Afterburn Soccer Show

Jose and I jumped on for a nice and tidy show after a not-so-great week for FC Dallas and North Texas SC.

Jose is quick to point out that just 1 point from two road matches was a little bit unlucky this time around, and he has a point. San Diego’s single goal was a shot that most often goes wide. Portland Timbers exploited a formation change and brain fart from Dallas’ defenders to level things.

And still, both teams had opportunities to get more.

Meanwhile, we covered a lot of ground with player news, including a loan from the USL-C squad Rhode Island. What can we expect from the new midfielder?

We close out the show with a preview.

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Despite a few slight technical issues, the Afterburn Soccer Show has reemerged after a World Cup break, ready to look ahead at some delicious FC Dallas soccer to enjoy this week. Two games, in fact!

But first, Jose, Collin, and Nathan broke down their thoughts on the World Cup. Was it a success? A memorable tournament? What did we like? What didn’t sit so well? While we agreed that Spain played masterful and annoying football, we also gave shade to Argentina for its behavior, especially in that last game. Lots of reckless fouls.

Will the tournament move to 64 teams? Will that be good?

Anyway, we spent a ton of time chatting before we got into North Texas Soccer Club’s continued moves to attract intriguing talent, in addition to the debut of the new stadium. There is so much positive with this squad right now, so many reasons why the games should be packed.

Including giving up one goal in the past three games. Do we see a surge up the standings in their future?

FC Dallas added a goalkeeper to boost their second half chances. Collin hints at rumors out of outbound players to free up some dead weight on the roster, but Jose reminds us that guys who were injured, like Kamungo and a refreshed Christian Cappis, might feel like new signings. Overall, we are positive that this team can keep the momentum going, starting with two away games this week - one at Portland and one at San Diego.

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Here’s a short video with a glimpse of the energetic and massive crowds gathered near the statue of King Sejong in Seoul to watch South Korea take on Mexico.

Unfortunately, my little wireless microphone didn’t work as great as I wanted, but the noise from the speakers, live band, and crowd was pretty intense. Talk about a multi-generational experience. Because of the crowds and the excellent crowd control by Seoul police, I was not able to wander around and interview fans like I had hoped. Quite a number of Mexican fans and a smattering of jerseys from around the world.

But, yes, the home crowd lit up with every attacking moment from South Korea.

Obviously, in these tight World Cup games, one mistake is all that your opponent needs for a breakthrough, and Korea’s single goalkeeping error gave Mexico the lone goal. The margins are super thin at this level, but both teams played pretty conservatively. Curious to see if Son Heung-Min can actually get healthy and turn a corner on his play as the tournament progresses.

Enjoy!

Our latest podcast was recorded on a Wednesday night, but we dive right into a rollercoaster week for FC Dallas (loss at home versus Vancouver, road win at San Jose). We highlight Petar Musa’s performances, the unlucky bounce at home, a sudden goalkeeping battle, and, of course, the viral sensation that is Sam Sarver. We also touch upon North Texas SC’ beatdown of Sporting Kansas City 2. Closing out the show, we highlight the World Cup on the way and one more match for FC Dallas at Colorado.

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Thanks for listening and subscribing to our little FC Dallas podcast!

Nathan, Jose, and Chris look at FC Dallas’ home win over Real Salt Lake, the first marquee win of the year for the club, and we get excited about North Texas SC’ surprise victory on the road at Minnesota.

Are we feeling optimistic? Yes.

Are there still questions about both squads? Yes!

We even touch a little on salary numbers that have been released.

We close out the show with match predictions.

As usual, we keep tweaking and making adjustments to the audio, so keep looking for some improvements in the weeks to come!

It is good to be back after some technical issues. We switched to a new production machine, and the audio levels need some adjustment for sure. Sorry about that - we’ll make some corrections come next week.

On the show, Nathan, Colin, Jose, and Chris get to talking about FC Dallas’ away win against the New York Red Bulls. The 2-0 victory was cathartic, a sigh of relief for a club that had been struggling. Is this team out of the woods? Of course, not. But there are enough positive signs that we are hopeful.

Among those positive signs? Strong play from Ran Binyamin, a resurgent defense, and Musa doing Musa things.

Also, Sam Sarver got his first MLS goal. What a moment.

North Texas did not fair so well, and we get into it a bit. Chris offers insight - that this team is still figuring things out, still lacking some quality, still needing to get its identity.

We close out the show with match predictions. Are we expecting wins at home against a very good Real Salt Lake side?

Tune in and find out.

Thanks for all of your support so far this season.

AFTERBURN SOCCER is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Thank you for your continued love, listeners and supporters.

In this episode, we get into some match reactions from FC Dallas’ home draw against the Galaxy. Yes, there were things we liked, but it was definitely disappointing. Two referee decisions in particular soured us. What did the refs see? Why did they not at least go to the monitor to double-check?

So far, none of us were convinced by the limited official explanations. At least one of those goals should have counted.

North Texas SC went on the road and grabbed two points. Edu Nys continues to dazzle with heroics and skill. This was a good result for this young side, who are learning as they go but finding ways to stay in the hunt.

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Another week, another good show - despite a draw-heavy weekend for FC Dallas and North Texas Soccer Club.

We start the show by looking at FC Dallas’ draw versus St Louis. Was this just a poor start for FC Dallas, a blip in concentration in that first 45? Or did St Louis just outplay and out-coach our home side? Quill said after the match that he didn’t recognize his squad. We hear his audio but spend time doing our best to frame this tough result and look at the positives.

For North Texas SC, maybe they got punished for being a little over-confident after crushing Sporting Kansas City 2 the weekend before. Regardless, a late goal stunned them, but for a young team, there are lessons to be learned. We are still high on this talented team as they try to put it all together.

As usual, the show closes with match predictions.

Thanks for all of your support, and yes, shout out to all of our supporters and our amazing crew.

After a long Holy Week break, the Afterburn Crew (Jose, Colin, Chris, and Nathan) break down FC Dallas’ victory in DC, a 4-0 beatdown. We also celebrate North Texas SC getting an excellent road victory against Sporting Kansas City 2, a boost to their confidence. Are we excited about the next few weeks? Yes.

A few show notes:

* We’ll start with reactions from FC Dallas’ road win at DC.

* Was this the right kind of balance, offensively and defensively, that FC Dallas is going to strike over the course of the season?

* Which individual performance stood out? 7th goal for Musa. Farrington with his 4th on the year. Osaze and Delgado get their first of the year.

* What role will Santi Moreno, who made his debut, fill on this team?

* For North Texas SC, we’ll get some game reactions and also dive into what we learned about this team.

* Nys: 5th goal of the season. James with brace (who has looked dangerous but not quite put it together yet). Ospina with his first for North Texas.

* The critical issue for North Texas? They must find consistency.

* We’ll close out the show with predictions for upcoming matches.

Thanks for all of your support!

We jump right into another fun weekend for FC Dallas, not so much for North Texas SC. But lots to be positive about - not just the dominant win over in-state rivals Houston Dynamo.

1 - Game reactions

2 - Three-goal meltdown - what do we make of it? Warning sign?

3 - Who was man of the match? Musa? Farrington? Valiente?

4 - What did we learn? Aka Is Valiente legit?

5 - North Texas SC loss at Dynamo 2

6 - International window expectations: who is going to have a strong break?

7 - A little early match predictions for FC Dallas traveling to play DC United