Speaker 1: All right, we get to catch up with one of
Speaker 1: the busiest men around and he is for his first
Speaker 1: time here on the Morning Show, and we'll find out
Speaker 1: where his parts unknown are and where he's hanging out
Speaker 1: with us. One of the coolest coaches out there, who
Speaker 1: has had to deal with a lot of different things
Speaker 1: in a lot of different places, and now he gets
Speaker 1: to do Geo time on Apple TV. He is getting
Speaker 1: properly hydrated, he's got his guessing it's coffee, might be tea,
Speaker 1: I don't know. We're gonna catch up with Gio Savades
Speaker 1: and find out what in the wide world of sports
Speaker 1: is going on.
Speaker 2: Welcome to the Morning Show, Geo.
Speaker 3: It is a pleasure to be in the show. Thank
Speaker 3: you for the invite.
Speaker 1: All right, so let me ask this is We've had
Speaker 1: Ozzie Alonzo on in the past, We've had Dax, we've
Speaker 1: had BWP, among others. What is it like for you
Speaker 1: to be on this side of the desk instead of
Speaker 1: having folks sticking microphones in your face and asking you
Speaker 1: questions that you've heard nineteen thousand times that you've got
Speaker 1: to come up with eighteen thousand different answers for.
Speaker 3: That's such a good question.
Speaker 4: Because I have the fortune I said, the fortune to
Speaker 4: be a little bit in every side as a coach,
Speaker 4: foreign director, as an analysts as I'm doing right now.
Speaker 3: So it's definitely each one is different, but.
Speaker 4: All of them have the same core values and the
Speaker 4: same idea of you know, speaking about the game. Now
Speaker 4: from this side, there's a lot more that I have
Speaker 4: to investigate because.
Speaker 3: We have to speak. So I have a higher respect
Speaker 3: for all of you.
Speaker 4: And definitely definitely something that has allowed me to grow
Speaker 4: in the more. When you coach, you're more focused about
Speaker 4: your team, your game, your season, You're you're deeper in that.
Speaker 4: But now as an analyst especially, you know what we do.
Speaker 4: I have to know about every game, every player, every situation.
Speaker 3: So you know, you guys are amazing.
Speaker 1: Well, it's great to have you on this side of
Speaker 1: the table because you know, when we have been asking
Speaker 1: quest Ustius, whether it was in Major League Soccer or
Speaker 1: in the North American Soccer League, when you would be
Speaker 1: making your tours, tremendous, profound respect for what you've been
Speaker 1: able to do as a coach. You mentioned all of
Speaker 1: the research. Who is on your speed dial? I asked
Speaker 1: this of coaches when it comes to when coaches have
Speaker 1: questions about what they're doing. Now, as a TV studio analyst,
Speaker 1: who is on your speed dial when you've got a
Speaker 1: question about being a TV studio analyst, would you call
Speaker 1: and go like, what am I doing here?
Speaker 3: That's great?
Speaker 4: First of all, you know, I see how well everybody
Speaker 4: that works around me, you know, in the research that
Speaker 4: they do.
Speaker 3: It's amazing.
Speaker 4: We're lucky because Apple TV provides different people that we
Speaker 4: can you know, just call them right away, email them
Speaker 4: and whatever question you have, you have it right there
Speaker 4: in seconds. So that's something definitely that wish I had
Speaker 4: as a coach. You know that if I wanted a
Speaker 4: goal scorer to score a goal right of way, that
Speaker 4: I can get that in seconds. But you know, we're
Speaker 4: fortunate enough to be able to have that information. And
Speaker 4: then if you want to go deeper, you know, I'm
Speaker 4: fortunate to have so many, so many friends in the game.
Speaker 4: So and if I have a specific question to ask
Speaker 4: that I can go directly to a coach, to a player,
Speaker 4: to a person in a club. Uh, and and just
Speaker 4: provide the information that you know that I'm looking for.
Speaker 1: I just have this vision of you with you. I
Speaker 1: don't know if you're an iPhone or an Android guy.
