Afterburn Soccer Show

Here are the notes from the show:

Reactions to the away draw at Minnesota with a rotated lineup. How are we feeling?

The defense picked up its first clean sheet of the year. Does this give the team a boost before traveling to Miami?

Should Osaze be in the running for the MLS All-Star team?

North Texas lost a late one, coming back to equalizer after going down by 2 goals. Sam Sarver with four goals on the year. Take aways from this one?

Aaron Essel did make his debut in this one and showed why the team is high on him.

We close out with predictions as Dallas prepares to face Inter Miami in Miami. Should be a tough one!

We did not waste time getting right into it, hearing from FC Dallas head coach Eric Quill on his plan to diagnose what went wrong but offering our own thoughts.

Was it just a flat night?

Was it the wrong formation?

Are the players not the right fit?

Or what?

We welcome Mar Cin who doesn’t hold back some of the emotion - maybe the coaching is wrong?

Thanks for listening and subscribing!

Hey folks, our live show didn’t work out today after all, so I’m dropping a quick update that looks back and sets the stage for a big matchup with Seattle this weekend.

Thanks for listening in and look for some goodies on the way.

On a cool evening in Portland, North Texas Soccer Club made up for lost points at home during the previous weekend, as a late Malachi Molina stunner grabbed all three points for the visitors on their way to a 2-1 win.

You can hear a bit of head coach John Gall’s elation above.

They knew this was going to be a tough match. Away matches in any league are. For North Texas, you can layer a disappointing result at home last weekend onto it, giving up goals and settling for a draw. We know this is a team that is a work in progress, like their senior team. New signings are on the way. Expectations are being raised. Every week, the starting lineup is coming together.

“It was a really tough game today against a good team. I felt we were up against it in terms of how things have gone over the last couple of games,” Gall said to media. “So much resilience today, so proud of these guys. I knew it was coming. I’m impressed to go down after 40 seconds and come back and win the game in the last minute. Says a lot about the group. These guys gave their absolutely everything today.”

Antonio Carrera, whose career is hanging in the balance, recorded a career high 9 saves.

Molina, in particular, showed an ability to be a legend for this club.

Right now, North Texas sits in 4th place in the Western Conference. For a team that has been completely rebuilt, with only a handful of contributors from the senior side, this is a massive statement. New signings are on the way, as we discussed in our last podcast. The sky is the limit for this team to find ways to improve and develop consistency over the coming months.

In particular, watch for new signing Aaron Essel, a Ghanian national team player who comes loaded with first team experience and has the potential to be one of the next big signings for FC Dallas down the road.

It’s hard this early in the season, despite North Texas winning it all last year, to know what to expect of this team. North Texas serves as a proving ground for the first team. They are to give young players a chance to develop, to prove themselves, or even just to get fit. So far, that work is unfolding.

But let me say it this way - to drop points at home and then follow up with a clutch away win, that says enormous potential is ahead for this young side.

Keep watching North Texas.

They could be special this year.

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Here are the notes for the show this week:

FC Dallas got a crucial home win against visitors Sporting Kansas City, a 2-1 come-from-behind victory. Was it pretty? No. Was it effective? Yes.

Let’s do reactions first.

Peter Vermes was fired as SKC head coach on Monday. How does that feel to have your team be responsible for a rival’s coach fire?

What remains a work in progress for this team - in particular, 40% possession at home? Should we be concerned?

Urhoghide is a great signing - can this defense improve?

—

North Texas drew at home and lost the resulting shootout. A disappointment as they were ahead by 3-1. Brace from Tarik Scott.

With new signings this week, are we still not concerned about this young team’s prospects?

New signing from first division of Scottish Premiere League - midfielder Aaron Essel. Is this a signing that shows intent?

—

Construction has begun. FC Dallas had a press event to mark the next phase of construction for the stadium in Frisco. Let’s hear from Dan Hunt.

What does a 100 year vision mean? How are we feeling about this project?

—

Predictions for this weekend:

@ Atlanta. A struggling team. Can Dallas get this done?

Thanks for liking and subscribing to our FC Dallas and North Texas Soccer podcast, breaking down all you need to know.

We have good news in this one, as we look back at FC Dallas’ gutsy and emotional win over RSL in Salt Lake City. It was a much-improved performance, specifically from the defense, but there is work ahead. In particular, we spend some time thinking about the formation shift that Eric Quill brought to the side which worked wonders!

North Texas is a young side, so we shouldn’t be too concerned about their humbling loss in Houston after a red card. They are bound to improve, but it is an early wakeup call for this team.

We even touch upon some United States Men’s National Team talk after disappointment this past week and then close out the show with predictions for the Sporting Kansas City match.

Please help us spread the word.

Thanks to Caleb Swann for the time and for the North Texas media crew to make these interviews possible.

Be sure to read our write-up on the interview.

Here are a couple of highlights from the signing announcement:

North Texas SC has signed FC Dallas Academy midfielder Caleb Swann to an MLS NEXT Pro professional contract for the 2025 MLS NEXT Pro season.

Swann joined the FC Dallas Academy for the 2022-23 season. Swann has featured for the FC Dallas Academy in MLS NEXT Fest and Flex tournaments and trained with North Texas SC throughout the 2024 MLS NEXT Pro season. Prior to joining North Texas, Swann committed to play Division 1 soccer at the University of Maryland.

“I am very much looking forward to working with Caleb and watching him continue to develop within our pathway,” said North Texas SC head coach John Gall. “He’s industrious in the middle of the park and very intelligent on both sides of the ball. He’s a player that I am very familiar with, and I’m so happy for him and his family.”

Read more here.

Welcome back to the Afterburn Soccer Show.

Jose and Nathan look back at the disappointing result on Saturday, as FC Dallas loses their second straight home match.

Yes, they lost to Vancouver who may be one of the best teams in the league.

But the performance left a lot to be desired. We hear from head coach Eric Quill and take some time to diagnose what the issue is.

Then we turn our attention to North Texas Soccer Club’s big win over the Vancouver Whitecaps 2. It’s a young team, but it was a big moment to see Sam Sarver get his first brace in a North Texas kit.

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Thanks for listening to the Afterburn Soccer Show!

This episode we look back at the weekend and a disappointing home opener for FC Dallas, as they collapse in the final ten minutes against the Chicago Fire. Was it all head coach Eric Quill’s fault? How are fans feeling?

Then we talk about North Texas Soccer Club also dropping their home opener to St Louis City SC 2. The young side, completely transformed from last season’s championship team, struggled for stretches of the match. This is definitely a work in progress.

We close out the show with predictions for the Vancouver match this weekend. A big one.

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Thanks for listening folks!

Jose, Nathan, and Coov hold down the fort in this one, as we all feel really excited about FC Dallas’ attack. We haven’t seen anything like this in Frisco for a while.

We were stoked to be joined by Jose’s brother-in-law, Marcin, a Colorado Rapids fan, who shared some of his thoughts on the game and the areas that FC Dallas need to improve (hint: defense).

We also hear from FC Dallas head coach Eric Quill about what he wants fans to expect as the team pushes for wins, even on the road, and about the future of Pedrinho, who got his first start on Saturday.

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