WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.320 --> 00:00:04.599 RSL will be taking on Toronto, coming up a rough 2 00:00:04.879 --> 00:00:09.160 result over the weekends against Nashville with a late penalty 3 00:00:09.240 --> 00:00:11.640 kick and stoppage time after taking a lead off of 4 00:00:11.720 --> 00:00:12.720 Don mark suit goal. 5 00:00:13.279 --> 00:00:15.240 Our next guest the sporting. 6 00:00:14.800 --> 00:00:17.679 Director from the club who drew the short straw again 7 00:00:17.760 --> 00:00:20.879 this week, and Kurt Schmidt is forced to join the program. 8 00:00:21.239 --> 00:00:22.800 Kurt, Happy Monday, Sir, How are you? 9 00:00:24.120 --> 00:00:26.800 Yeah, I'm good. I'm good. Sorry, Yeah, I guess I'm 10 00:00:26.800 --> 00:00:28.640 being forced, but good to be here. 11 00:00:28.679 --> 00:00:30.920 No, it's good to have you. Do you like VAR? 12 00:00:31.160 --> 00:00:32.880 Are you a fan? Are you a proponent? 13 00:00:34.159 --> 00:00:38.640 Oh? Man? Hitting the questions that might get me in trouble? First, No, 14 00:00:40.200 --> 00:00:44.200 I really don't like VAR, and more specifically, the ways 15 00:00:44.520 --> 00:00:48.320 it's so often used. I think when it can determine 16 00:00:48.320 --> 00:00:51.600 things that are clearly black and white beyond doubt, I 17 00:00:51.640 --> 00:00:55.640 think then that's useful. But in a lot of situations 18 00:00:55.679 --> 00:00:59.439 it's an opportunity to inject just another level of subjectivity 19 00:00:59.479 --> 00:01:01.880 onto things. And I am not a big fan of that. 20 00:01:02.960 --> 00:01:05.359 What changes would you make to it? 21 00:01:05.760 --> 00:01:08.079 You know, because I understand why it can be a 22 00:01:08.120 --> 00:01:12.239 valuable tool, But if if Don Garber called you, Skurt, 23 00:01:12.239 --> 00:01:13.879 what should we do with the R the VAR. 24 00:01:13.959 --> 00:01:14.480 What would you. 25 00:01:14.439 --> 00:01:17.599 Say, Yeah, I think there's a couple other leagues that 26 00:01:17.680 --> 00:01:20.519 do it a bit differently. You know, one way that 27 00:01:20.599 --> 00:01:23.280 you could tweak it is you take it out of 28 00:01:23.319 --> 00:01:25.560 the referee's hands in the game, which I know a 29 00:01:25.560 --> 00:01:27.920 lot of people don't like. But if you if you 30 00:01:28.040 --> 00:01:31.560 let the var make the call, who's not you know, 31 00:01:31.680 --> 00:01:34.280 in in the emotions of the game, you know, getting 32 00:01:34.359 --> 00:01:36.840 yelled at by the crowd, getting pressured and also doesn't 33 00:01:36.840 --> 00:01:39.280 have to you know, put his ego aside and admit 34 00:01:39.319 --> 00:01:42.079 that he made a mistake. I think that could help 35 00:01:42.120 --> 00:01:45.640 get things correct if you just remove that that element 36 00:01:45.680 --> 00:01:48.159 of things. I think that's one way. I think, you know, 37 00:01:48.200 --> 00:01:50.239 another way, like I said, if there's ways to make 38 00:01:50.280 --> 00:01:53.480 things that are you know, clear, black and white, objectively 39 00:01:53.680 --> 00:01:56.799 true and false, whether that's you know, the way off 40 00:01:56.840 --> 00:01:59.120 sidelines have been used in England at times, much to 41 00:01:59.640 --> 00:02:02.120 a lot of people's sugar in it's at least accurate. 42 00:02:02.760 --> 00:02:05.000 I think those are some some ways that could probably 43 00:02:05.000 --> 00:02:05.480 improve it. 44 00:02:06.560 --> 00:02:10.240 So I will admit to not seeing in real time 45 00:02:10.639 --> 00:02:13.280 the Berea goal that was called back after a really 46 00:02:13.280 --> 00:02:16.080 good cross by Mark Zuke. What what happened there? And 47 00:02:16.240 --> 00:02:18.080 upon review, did they get it right? 