The Philadelphia Union finally make a significant offseason move to re-sign Kai Wagner to a new three-year deal. What is next for the Union? Julian Carranza speaks up on his offers and future.
Plus breaking down the coaching carousel, Signings & MLS Updates as we get closer to the start of the 2024 season.
Renee Washington and JP Zapata are joined by guest David Malandra, a sports reporter for @sportstalkphl .
Philadelphia Union, MLS, Union, Philly, Union News, Union Podcast, MLS news, soccer news, Philadelphia Union Podcast, Union sports talk, DOOP
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[Applause] [Applause] N we are just six weeks away from the official start of the MLS season and with that things have been heating up around the MLS not only for other teams but finally for the Philadelphia Union welcome in Phi Union podcast I’m Renee Washington joined by JP zabata who’s
Going to be wearing multiple hats today he’s producing he’s co-hosting we also have a special guest that’s going to be joining us in just a few moments David mandra who’s going to be a to join us to weigh in I see in the comments already we’ve got Kyle listening live from
Anaheim what’s up Kyle nice to have you here Julian all the Almon in the chat uh also listening from Anaheim I love it that you guys are uh able to join in the conversation with us today Major breaking news and I’m excited that we have Today’s Show to be able to break it
All down for you guys so with that let’s welcome in our very special guest for today that we’ve got David meaner he’s a sports reporter working with Sports Talk Philadelphia David covers everything and everybody David you’re all over the place how are you today I feel like I
Should say happy new year because I haven’t seen you in 2024 happy New Year welcome to the show hey thanks for having me it’s all about timing for everything yes it is yes it is okay so little did we know as we’ve been all talking about the union
Being so quiet and things moving slowly um it feels like today’s a new day Kai vogner’s news breaks that he is going to be resigning with the Union it’s a three-year contract a fourthe club option for 2027 and with that there’s one major move that we finally see from
The Philadelphia Union what were your initial thoughts when you heard the breaking news that Kai is staying in Philly well I’m not surprised that this move was it it was about to happen anyway because back on September third I was in the locker room in the postgame
Area when Kai said that that his future in Philadelphia was how can I say it up in the air then within 48 hours later everything broke about saying okay why haven’t they given him a contract yet what’s going on with all this then the next home game started the whole Kai pay
Kai chance started then ever since then I put a whole thing out saying that you know what I think the fan base is trying to tell ownership you got to pay up because you’re letting a top guy who’s been practically now one of the fan favorites behind Andre Blake Ali badya
And now Julian caranza as well so basically this was bound to happen anyway and we saw in the playoffs it with Kai not being there just basically messed everything up but regardless this was bound to happen anyway this would have been a bad move if they let him just go
Off so I feel like for most of the fan base and we’ve talked about in the show here everybody was all team # payai up until the moment Kai dropped those racial comments then all of a sudden and I was one I will admit that was saying I
Don’t really know if I want Kai vogner to come back um and now with the news Kai will of course uh finish out his suspension he will finish out that third game suspension in 2024 but are you still okay with the move and still happy that Kai is still with the Union after
All that happened and unfolded at the end of the season I’m happy with it because basically you still keep your nucleus with you and then especially how the way that playoff game ended in Cincinnati it was such an obvious off Sid but basically let’s put it this way from a league standpoint
They wanted somebody different they obviously didn’t want Philadelphia to get back there but that’s a whole another argument for another time but we basically knew what happened Cincinnati outplay them Union should have had their opportunities it felt like honestly there was at least I would say four
Games last season I was watching the union do way too much passing and I thinking what am I watching the Flyers power play they’re not getting any shots off like what’s going on yeah I I agree with that it definitely felt like at times uh too much passing not enough offense we’ve
Talked about that so many times uh before we get into the nuts and bolts what Kai has been saying since the signing JP I want to get your thoughts how did you feel when you heard the news I know you and I actually were texting about it last night how did you feel
When you heard the news that Kai staying in Philly well first off welcome everyone I am behind quote unquote the glass here at PHL Sports um what’s up David good seeing you as well man um but yeah uh with this Kai situation obviously was funny because last night
We could have had a live broadcast from the hair salon and my couch so that would have been a lot of fun but no we’ve talked about this before I I guess I’m fine with it you know we solidified the left back position the main the main
Starting 11 is back so on the pitch everything seems hunky dory but for me personally it is hard to kind of look past the comments that were said the the moves that we have made as a club with social issues like this it is a little
Bit frustrating but I mean I kind of threw it to the fans and it does seem like getting the grasp of the fans a lot of people are willing to move on from what what transpired it is going to be interesting come game one against Chicago uh at Subaru Park what the what
