certainly had uh again a few bloopers.
• 49:48
  SPEAKER_02: Uh one instance that I remember off the top of my head, we were talking about Spain and we're talking about the goalkeeping situation and Unay Simon uh for Spain, who obviously ended up winning the Golden Glove and the World Cup.
• 50:01
  SPEAKER_02: Um I refer to him as Unay Emery, the manager at Aston Villa.
• 50:08
  SPEAKER_02: And so uh as that uh slip of the tongue, I was able to correct myself on air, but I think it happened certainly once, potentially twice.
• 50:18
  SPEAKER_02: Uh but in a live show, the show must go on.
• 50:22
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it it's funny you mentioned uh being able to say a little bit more on digital.
• 50:28
  SPEAKER_01: I think being doing this a long time, the the thing that uh on air people quickly learn is that you should pretend the mic is always hot and you're always live.
• 50:38
  SPEAKER_01: I remember some early days where you're in the editing phone, you know, oh man, that went on air.
• 50:43
  SPEAKER_01: Uh that the broadcaster or the talent didn't know that we were live on that.
• 50:47
  SPEAKER_01: So good, good that you could get away with it on digital, but something as you're getting into this a little more, that always just pretend the mic's always hot and you're always live.
• 50:56
  SPEAKER_02: Always until until you're about 25 feet away from it.
• 50:59
  SPEAKER_02: You know, I uh I I don't take that for granted.
• 51:02
  SPEAKER_02: Always always have the idea that the the mic is hot and careful what you say.
• 51:07
  SPEAKER_01: Well, goose, good job doing solo on the mailbag.
• 51:10
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks, Home Depot, as always, uh, for the mailbag segment.
• 51:15
  SPEAKER_01: And we'll uh we'll maybe we'll get Joe to answer him.
• 51:18
  SPEAKER_01: He'll do a better job than us next time.
• 51:20
  SPEAKER_02: You guys crush it.
• 51:21
  SPEAKER_02: Always grateful for your always thankful for your help.
• 51:23
  SPEAKER_02: Grateful for you guys.
• 51:25
  SPEAKER_02: Joe, we'll see you next week, dude.