48 00:02:20.439 --> 00:02:24.520 You know, I don't know, because there wasn't an angle 49 00:02:24.599 --> 00:02:27.560 that was right down the line, you know, looking at 50 00:02:27.599 --> 00:02:30.240 the angle, you know, can I can you say that 51 00:02:30.360 --> 00:02:33.360 it was probably or it could have been offside, or 52 00:02:33.400 --> 00:02:38.319 it was probably outside maybe, But the standard for overturning 53 00:02:38.400 --> 00:02:42.280 call is it's supposed to clear an obvious error and 54 00:02:42.080 --> 00:02:44.560 and that you know, that's to overturn the call on 55 00:02:44.599 --> 00:02:47.479 the field. So essentially it grants the call on the 56 00:02:47.520 --> 00:02:50.599 field in the moment a lot of weight, right, It 57 00:02:50.680 --> 00:02:53.560 takes a lot to overturn that call. And so if 58 00:02:53.599 --> 00:02:57.039 the call in the moment was that it was not offside, 59 00:02:58.159 --> 00:03:01.319 I think it becomes very difficult from from some of 60 00:03:01.319 --> 00:03:05.680 the angles provided to say it was clearly offside where 61 00:03:06.039 --> 00:03:08.919 versus it could have been or was probably offside. And 62 00:03:09.199 --> 00:03:11.120 it's not just that goal. I think that goal is 63 00:03:11.120 --> 00:03:13.400 an example of a lot of situations that are very similar. 64 00:03:14.159 --> 00:03:16.319 But you know, you find a lot of these situations, 65 00:03:16.360 --> 00:03:19.560 and I think the penalty call was another one where 66 00:03:20.080 --> 00:03:23.280 you know it was a really maybe soft penalty. But 67 00:03:23.479 --> 00:03:27.319 again the weight, the weight given to the initial call 68 00:03:27.400 --> 00:03:29.680 on the field is such that you know, when you 69 00:03:29.680 --> 00:03:31.240 look at it look at that on video you say, 70 00:03:31.280 --> 00:03:33.599 well he definitely, you can't say he definitely didn't, you know, 71 00:03:33.719 --> 00:03:35.520 touch him or foul him or whatever it might be. 72 00:03:35.960 --> 00:03:37.759 And so you give weight to the call on the field. 73 00:03:37.800 --> 00:03:41.599 So it it worked against this in that situation and 74 00:03:41.639 --> 00:03:44.599 the other situation. You know, I thought maybe the weight 75 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:46.000 of the call on the field should have been a 76 00:03:46.000 --> 00:03:46.520 little heavier. 77 00:03:46.919 --> 00:03:50.080 So you know, you reference the term soft penalty. 78 00:03:50.240 --> 00:03:53.159 I'll take it a step further because it was clear 79 00:03:53.240 --> 00:03:55.919 that Mouktar and maybe this is just a veteran move 80 00:03:56.000 --> 00:04:00.319 because certainly NBA players and NFL players drop penalties by 81 00:04:00.520 --> 00:04:02.560 or pretending like they're being held. But it was clear 82 00:04:02.599 --> 00:04:06.800 that he saw that Nelson was kind of beside him. 83 00:04:06.960 --> 00:04:09.360 And then from my vantage point, Kurt, I'm not trying 84 00:04:09.360 --> 00:04:12.599 to be a homer. I felt like Mouktar created the 85 00:04:12.680 --> 00:04:14.319 contact and then just fell. 86 00:04:14.439 --> 00:04:16.279 It was just a dive. Tell me, tell me what 87 00:04:16.360 --> 00:04:16.720 you saw. 88 00:04:18.120 --> 00:04:20.680 Yeah, I mean, I think that's a pretty accurate description. 89 00:04:20.800 --> 00:04:24.720 I don't think he's he's making a play on the 90 00:04:24.720 --> 00:04:26.920 ball or is within reach of the ball. I think 91 00:04:26.959 --> 00:04:29.600 he does have a and like you said, it's a 92 00:04:29.680 --> 00:04:32.160 veteran play. He has a pretty good awareness of of 93 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:35.040 where the defender is and where Nelson is and he 94 00:04:35.079 --> 00:04:37.279 puts his body in a place that's going to cause 95 00:04:37.360 --> 00:04:39.319 him a problem, and it did, and you know, he 96 00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:41.720 got he got lucky or you know, he did the 97 00:04:41.800 --> 00:04:44.560 right he I don't know if I was gonna say 98 00:04:44.600 --> 00:04:46.879 full referee, but I don't know if that's a proper 99 00:04:46.920 --> 00:04:49.040 way to say it. But yes, he he got what 100 00:04:49.079 --> 00:04:51.000 he wanted and he got the penalty. And again when 101 00:04:51.000 --> 00:04:53.839 you when you look at that in review, uh, it's 102 00:04:53.839 --> 00:04:57.079 not it's not clear. It's not obvious that he didn't 103 00:04:57.319 --> 00:05:00.120 you know, foul him necessarily because there was contact and 104 00:05:00.160 --> 00:05:02.480 the player did go down and you know, so it's 105 00:05:02.519 --> 00:05:05.519 it's really hard to overturn that situation on review. And yeah, 106 00:05:05.519 --> 00:05:07.319 it was. It was savvy by him in the moment. 