Speaker 1: But I just have this vision with you on the
Speaker 1: desk and you're saying it's okay, So who do I
Speaker 1: go on the roll of decks tesk live on the air,
Speaker 1: uh and getting those instant kinds of responses. Obviously, since
Speaker 1: we are based in Atlanta, we are a national show,
Speaker 1: but based in Atlanta. I do want to ask you
Speaker 1: about what you have seen or maybe haven't seen from
Speaker 1: Atlanta United this year and what your thoughts are as
Speaker 1: we are at this particular point of the season that
Speaker 1: the All Star break in Atlanta United is where they are.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I mean.
Speaker 4: I think that I probably have seen this thing that
Speaker 4: everybody have seen.
Speaker 3: A team that.
Speaker 4: Has invested a lot this season, a team that when
Speaker 4: we were looking at what was going on in the
Speaker 4: club at the beginning of the season, we had high
Speaker 4: expectations for the team. I mean, personally I had them
Speaker 4: winning the Supporter Shield, I think because of the amount
Speaker 4: of players, the quality players that were coming in, and
Speaker 4: for the momentum that they had last year getting into
Speaker 4: the playoffs. So definitely definitely disappointed in what I've seen
Speaker 4: so far, because even though there was I think a
Speaker 4: good group of players.
Speaker 3: They've been very inconsistent.
Speaker 4: There's been moments in which you have seen, especially and
Speaker 4: more at home. Some have like the last half that
Speaker 4: they play I can't remember right now against who, I
Speaker 4: gotta look into it, but the first half that they
Speaker 4: played at home, it was a very good half, but
Speaker 4: everything changing the second half for them. And they've been
Speaker 4: this is consistent team, which I don't think for the quality.
Speaker 3: Of the players that they have.
Speaker 4: You know, we should be looking at and knowing about
Speaker 4: the organization Atlanta as a history.
Speaker 3: And if there's someone that can talk about a history, it's.
Speaker 4: Me because you know, I wish I had an MLS
Speaker 4: Cup in my side and on your side. You guys
Speaker 4: have always been, you know, a quality organization with a
Speaker 4: fan base that is amazing in a beautiful stadium, always
Speaker 4: you know, breaking through trying to make sure that things
Speaker 4: are always at a high level. So it's been I
Speaker 4: think a little disappointing to see the team being so
Speaker 4: inconsistent this.
Speaker 1: Year when you have a team that is minus fifteen
Speaker 1: in minute forty six to minute sixty, they've only scored three,
Speaker 1: they've given up eighteen when they come out of the
Speaker 1: locker room. How I mean it is one of the
Speaker 1: things that has completely and totally confounded and confused folks
Speaker 1: this year, where you go into the locker room, coach
Speaker 1: has conversations, players are getting locked in for the second half,
Speaker 1: and then you just have moment after a moment where
Speaker 1: goals are being scored. How do you how have you
Speaker 1: in the past had conversations to make sure that folks
Speaker 1: lock in in that first five ten to fifteen minutes
Speaker 1: in the second half so they can continue that momentum
Speaker 1: into the latter stages of the second half.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I think it goes further back, more than just
Speaker 4: a conversation in halftime. I think it starts first with
Speaker 4: a team that needs to have chemistry. First of all,
Speaker 4: I need, you know, a team that sometimes can go
Speaker 4: on bad in good moments, but that the players around
Speaker 4: trust each other, are willing to play for each other.
Speaker 4: And then the coach the particular talking about my experience,
Speaker 4: you need to be able to connect with the players,
Speaker 4: and there has to be a relationship between the players
Speaker 4: and between the coach and players that when you have
Speaker 4: a speech at halftime or if you have to adjust something,
Speaker 4: there's a belief and there's a willingness to go into
Speaker 4: the second half and trust your teammate, trust your coach,
Speaker 4: and say this is how we're going to do it,
Speaker 4: this is how we're going to compete, and let's go
Speaker 4: and try to do in the second half. It might
Speaker 4: not work out, but there needs to be that before anything,
Speaker 4: before tactics, before you know, the group goes into the field.
