The 2025 preseason officially started for New York City FC, with the team jetting off to Santa Barbara, California with a 34-player preseason roster, but a roster that does not include striker Jovan Mijatović.

The 19-year-old is still in Europe and not joining up with his teammates for preseason while rumors swirl about a potential loan transfer from NYCFC to a European club. Hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan have lots of thoughts about the difficult Mijatović situation, wondering why it's gone so poorly for him with New York City while also speculating on how this drama between Jovan and the team will resolve itself.

Not content to only discuss a potential Jovan Mijatović transfer, things then shift to the moves New York City has already made, like re-signing Maxi Moralez, adding a backup goalkeeper, and formalizing Homegrown contracts with two young players. There's also some discussion of a possible Matt Freese transfer since the NYCFC goalkeeper finds himself in the rumor mill, linked with interest from clubs in the Netherlands and Germany.

Episode 21 wraps up with the show's producer Andrew Leigh running through numerous changes to the MLS roster rules the league announced before the start of the 2025 season. No MLS podcast episode is complete without a discussion of new twists on player trading and allocation money, contract buyouts, and oh so much more.

After you’ve listened, make sure you’re following Hudson River Blue on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, and Twitter (X), and reading all our coverage at HudsonRiverBlue.com.

Matt Freese has been overdue for a call-up to the United States men's national team, but Mauricio Pochettino's first January camp as coach finally sees Freese get a chance with the USMNT.

We have a lot to say about Freese's opportunity and our hopes of seeing someone from the NYCFC roster grow into a regular presence with the USMNT, maybe in time for the 2026 World Cup.

Episode 20 also includes more talk about Pascal Jansen, as we react to his official unveiling as the sixth head coach in New York City FC history. Among other Jansen topics, we discuss his past success at AZ Alkmaar and elsewhere in the Netherlands coaching up promising young players and wonder about his impact on NYCFC's crop of Homegrown and Under-22 signings.

Things wrap up this week on a less-than-cheery note as we discuss Jovan Mijatović crashing his car into a pedestrian while spending his offseason in Belgrade, Serbia. A scary accident that's left us wishing for the best for the pedestrian and hoping that Mijatović can get something good to break his way in the wake of what's been a rocky first year as a NYCFC player.

There's no easing into a new year, as the first Hudson River Blue Podcast episode of 2025 had a lot of ground to cover.

That happens when news of a new New York City FC coach and James Sands's second departure break on New Year's Eve and Day, respectively.

First, hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan discuss the reported arrival of Pascal Jansen to replace Nick Cushing as NYCFC manager. There's talk of what the Jansen hire means for New York City, the statement of intent made not just in hiring Jansen but in buying him out of his contract with Ferencváros, and what we might expect from his NYCFC based on his previous coaching stints.

After first impressions of the newest coaching arrival, we shift into goodbye mode and react to James Sands's loan move to FC St. Pauli in the German Bundesliga. It's all praise for Sands, who our hosts say earned his move back to Europe, but his exit raises lots of questions about how New York City FC will look in 2025. Is a defensive midfielder now the team's most pressing need during this winter transfer window?

To wrap up Episode 19, we discuss the five players NYCFC recently selected in the MLS SuperDraft, with some unanimous hype around First Round pick Max Murray out of the University of Vermont.

After you’ve listened, make sure you’re following Hudson River Blue on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, and Twitter (X), and reading all our coverage at HudsonRiverBlue.com.

Episode 18 of the Hudson River Blue Podcast is also the final episode of 2024, so end-of-year reviews are top of mind for hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan.

Before the conversation turns to a review of 2024, there's news to discuss and it's about Leagues Cup. The tournament between MLS and Mexico's Liga MX is changing in 2025 and our episode starts with a discussion of one major change that's been confirmed, namely that Leagues Cup will no longer be played during a month-long break, but will shift to a midweek tournament played while the MLS and Liga MX seasons continue concurrently. 

This being the MLS offseason, we also touch on some juicy transfer news and rumors, like NYCFC selling midfielder Nicolás Acevedo to Bahia, rumored interest from Brazilian clubs in Santiago Rodríguez, and reports of a return to MLS for former NYCFC head coach Ronny Deila, this time with Atlanta United FC.