107 00:05:07.439 --> 00:05:09.920 It's just you kind of wish, you know, when when 108 00:05:09.920 --> 00:05:13.199 the players, when a player's running away from goal, when 109 00:05:13.240 --> 00:05:15.759 he can't you know, touch the ball or play the 110 00:05:15.800 --> 00:05:19.000 ball within his grasp, you'd hope the referee would have 111 00:05:19.000 --> 00:05:22.639 a little more discussion in those moments, especially especially given 112 00:05:22.639 --> 00:05:25.720 the time of the game and how impactful, you know, 113 00:05:25.759 --> 00:05:27.399 a penalty at that moment of the game could be. 114 00:05:28.480 --> 00:05:29.839 So when you look at the numbers. 115 00:05:29.879 --> 00:05:32.160 Oh, let me ask you this, Are you a fan 116 00:05:32.720 --> 00:05:35.000 or do you believe in possession? 117 00:05:35.279 --> 00:05:36.160 Telling a story? 118 00:05:36.199 --> 00:05:40.959 Because you guys have fifty possession compared to their forty six. 119 00:05:41.279 --> 00:05:43.439 I have some other numbers I want to throw out 120 00:05:43.480 --> 00:05:46.000 at you. But I've heard this debated as to whether 121 00:05:46.079 --> 00:05:48.959 or not it actually means anything if a team has 122 00:05:49.079 --> 00:05:50.879 more possession throughout the course of the game. 123 00:05:50.920 --> 00:05:52.439 But are you a fan of that stat? 124 00:05:54.879 --> 00:05:57.680 I mean yes, And though as a as a pure indicator, 125 00:05:57.759 --> 00:06:00.360 like it's not correlated with winning games. So from that sandpoint, 126 00:06:00.480 --> 00:06:04.560 just cold possession, just raw possession, doesn't doesn't really illuminate anything. 127 00:06:04.600 --> 00:06:08.240 I think if you're playing most most statistics in soccer 128 00:06:08.279 --> 00:06:11.120 do a good job of describing what's happening rather than predicting. 129 00:06:11.519 --> 00:06:14.439 So it's going to tell you, you know, this team 130 00:06:14.639 --> 00:06:17.199 is is playing in a way that's going to control 131 00:06:17.279 --> 00:06:19.240 the ball for a majority of the game and more 132 00:06:19.279 --> 00:06:21.720 often than their opponent. And now that is the stat 133 00:06:21.759 --> 00:06:23.439 that we look at because we do like to be 134 00:06:23.639 --> 00:06:26.879 more of a possession based, possession heavy team. But there's 135 00:06:26.920 --> 00:06:29.560 a lot of other metrics that tell us that that 136 00:06:29.639 --> 00:06:32.079 possession is happening in the right ways and in the 137 00:06:32.120 --> 00:06:34.879 right parts of the field, you know, because again passing 138 00:06:34.879 --> 00:06:37.680 it around in areas that are easy to possess the 139 00:06:37.720 --> 00:06:40.120 ball and don't help us. But are we are we 140 00:06:40.160 --> 00:06:42.360 playing balls between the lines? Are we getting into the 141 00:06:42.439 --> 00:06:45.240 right zones in the final third? You know, those are 142 00:06:45.279 --> 00:06:47.040 things we look at on top of just the raw 143 00:06:47.079 --> 00:06:49.279 possession to see if our game model is being followed. 144 00:06:49.560 --> 00:06:53.240 Other teams play game models where where possession is irrelevant 145 00:06:53.319 --> 00:06:55.480 to it, and you know they're trying to you know, 146 00:06:55.519 --> 00:06:58.480 they're trying to hit you in transition or or draw 147 00:06:58.519 --> 00:07:00.240 you out or whatever it might be. And so it's 148 00:07:00.319 --> 00:07:03.079 it's more descriptive than predictive. 149 00:07:03.079 --> 00:07:06.560 Expected goals Nashville three point one, RSL one point two. 150 00:07:06.680 --> 00:07:08.079 They had twenty two shots. 151 00:07:08.800 --> 00:07:11.600 You guys had twelve, seven on target for them, five 152 00:07:11.639 --> 00:07:15.439 for you. And the expected goals, I mean another you know, 153 00:07:15.480 --> 00:07:17.959 I know it's a loss, and I know it's two goals. 