Speaker 4: If there's no chemistry, I think it always becomes more
Speaker 4: difficult to be able to achieve what you're looking for.
Speaker 1: And it is not something I wouldn't think that chemistry
Speaker 1: among eleven individuals, if not twenty. It's not an instant thing.
Speaker 1: But is it One of the biggest challenges for a coach,
Speaker 1: especially now at the midpoint of a season when you're
Speaker 1: in a transfer window where you got outs and ins
Speaker 1: and everything is creating and building chemistry one of the
Speaker 1: biggest challenges for a coach.
Speaker 4: I think that's the biggest challenge that a coach has.
Speaker 4: When you're coaching. It's not the tactics, it's not the
Speaker 4: you know the staff, you know, knowing what you do
Speaker 4: and in the hours that you put in it is
Speaker 4: the most important things is the connection they believe the
Speaker 4: group desired to be able to say we're going to
Speaker 4: fight together and then you know, fight the way the
Speaker 4: coach is looking too for us to play, or how
Speaker 4: much freedom the coach gets to the players for them
Speaker 4: to be able to execute, everything is secondary after the chemistry,
Speaker 4: after the.
Speaker 3: Trust in the group.
Speaker 4: And I just and I have seen in some of
Speaker 4: the games in which some moments the team I don't
Speaker 4: want to say gives up, but goes through moments that
Speaker 4: they don't look the same as they look ten minutes
Speaker 4: before or and that's common, and that's common in soccer.
Speaker 3: You know.
Speaker 4: I had sometimes teams that were inconsistent as well that sometimes.
Speaker 3: First I was good, the second I wasn't good, But.
Speaker 4: There was always the connection that trusting each other and
Speaker 4: the desire to play for each other. Even that I
Speaker 4: think this is the most important work, the sacrifice from
Speaker 4: the players to say we will do this as long
Speaker 4: as we win. And I believe that I have seen
Speaker 4: I haven't seen constantly or a higher percentage Atlanta doing.
Speaker 2: That this season.
Speaker 1: Jio SAVARESI having our own version of Geo time here
Speaker 1: on sd h AM here on Friday and breaking everything
Speaker 1: down as only he can. Leagues Cup. Last night, we started,
Speaker 1: we got our Leagues Cup. After dark, we got our
Speaker 1: wish seven goals in one match with La Galaxy and Sholos,
Speaker 1: and then Seattle just decided to take Cruise Asoul and
Speaker 1: show them the door and close the door behind them
Speaker 1: and make a really loud noise. But seven on the board.
Speaker 1: Were you up late night watching all that stuff?
Speaker 3: I watch every game.
Speaker 4: I just love to you know, the game, and you
Speaker 4: know I do it for work now, but you know,
Speaker 4: it's just the passion and especially uh, you know, this
Speaker 4: is a great competition.
Speaker 3: Uh.
Speaker 4: League scope between the League I MX and and the MLS.
Speaker 4: You know, teams is getting better and better. I think
Speaker 4: this format is even better, and last night we got
Speaker 4: a little bit more MLS, you know, better results, especially
Speaker 4: the one that you mentioned. Seattle was amazing yesterday.
Speaker 3: They just came into this field and and and just
Speaker 3: took over.
Speaker 4: I mean they were dominant, They were very good, they
Speaker 4: were aggressive. Love it because they done it with a
Speaker 4: lot of academy players.
Speaker 2: Uh.
Speaker 4: And and that's you know great because if you see KRUSTASUL,
Speaker 4: the investment of Chrystalsul in players and the investment in
Speaker 4: Seattle is probably four times the difference.
Speaker 3: But on the field.
Speaker 4: You swa Seattle that I mean, they were, you know,
Speaker 4: full of energy, and then scoring seven goals on forty
Speaker 4: five minutes in second half.
Speaker 3: You don't see that often. You don't see especially the
Speaker 3: seventh goal was a jewel.
Speaker 4: It was and people, you know, I heard people saying
Speaker 4: did he mean to do that?