John and Mark then conclude our final 2024 episode by handing out their final grades to NYCFC's top and bottom performers, and to the team as a whole. How harsh of a curve are we grading on? You'll have to listen to find out.

Once you've listened, make sure you're following Hudson River Blue on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, and Twitter (X), and reading all our coverage at HudsonRiverBlue.com.

Offseason has fallen across all of Major League Soccer, but this episode begins with a look back at the final match of 2024, the MLS Cup Final that saw LA Galaxy win a sixth Cup by vanquishing the New York Red Bulls.

Hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan discuss what a loss in the league's championship game means for the legacy of the Red Bulls franchise, as well as what it means for the always-entertaining rivalry between Red Bull and New York City FC fans.

With MLS Cup discussion done, talk moves to the offseason, which has started in earnest with signings, trades, and rumors. NYCFC has contributed to the rumor mill already with the trade of goalkeeper Luis Barraza to DC United and the ongoing negotiations over a possible return in 2025 for midfielder Maxi Moralez.

John and Mark also touch on the simmering rumor that former Philadelphia Union coach and longtime NYCFC rival Jim Curtin might be a candidate to replace Nick Cushing. How welcome would Curtin be as New York City FC coach?

Episode 17 concludes with one final bit of early offseason drama: The MLS Expansion Draft, which saw NYCFC lose Brazilian winger Thiago Andrade in a classic MLS transaction, with Thiago drafted by San Diego FC but then immediately traded to Toronto FC.

We once again are left scratching our heads at the absurdity of the Expansion Draft and the MLS roster rules, but that doesn't stop us from breaking down this strange turn of events for a player who had been loaned out by NYCFC during each of the last two seasons.

When you've finished listening, be sure to follow Hudson River Blue on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, and Twitter (X), and read all our coverage at HudsonRiverBlue.com.

It's down to the MLS Cup Final and this year it's between LA Galaxy and...the New York Red Bulls. Yes, New York City FC's fiercest rivals are one win away from hoisting their first-ever MLS Cup, and this episode starts with hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan sharing their thoughts on that uncomfortable possibility, while giving some begrudging props to the success of Red Bull's approach to games throughout their underdog run through the MLS Cup Playoffs. How big will the absence of LA Galaxy star Riqui Puig be, and does it all come down to whoever manages to grab that first goal?

Episode 16 then shifts to some New York City FC roster talk, specifically as it pertains to the upcoming MLS Expansion Draft in which San Diego FC has a chance to pick five eligible players from five different MLS teams. Mark has a lot of thoughts on the concept of expansion drafts, mainly that they shouldn't exist, but he and John also get into some of the tough decisions NYCFC faces while making a list of 12 players to protect from possible selection.

Things wrap up with a discussion of Etihad Park, which had its ceremonial groundbreaking and is shovels-in-the-ground as it moves toward opening in 2027. Maybe the positive future soccer stadium vibes will be enough to hold you over during the cold, quiet days of the offseason.

When you're done listening, be sure you follow Hudson River Blue on Bluesky, Instagram, Threads, and Twitter (X), and read all our coverage of NYCFC and beyond at HudsonRiverBlue.com.

A packed episode in which we discuss the two huge developments in New York City FC-land: The team's elimination from the MLS Cup Playoffs at the hands of the rival Red Bulls, and the subsequent decision to fire head coach Nick Cushing.

Episode 15 begins with a gut reaction to the news that Cushing is out after 107 games in charge of NYCFC, relieved of his duties by the team. Hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan discuss just how surprising or unsurprising this decision was, and wonder what main factors might have contributed to the decision to cut ties with Cushing.

Then we shift into postmortem mode and reflect on the season-ending 2-0 loss NYCFC suffered at the hands of the New York Red Bulls in the first-ever Hudson River Derby staged in the MLS Cup Playoffs. That includes a discussion of what went wrong in that game at Citi Field, but also what NYCFC and the now-departed Cushing could have done differently to prevent this unfortunate ending to the season.