154 00:07:17.680 --> 00:07:19.759 Allowed, but another great game from cabral. 155 00:07:20.600 --> 00:07:23.040 So which of the numbers that you believe in or 156 00:07:23.079 --> 00:07:26.720 you lean into most most actually tell the story about 157 00:07:26.759 --> 00:07:27.839 what happened against. 158 00:07:27.639 --> 00:07:32.680 Nashville, honestly, I mean expected goals is one you know 159 00:07:32.759 --> 00:07:36.319 you've just brought it up. Is one that doesn't tell 160 00:07:36.399 --> 00:07:39.399 the whole story always, but it does tell it does 161 00:07:39.480 --> 00:07:41.639 tell a good part of it. And you know, it's 162 00:07:41.639 --> 00:07:44.959 one where you know you might be having a good possession, 163 00:07:44.959 --> 00:07:46.240 you might get any good parts of the field, you 164 00:07:46.319 --> 00:07:49.240 might be creating good chances, but until you get the 165 00:07:49.279 --> 00:07:51.839 shot off, you know, there's no there's no XCU if 166 00:07:51.839 --> 00:07:54.399 there's no shot, and there's not going to be a 167 00:07:54.399 --> 00:07:56.720 goal if there's no shot. So you know, it's one 168 00:07:56.759 --> 00:07:59.160 that I find relevant. And for whatever reason, I think 169 00:07:59.160 --> 00:08:01.879 it's you know, our x G was too low because 170 00:08:01.879 --> 00:08:03.600 we had this great chance but he couldn't get a 171 00:08:03.600 --> 00:08:06.720 shot off. Well, it don't really matter because if we 172 00:08:06.720 --> 00:08:09.160 didn't shoot, and we've worked in the score anyway, So 173 00:08:09.279 --> 00:08:11.600 without the shot, you know it's it's relevant. So x 174 00:08:11.759 --> 00:08:14.279 x G is something that that we do rely upon. 175 00:08:14.360 --> 00:08:16.800 And you know, over long enough sample size, a long 176 00:08:16.920 --> 00:08:19.839 enough you know, sample of games, you know it can 177 00:08:19.879 --> 00:08:23.160 tell you. It can tell you if you're if you're 178 00:08:24.040 --> 00:08:27.079 being more dangerous than your opponents. Essentially is what it 179 00:08:27.160 --> 00:08:30.000 is in any one game. You know, as it correlates 180 00:08:30.000 --> 00:08:32.840 with the actual goal sport, it's it's all over the place, 181 00:08:32.879 --> 00:08:35.279 but over over a larger sample of time, I can 182 00:08:35.279 --> 00:08:37.679 tell you if you're creating quality chances and if you're 183 00:08:37.720 --> 00:08:39.559 limiting the opponent from creating chances. 184 00:08:39.759 --> 00:08:42.559 Since I brought it up, you know, and we'll get 185 00:08:42.559 --> 00:08:44.840 to what could potentially be next. I know you're really 186 00:08:44.840 --> 00:08:47.720 excited for that portion of this conversation, but I you know, 187 00:08:47.879 --> 00:08:50.840 the the Rafa, the Cabral signing has to be something 188 00:08:50.879 --> 00:08:53.960 that you feel very good about throughout the portion of 189 00:08:54.000 --> 00:08:56.200 the first half of the calendar. First portion of the 190 00:08:56.200 --> 00:08:58.000 counter is what I should say. And you know, the 191 00:08:58.039 --> 00:09:00.120 goal is allowed are a little bit conflated because as 192 00:09:00.159 --> 00:09:02.440 you allowed four against San Jose and then three against 193 00:09:02.440 --> 00:09:04.279 San Diego, and I know we're not allowed to just 194 00:09:04.320 --> 00:09:07.440 throw those out, but if you do, it tells a 195 00:09:07.519 --> 00:09:10.360 much different story about who you haveing goal. What what's 196 00:09:10.399 --> 00:09:13.080 it been like to witness how he's played, and what 197 00:09:13.159 --> 00:09:16.519 has he meant so far to that locker room. 198 00:09:16.919 --> 00:09:19.360 I mean, look a lot like he's been very good. 199 00:09:20.080 --> 00:09:22.720 He's been a good goalkeeper, has been good in terms 200 00:09:22.720 --> 00:09:25.080 of his shot shopping, in his defensive play, he's been 201 00:09:25.120 --> 00:09:27.639 good with his feet, and he's been good in his 202 00:09:28.720 --> 00:09:30.840 in his role in our