Speaker 3: Yes? He did, they did because he pulls the.
Speaker 4: Body de la Vega turns around times to perfect connecting
Speaker 4: a good way executed perfectly. Does it happen a lot
Speaker 4: of times? No, I can tell you from you know,
Speaker 4: past history. It's not an easy thing. But sometimes things
Speaker 4: really come together. And that moment was a special moment
Speaker 4: for Seattle, for us to watch that goal, and especially
Speaker 4: for the la Vega.
Speaker 1: All right, So when was the last time you had
Speaker 1: a moment like that where you get this ball service
Speaker 1: to you perfectly and you sit there and you smash
Speaker 1: it right on the on the full volley.
Speaker 2: When was the last time you had a moment like that?
Speaker 4: I will say a couple of times my pickups game here,
Speaker 4: you know, when I go on Sunday morning, seven o'clock
Speaker 4: in the morning to play with my my friends eleven
Speaker 4: B eleven, I had a few moments that I said, Wow,
Speaker 4: I mean, you know what I thought maybe happened.
Speaker 3: I didn't think it would it would it would be
Speaker 3: so but uh.
Speaker 4: You know, when I was a player, it's one thing
Speaker 4: that's not always.
Speaker 3: But when it happens, you're capable of doing great things.
Speaker 4: And and at that moment was so greatness one of
Speaker 4: the best goals.
Speaker 3: Where we're going to.
Speaker 1: See so so is uh so does Egan drive you
Speaker 1: crazy doing doing Sunday morning pickup?
Speaker 2: What's what's it like out there Sunday morning pickup? We need.
Speaker 4: Kevin is you know, it's it's amazing the whole group.
Speaker 4: It's just it's a family. It's a family, uh, you know,
Speaker 4: and and in every family, everybody you know, is different.
Speaker 4: Everybody has their personality and uh but I think you know,
Speaker 4: we we have you know, everybody's having so much fun together.
Speaker 3: From the time that we arrived, from the moments that
Speaker 3: we work. Everybody can see how much they love. Even
Speaker 3: the new ones all Sie Docks.
Speaker 4: You know, Uh, Sasha's done it a little bit longer,
Speaker 4: but Alsie and Daks that are you know, newcomers, they
Speaker 4: just you know, they look like they jump into the
Speaker 4: roller skates going and you know, and they never stopped.
Speaker 4: They're doing so well. I'm very proud of them. Uh,
Speaker 4: and it's a pleasure to have, you know, this family
Speaker 4: working together.
Speaker 1: G Sevaresi on roller skates for Apple TV on the studio.
Speaker 1: All right, so a couple of we're in a transfer
Speaker 1: window right now, in the secondary transfer window, and we
Speaker 1: have seen.
Speaker 2: The big announcements.
Speaker 1: We'll go ahead and mention Messi and friends down in
Speaker 1: Fort Lauderdale where Rodrigo de Paul is now a part
Speaker 1: of it. Looks like you've got a haircut and he's
Speaker 1: ready to go.
Speaker 2: Uh.
Speaker 1: When it comes to all of the big names that
Speaker 1: are wanting to play with Leo Messi and every and
Speaker 1: the fans are sitting there and they're wondering how all
Speaker 1: of the financials work and everything. When you see all
Speaker 1: of these big names come to Major League Soccer and
Speaker 1: want to be a part of MLS two point five
Speaker 1: to three point zero, what does it mean for you
Speaker 1: for someone who has seen the league growth to where
Speaker 1: it is right now to see big games, big games
Speaker 1: still come back and want to be a part of this.