With the derby disappointment dissected, the conversation shifts to the long offseason ahead, with a first discussion of some of the big decisions NYCFC will face before they kick off the 2025 MLS season. That includes deciding on the future of club legend Maxi Moralez, with varied opinions on whether or not he should return to the team for another season.

There is a lot going on with NYCFC as the 2024 season draws to an end and we tried to break down as much of it as possible in this episode. Listen, visit HudsonRiverBlue.com to read more of our coverage, and follow us on social media over on Bluesky, Twitter (X), Instagram, and Threads.

The first-ever MLS Cup Playoffs edition of the Hudson River Derby is almost here, so this episode of the Hudson River Blue Podcast is all about previewing the gigantic Eastern Conference Semifinal at Citi Field.

To prepare for the big playoff clash between New York City FC and the New York Red Bulls, hosts John Baney and Andrew Leigh had to turn to an expert of New York soccer and of MLS Cup Playoffs soccer.

Enter Gio Savarese, a studio analyst for MLS Season Pass on AppleTV who you also know for his tenures as head coach of the Portland Timbers and New York Cosmos, and for a playing career that included prolific seasons scoring goals for the NY/NJ MetroStars in MLS.

Savarese discusses the significance of the first postseason meeting between NYCFC and the Red Bulls, what each team's head coach will need to do to get their team ready for the unique realities of a playoff derby game, and the huge importance of managing emotions in this kind of high-stakes match against a major rival.

We then have a pod installment of Oppo Research, with Matthew Mangam chatting with Red Bull writer Michael Battista about some of the keys to a potential road victory in Queens.

It's the international break for the MLS Cup Playoffs but there's no international break for the Hudson River Blue Podcast. Episode 13 begins with a survey of the playoff landscape in the Eastern Conference after Round One, namely that the top three seeds, including regular season record-setters Inter Miami CF and Lionel Messi, have been knocked out. Can New York City FC suddenly start dreaming of a march towards another MLS Cup appearance?

First things first, and that means a first-ever playoff Hudson River Derby, which will be played at a less-than-full Citi Field. The news that capacity will be capped due to closures of the upper levels of the stadium as it begins its process of offseason winterization spurred lots of spirited discussion between hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan. They share their thoughts on the cap on crowd size and how it's a missed opportunity to draw a big crowd to watch NYCFC play the New York Red Bulls in the rivalry's most important game to date.

Episode 13 wraps up with the beginnings of a preview of that Eastern Conference Semifinal against the Red Bulls, with some key numbers and trends called out from across the history of the rivalry game that are worth noting while anticipation continues to build for the first playoff clash between the teams.

After you've listened to this episode be sure to go read all of our latest coverage at Hudson River Blue.com, and follow us on Bluesky, Threads, or maybe even Twitter (X), if you're still into that.

New York City FC did just enough to advance in the MLS Cup Playoffs, beating FC Cincinnati on penalty kicks in the decisive Game 3 to seal a first-ever playoff meeting with the rival New York Red Bulls.

This special installment of the Hudson River Blue Podcast was recorded immediately following the 0-0 draw turned NYCFC shootout win at TQL Stadium to close out the best-of-three Round One playoff series, so get ready to excitedly re-live the 18-kick penalty shootout in all its messy glory.

Hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan discuss the bend-but-not-break performance from NYCFC in the 90 minutes of regulation time that came before the penalty shootout. There weren't many attacking chances created by New York City, but was it always in the game plan to force this thing to penalty kicks?

While the clinching win over Cincinnati is the main focus of this episode, we also look ahead to what will be the most important rivalry game to date between NYCFC and the Red Bulls. Given the anticipation around this first-ever playoff Hudson River Derby, it's never too early to start with the previews, even if the game won't take place for another two weeks. Who has the edge, and which team does this game mean more to?

Listen to Episode 12 as you ride the high of a playoff series win, and be sure to read all of our coverage at Hudson River Blue.com, and follow us on Bluesky, Threads, or maybe even Twitter (X), if you're still into that.