build up and our possession 203 00:09:31.480 --> 00:09:34.639 on the ball. So he's he's been really helpful in 204 00:09:34.799 --> 00:09:38.399 both sides, and in the locker room is where maybe 205 00:09:38.440 --> 00:09:40.919 he's he's the biggest help and he brings a lot 206 00:09:40.960 --> 00:09:45.399 of age and experience to the team into the club. 207 00:09:46.600 --> 00:09:48.639 You know, he he's a leader in the group. And 208 00:09:48.639 --> 00:09:51.879 even though he's new and he's he's played in some 209 00:09:51.919 --> 00:09:54.080 big leagues and he's he's played in a lot of 210 00:09:54.080 --> 00:09:58.399 different places, and so he knows what you know, what 211 00:09:58.480 --> 00:10:01.039 certain players may need in this or that moment. He 212 00:10:01.799 --> 00:10:04.519 knows when things are are meeting a standard, he knows 213 00:10:04.519 --> 00:10:06.639 when they're not, and he's not afraid to tell people 214 00:10:06.639 --> 00:10:07.039 about it. 215 00:10:08.159 --> 00:10:11.799 So when you look at where we're at now, you're 216 00:10:11.960 --> 00:10:14.519 tied with Seattle with nine points, you know, three five 217 00:10:14.600 --> 00:10:18.200 and zero, no no draws, a goal scored, thirteen goals allowed, 218 00:10:18.559 --> 00:10:21.399 tell me, Kurt, whether it's your analytics, the numbers you 219 00:10:21.399 --> 00:10:23.360 look at, or simply you, as a guy that's been 220 00:10:23.399 --> 00:10:25.639 around this game his entire life. 221 00:10:25.600 --> 00:10:28.360 What do you guys do well so far? And where 222 00:10:28.360 --> 00:10:29.240 do you need to improve? 223 00:10:31.279 --> 00:10:34.279 So I think we what we're doing well right now, 224 00:10:34.320 --> 00:10:36.919 I think is playing a little bit of a light 225 00:10:37.080 --> 00:10:39.360 version of what we did last year, and so we're 226 00:10:39.399 --> 00:10:42.960 respective of personnel choice and you know, roster building and 227 00:10:43.000 --> 00:10:44.960 all that. You know, I just look at what's happening 228 00:10:44.960 --> 00:10:48.600 on the field, and I feel like we're doing you know, 229 00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:51.879 what we're doing hints at what we did last year 230 00:10:51.919 --> 00:10:53.759 and what I thought brought us a lot of success. 231 00:10:54.000 --> 00:10:56.799 But we're not quite doing it with the same confidence, 232 00:10:56.799 --> 00:11:00.360 at the same high level and with enough regular already 233 00:11:00.480 --> 00:11:02.720 to be performing as well as we did last year. 234 00:11:02.759 --> 00:11:05.399 So we are, you know, more ball dominant, We are 235 00:11:05.440 --> 00:11:09.879 more possession heavy, you know, we we we can create chances. 236 00:11:09.919 --> 00:11:12.120 But you know, again everything is just is just to 237 00:11:12.159 --> 00:11:15.080 shade less than last year. And you know, one area 238 00:11:15.120 --> 00:11:19.600 where I think that we are falling the shortest relatives 239 00:11:19.600 --> 00:11:22.320 to last year is on the defensive side of the ball, 240 00:11:22.360 --> 00:11:25.279 where last year we did a really good job back 241 00:11:25.279 --> 00:11:27.919 to you know x G and actually conceded. We did 242 00:11:27.960 --> 00:11:30.360 a really good job of limiting the quality of the 243 00:11:30.360 --> 00:11:34.120 opponent's chances, and you know, this year, we we haven't. 244 00:11:34.200 --> 00:11:36.600 You know, so you mentioned Rafa, and it's it's tough 245 00:11:36.639 --> 00:11:40.200 on Rafa because you know, he he doesn't play as 246 00:11:40.240 --> 00:11:42.840 big a role in in limiting the chances he you know, 247 00:11:42.879 --> 00:11:45.360 he's kind of called into action once the once the 248 00:11:45.440 --> 00:11:47.559 chance occurs and he's got to he's got to do 249 00:11:47.600 --> 00:11:49.799 something about it. But you know, it's it's the group 250 00:11:49.840 --> 00:11:52.720 in front of him that you know that, and that's 251 00:11:52.759 --> 00:11:54.679 all ten, you know, ten guys in front of him 252 00:11:55.080 --> 00:11:57.519 that need to do the heavy lifting as it comes 253 00:11:57.559 --> 00:12:01.120 to keeping the opponent in safe areas and preventing them 254 00:12:01.159 --> 00:12:03.840 from getting really good looks. And we've got something that 255 00:12:03.919 --> 00:12:06.919 I know we're capable of, as we did last year, 256 00:12:07.759 --> 00:12:11.159 but we have not been doing it as high level. 