Speaker 4: You're talking to someone, as you mentioned, that knows the
Speaker 4: league from nineteen ninety six. Actually I went to the
Speaker 4: Combine in nineteen ninety five, so you can, you know,
Speaker 4: imagine I've seen the league from beginning to end and
Speaker 4: looking at this league now, the growth in so many
Speaker 4: ways is being is being amazing. It's been something to
Speaker 4: be proud of. And we want teams to be like
Speaker 4: Miami that they push the envelope. We want teams to
Speaker 4: be like Atlanta, that you push the envelope. You know,
Speaker 4: you have to make sure that you always want to
Speaker 4: be a lid. You want to be a club that
Speaker 4: is fighting for you know, for trophies, and they do
Speaker 4: it in a way that they bring, you know, always
Speaker 4: better players to compete, and they have to challenge you know,
Speaker 4: mls to make sure that we keep growing more and
Speaker 4: more and that we're not too you know, too slow
Speaker 4: in wanting to you know, increment a little by little.
Speaker 4: We have to push it, but we balance. That's why
Speaker 4: we have grown so much. Credit to the commissioner. I
Speaker 4: think Don has done a phenomenal job to be able
Speaker 4: to be smart in every step that he's done. But
Speaker 4: it's good as well from things to push the envelope,
Speaker 4: as I said before, like into Miami, bringing somebody like
Speaker 4: the ball. I think, uh, you know, it makes the team.
Speaker 3: Better because he's young. He could have been in Europe still,
Speaker 3: he could have gone to South America.
Speaker 4: He you know, decided to go to play with his
Speaker 4: friend and a messy just doesn't matter how old you
Speaker 4: are around him, he's going to push you.
Speaker 3: He's going to push you. He's the winner. He doesn't care.
Speaker 4: He's going to tell you right in your face if
Speaker 4: you don't do things the right way. But that's the
Speaker 4: competitive person that he isn't and we want to see that.
Speaker 4: We have, you know, the best player in the world
Speaker 4: in our league, and it's good that he keep on pushing,
Speaker 4: you know, every envelope around himself.
Speaker 2: All right, So are you in studio tonight?
Speaker 3: I will be yees all right?
Speaker 2: So are you in studio for the entire weekend? Sir?
Speaker 3: Correct?
Speaker 2: That will be all right. So what is the rest
Speaker 2: of your day?
Speaker 1: After you're finished talking with us, when do you have
Speaker 1: to report in for makeup?
Speaker 4: So we'll we'll get together around two thirty. You know,
Speaker 4: for me, no no much to you know anything in
Speaker 4: the face, so you know a little more changes so
Speaker 4: the makeup, you know, not much, and we'll get there.
Speaker 3: We got a meet, We get a meeting. We talk about.
Speaker 4: Exactly in details everything that we're going to cover. We
Speaker 4: have been preparing, you know, ready from these days to
Speaker 4: have all the information. If we need something, we have
Speaker 4: people there that will give it to us right away.
Speaker 4: And then it's uh, you know, let's go to play
Speaker 4: and h and to get to work.
Speaker 1: And it's always fantastic to see your work and have
Speaker 1: GEO time on the rather large fifty five inch screen
Speaker 1: off to my left. It there's also we're blessed to
Speaker 1: have you here on the morning show. You now have
Speaker 1: the garage door opener. You know where the key is
Speaker 1: under the mat. You can click on that anytime. Ten
Speaker 1: to eleven. Traditionally, the last hour of the week is
Speaker 1: when we just kind of turn it into chaos. Anybody
Speaker 1: who wants to come and visit, say their piece. Three minutes,
Speaker 1: drift in, drift out. I'm done, I'm going to good
Speaker 1: get my coffee. You now, sir, have Golden ticket status.
Speaker 1: You can come in at any time. It'll be great
Speaker 1: to see. If you ever bored, come on in and
Speaker 1: visit us anytime.
Speaker 4: I appreciate to be in the status now and definitely
Speaker 4: you know I will be available anytime that you feel that,
Speaker 4: you know we need to connect. So it was always
Speaker 4: a pleasure and and love your show.
Speaker 2: I'm gonna quote.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna quote to see Geos says anytime he wants
Speaker 1: to come in.
Speaker 2: I'm writing this down so direct quote.
Speaker 3: I like it.
Speaker 1: Go get your second cup. We'll see us soon and
Speaker 1: good luck this weekend in Geo time.
Speaker 3: Thank you is a pleasure. Take your