Last week got away from me, and I completely forgot to post show 80. If you missed it, here's the link to the show's blog page.
But here's show 81. Jared and I convened immediately following the US Women's National Team's amazing win over Brazil in the quaterfinals of the Women's World Cup. We couldn't possibly bury the lead, so we fired out of the blocks talking about the game and the USWNT with Joan Stewart of Cross-Conference. We talk about the match itself as well as the issues facing the US in the women's game, before resolving just to revel in the victory. I don't exaggerate when I say it was one of the most enthralling sporting events I've ever watched.
Segment two begins with some talk about the notion that Mexico's young talent somehow puts pressure on the US - like we're directly affected by Mexico having talent at the U-17 level. Jared and I go back and forth, and while I agree Mexico is wining the battle at the moment, I don't see how that implies the US has to "respond." We should always trying to get better, regardless of what our rival is doing. Listen as I make an analogy about spinning wheels...
We also wonder why US Soccer would schedule a USA-Mexico friendly so soon after the deflating loss in the Gold Cup final.
Jared rolls into a talk about the value of the MLS All-Star Game. There's only so much the league gets out of the event, and it might not work anymore. There's a Catch-22 in there, with MLS needed to bring attention (and cash) to the league while maintaining a sense of competitive legitimacy. The All-Star Game rides the line.
Refereeing in the league continues to be a problem, and while it's dead-horse territory, recent matches bring it back as a topic for discussion. Should MLS be looking to take over the refereeing situation? Jared wonders if letting USSF handle it gives MLS a measure of deniability. That doesn't fly for me.
We close segment two with an email. There's pro/rel stuff in there, but it's really about snobbery and whether Americans who ignore MLS are right to. Listen for our answer, though I'm sure you can guess.
Finally, we take a stab at a couple players who might surprisingly show up in the 2014 World Cup team despite being relative unknowns right now, on the suggestion of a listener at the Facebook page.
As always, thanks for listening. Make sure you like and comment at the Facebook page and hit us up on Twitter via the AmSoc account and the CSRN network account.
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