257 00:12:11.879 --> 00:12:15.840 So talk to you, talked to Jason, talked to Pablo, 258 00:12:16.000 --> 00:12:18.799 talked to John Kimmel. I mean, you know, last year 259 00:12:18.919 --> 00:12:23.080 about this dynamic with Brian Vera after another incident where 260 00:12:23.120 --> 00:12:25.799 this time he you know, spin out a player forced 261 00:12:25.799 --> 00:12:29.480 to miss a portion of the playoffs, and that obviously 262 00:12:30.200 --> 00:12:32.799 hurts you guys a lot. But I think Kurt, and 263 00:12:32.840 --> 00:12:34.639 I want you to take us into this because I'm 264 00:12:34.639 --> 00:12:37.080 not in the locker room. I think he's been really 265 00:12:37.120 --> 00:12:39.960 really good this year and there's clearly talent there and 266 00:12:40.000 --> 00:12:42.279 I thought he handled Muktar really really well. 267 00:12:42.320 --> 00:12:43.799 What What would you say. 268 00:12:43.639 --> 00:12:46.559 About, you know, your thoughts on the way he's responded 269 00:12:46.639 --> 00:12:48.080 to what was not a good look for you at 270 00:12:48.080 --> 00:12:50.000 the club last year and how Vera's played so far 271 00:12:50.039 --> 00:12:50.399 this year. 272 00:12:52.200 --> 00:12:54.559 Yeah, we we had to sit him down, you know, 273 00:12:54.600 --> 00:12:57.080 after that and make it clear to him, you know, 274 00:12:57.279 --> 00:13:01.720 it wasn't acceptable and things needed to change going forward. 275 00:13:01.759 --> 00:13:03.879 And I think he has responded well. You know, I 276 00:13:03.960 --> 00:13:06.440 think this year he's he's been solid. I think that 277 00:13:06.679 --> 00:13:10.120 last game was maybe his best defensive game for us, 278 00:13:10.240 --> 00:13:12.759 you know, since he's joined the club, So you know, 279 00:13:12.840 --> 00:13:16.240 defensively he did he did a really good job in 280 00:13:16.320 --> 00:13:18.720 a lot of different areas. But you know, I think 281 00:13:18.720 --> 00:13:20.879 if you just watch the game, you see the number 282 00:13:21.240 --> 00:13:24.039 of defensive plays he makes, which is, you know, ultimately 283 00:13:24.120 --> 00:13:26.279 what we measure those guys by. You know, it's nice 284 00:13:26.279 --> 00:13:28.600 to be good in possession. That's really important as well. 285 00:13:29.399 --> 00:13:31.879 But you know, you're you're if you're a center back, 286 00:13:31.879 --> 00:13:34.039 you're on the field to defend and stop the other 287 00:13:34.039 --> 00:13:34.720 team from scoring. 288 00:13:35.559 --> 00:13:39.559 When it comes to you know, the defensive issues, what 289 00:13:39.960 --> 00:13:43.600 would you identify? And look, I know, these things happen 290 00:13:43.639 --> 00:13:45.480 as a team. You can't just blame the keeper, you 291 00:13:45.480 --> 00:13:47.320 can't blame the back four, and so much of the 292 00:13:47.360 --> 00:13:50.720 attention on you guys has been about Okay, the attack 293 00:13:50.840 --> 00:13:52.919 and you know where are the addition is coming from? 294 00:13:52.960 --> 00:13:55.440 What Why do you think that the defensive issues have 295 00:13:55.519 --> 00:13:59.320 manifested the way they have Kurt, Yeah. 296 00:13:59.240 --> 00:14:01.240 I mean I I'd be lying if I told you 297 00:14:01.279 --> 00:14:03.240 I had all the answers to that question right now. 298 00:14:03.360 --> 00:14:06.559 I mean, it's it's still something that's ongoing, and it's 299 00:14:06.639 --> 00:14:09.360 it's likely not the same cause in every game, because 300 00:14:09.399 --> 00:14:11.919 every teams doing something a little bit different. But it's 301 00:14:11.960 --> 00:14:14.679 not it's not a back line thing. It's not even 302 00:14:14.679 --> 00:14:17.960 always an out of possession thing. It's it's sometimes it's 303 00:14:18.159 --> 00:14:20.519 our our rest defense when we're when we're possessing the 304 00:14:20.519 --> 00:14:23.960 ball and we're attacking. It's sometimes where we where and 305 00:14:24.000 --> 00:14:27.960 when we turn balls over when we have it, you know, 306 00:14:28.240 --> 00:14:31.840 in terms of creating transition operations for the team. So 307 00:14:32.320 --> 00:14:34.440 it's it's not always out of psession stat just the 308 00:14:34.480 --> 00:14:38.080 backline thing, but you know, it's the whole group working 309 00:14:38.080 --> 00:14:41.519 together to stay compact, to recover the ball, to press 310 00:14:41.559 --> 00:14:45.399 together and make sure that again we we win the 311 00:14:45.399 --> 00:14:47.600 ball back as quickly as possible, and if we can't 312 00:14:47.639 --> 00:14:49.720 that we stay compact and we don't let the teams 313 00:14:49.720 --> 00:14:51.799 play through us, I had not. 314 00:14:51.799 --> 00:14:54.080 I don't think I've asked you about Lachlin. I want 315 00:14:54.120 --> 00:14:56.200 to ask you about Lachlan because last year when you 316 00:14:56.200 --> 00:14:59.320 sat him during the summer window, and we have seen 317 00:14:59.639 --> 00:15:04.120 moments here or there when he's had opportunities, and it 318 00:15:04.200 --> 00:15:07.039 just doesn't seem like I don't know if it's him 319 00:15:07.080 --> 00:15:09.360 not being able to acclimate to MLS or he's not 320 00:15:09.480 --> 00:15:12.399 doing what Pablo's asking him to do. We just and 321 00:15:12.480 --> 00:15:15.320 maybe this is my fault for expecting uh, you know, 322 00:15:15.360 --> 00:15:17.279 because when I would talk about the club prior to 323 00:15:17.320 --> 00:15:19.240 the season, I would say things, you know, like, well, 324 00:15:19.320 --> 00:15:21.440 let's see what Diogo looks like with the training camp 325 00:15:21.480 --> 00:15:24.840 and don Mark soup in Lachlan and Lochland Brook. Any 326 00:15:25.120 --> 00:15:27.960 inside as to why maybe he hasn't been the player, 327 00:15:28.000 --> 00:15:29.840 I guess I'll just say that I was expecting him 328 00:15:29.879 --> 00:15:30.039 to be. 329 00:15:32.559 --> 00:15:34.639 I can't speak to your expectations. 330 00:15:35.039 --> 00:15:36.399 I thought he was going to play a lot more 331 00:15:36.480 --> 00:15:38.159 than he's played, Kurt, I guess I'll just say. 332 00:15:38.120 --> 00:15:41.639 Like that, Yeah, that's you know, that's that's fair. I mean, look, 333 00:15:41.679 --> 00:15:43.679 I think every day he is a chance certain playing 334 00:15:43.720 --> 00:15:46.240 time and training and obviously Paba wants to win games. 335 00:15:46.279 --> 00:15:48.559 So if you feel that he's someone that's gonna help 336 00:15:48.600 --> 00:15:51.960 him win games, then he's gonna play. And then you know, ultimately, 337 00:15:52.039 --> 00:15:53.600 when when players got on the field is up to 338 00:15:53.639 --> 00:15:55.799 them to earn more playing time. So I think he's 339 00:15:55.840 --> 00:15:58.559 had some some ups and some downs. He had a 340 00:15:58.639 --> 00:16:01.399 chance in the Champion the League and you know, probably 341 00:16:01.399 --> 00:16:04.759 didn't perform at his highest level. I think he's had 342 00:16:04.799 --> 00:16:07.399 a few sub minutes since then where he's done better, 343 00:16:08.559 --> 00:16:11.320 you know, And it's it's a little bit up and down. 344 00:16:11.399 --> 00:16:13.240 So I don't know if it's so much that he 345 00:16:13.279 --> 00:16:16.080 hasn't been good, but I think, you know, and he 346 00:16:16.200 --> 00:16:18.440 admit this, that he's been a little bit inconsistent and 347 00:16:18.919 --> 00:16:20.919 you know, but he's a hard working kid that is 348 00:16:21.000 --> 00:16:24.279 going to keep keep working on what the coaches ask 349 00:16:24.399 --> 00:16:27.240 him to do until he gets it right. But you know, 350 00:16:27.279 --> 00:16:30.200 it doesn't always click instantaneously with guys. 351 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:32.759 Unfortunately, in the midst of a little bit of a 352 00:16:32.879 --> 00:16:36.240 road heavy schedule, stretched to the schedule, but you will 353 00:16:36.279 --> 00:16:38.799 have a bit of a respite at home coming up 354 00:16:38.799 --> 00:16:42.919 on Saturday against Toronto. Uh tell me about Toronto. They're 355 00:16:42.960 --> 00:16:45.360 fourteenth in the East, so they're not off to a 356 00:16:45.399 --> 00:16:48.120 good start. But this is a weird league. So tell 357 00:16:48.120 --> 00:16:50.679 me about your opponent coming up on Saturday, Kurt. 358 00:16:51.720 --> 00:16:53.639 Yeah, it's it's a weird league. They're a little bit 359 00:16:53.639 --> 00:16:57.240 of an enigma. You know, they've they've obviously got sort 360 00:16:57.279 --> 00:17:00.360 of a high profile kind of roster issue that they've 361 00:17:00.399 --> 00:17:03.200 dealt with this year where where one of the I 362 00:17:03.240 --> 00:17:04.920 think he might be one of the highest paid player 363 00:17:04.920 --> 00:17:07.400 in the league learns the signe it was was out 364 00:17:07.599 --> 00:17:10.359 and he refused the move or two and that he 365 00:17:10.519 --> 00:17:12.039 was you know, he's on on the side. But now 366 00:17:12.039 --> 00:17:14.680 he's back in and you know how that plays into 367 00:17:14.720 --> 00:17:17.960 there was actually very good player, but you know, wasn't 368 00:17:18.000 --> 00:17:20.240 fitting into what they wanted to do. So now he's 369 00:17:20.240 --> 00:17:23.599 he's reincorporated, and how that impacts them and changes them 370 00:17:23.599 --> 00:17:26.759 as a team is is obviously super relevant. You know, 371 00:17:26.839 --> 00:17:29.920 they're a team that plays a slightly different system than 372 00:17:30.079 --> 00:17:33.279 than us, and you know, in terms of usually going 373 00:17:33.319 --> 00:17:35.480 to come with three or five depending out how he 374 00:17:35.480 --> 00:17:38.759 will stay in the back and and maybe come with uh, 375 00:17:39.039 --> 00:17:41.200 you know, challenging the back line with an extra guy. 376 00:17:41.720 --> 00:17:44.720 So it's it's a little bit of a unique thing 377 00:17:44.759 --> 00:17:47.119 for us that we don't see often in that way. 378 00:17:48.119 --> 00:17:50.680 But yeah, I think they're they're an enigma. They're a 379 00:17:50.680 --> 00:17:53.279 team that invests, you know, has invested heavily and in 380 00:17:53.319 --> 00:17:56.359 some high priced players that has you know, maybe not 381 00:17:56.440 --> 00:17:59.799 quite performed as they expected, but we know they still 382 00:17:59.799 --> 00:18:02.920 have a ton of quality, and you know it's unfortunate, 383 00:18:02.960 --> 00:18:05.480 but you know, teams like that that aren't performing but 384 00:18:05.519 --> 00:18:08.039 you know they have that kind of talent are always 385 00:18:08.079 --> 00:18:10.680 teams that are very dangerous, and you can't really sleep 386 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:13.440 on them because as soon as you take for granted 387 00:18:13.480 --> 00:18:15.640 the fact that they're maybe not getting the results that 388 00:18:15.680 --> 00:18:19.000 they want, that's that's maybe when they can have some 389 00:18:19.079 --> 00:18:21.480 success and gain a little bit of momentum because they 390 00:18:21.480 --> 00:18:22.720 do have the quality on the roster. 391 00:18:23.920 --> 00:18:26.720 All right, Kurt, onto your favorite portion of the interview. 392 00:18:27.480 --> 00:18:29.720 Since you and I last spoke, I check my email 393 00:18:29.799 --> 00:18:31.759 every day and hoping I get a release from Trey 394 00:18:31.799 --> 00:18:34.880 that isn't your practice schedule and it's an announcement about 395 00:18:34.880 --> 00:18:38.119 a player that you have signed. You joined us last 396 00:18:38.200 --> 00:18:41.480 when the Tom Bogert report, the day it came out 397 00:18:41.519 --> 00:18:44.119 that you were looking at a Slovakian and an international 398 00:18:44.160 --> 00:18:46.680 Ague number nine named Robert Bosnik. I don't know if 399 00:18:46.720 --> 00:18:49.839 that's how you pronounce it, don't tweet at me. According 400 00:18:49.880 --> 00:18:52.799 to the reports, he would be a designated player. It 401 00:18:52.880 --> 00:18:55.359