The outcome or I guess say the reaction the fans will have with Kai in Subaru Park but you still if the left back position I think the off the field is more of the question mark but now I guess this team kind of looks at how do
They fill out the depth of this team but Kai’s back it just feels a little weird it does feel weird because this is something had we had this conversation you know a few months ago I think everyone’s crying tears of joy and now you kind of have like some mixed
Feelings I was like oh great the soccer side I love what Kai brings to the pitch you know you look at Kai’s uh career as a whole without you know needing to even go into all the details as a two time MLS Allstar as someone that’s made um
This team go offensively and defensively Kai is such a big piece and even looking at the fact that he’s you know first defender in club history to record 10 assists in a single MLS season um someone that we’ve seen he has had 39 assists 12 more than any defender in the
League since making his debut uh the assist alone and his ability to to help as you talk about David getting those goal scoring opportunities so it’s not just this over were possessing team but now adding more into the final third whether through set pieces services or just the the dimes that he’s dropping
Into his teammates in scoring position that side of me is happy that Kai is still here with the Union I am interested to see how you know the fans and people will react once it comes down to game time but I think it’s more about okay how will Kai take everything that
Happened and unfolded um address It or Not address it and just kind of move forward from it and and be a better person because of it if we get a Kai that’s out there I think it’s comes down to if we get a Kai that when he comes
Back he’s just showing he’s grateful he’s happy to be here he’s team first you know I think it’ll make it a lot easier to overlook the the comments that he learned from them in that sense versus if we get any other incidents or something you know he kind of has a a
Shorter leash in that sense in terms of what Kai is is able to do but I like the move and with that uh David he gets to stay here’s something else that I I just realized as well um it during the last four or five home games the crowd
Reaction when Kai got introduced was defining every time he touched the ball it it was a loud roar because they know they wanted him to stay now with him under contract you know it’s going to be even louder now so basically now he is now considered as one of the faces of
The franchise you got him Andre Blake Julian and now Jack mclin this the young nucleus especially since two of them just got called up to what was it USA soccer for their um Janu January training camp two of them got called up and now with this news they came came
Out as of well I believe it was yesterday about Julian coranza now that changes everything that that just came down with about him as well saying that he turned down offers from European teams back in August and last month that’s basically saying that he wants to
Stay here long term but now because the way how the Philadelphia Union have been the last couple years it’s basically saying they are now the team that can produce young grown players that now are on the national stage now as you seen with both Aronson Brothers yeah no that’s a great point we’re
Definitely going to touch on Julian because the comments that have that have come out about him uh have been concerning to say the least but back to what you’re mentioning about the growth and the development of this team yeah it’s great you’re seeing guys like Nate and Jack getting opportunities with the
US Men’s National Team we’ll talk about some of their comments as well but it’s it’s this team has a lot of talent and to be able to lock in someone like Kai who only lifts when he’s on the on the pitch with what he can add to I think
Soccer wise I love the move I know Jose in the chat you’re saying that the union declined to comment on what Kai’s rehabilitation program is and they guided Jose to talk to the MLS and he’s Jose still waiting to hear from the MLS PR team yeah that’s kind of the question
Mark I think a lot of us are wondering I mean I’ve been watching a lot of players across leagues when they had these types of incidents and they go through Rehabilitation programs whether it’s Draymond Green in the NBA or Kai Vagner in the MLS I would like to know what’s
Being done to an extent to make sure that we’re making uh not making this mistake again not seeing Kai continue to have any sort of comments or incidents but I do love the fact that Kai came out and said a lot of positive things about just wanting to be here he’s like I’ve
Been here for almost five years now and continue to grow professionally and personally I feel highly valued here and have a great bond with the club my family and I also feel extremely at home here despite other exciting options in Europe I decided to extend my contract with the Philadelphia Union because in
The end my heart also played a part in my decision so when I heard those parts of his comments I said okay okay to me this means Kai loves the fans the city for more than just soccer he’s connected here and he feels like this is home and
He’s not ready to move yet not to mention there’s still more more work to be done for this team to accomplish and as you touched on David uh obviously with how things ended last year that the the loss to FC Cincinnati that goal that we all are still seeing in our
Nightmares this team is feeling some of that same motivation that there’s unfinished business and I think Kai’s comments kind of alluded to that as well of in his heart this is home this is where he wanted to be real quick Renee because I do we have to ask something
About the happiness part of what what you just said there because yeah I mean obviously you’re happy that you’re back you got another contract I need to see the contract details there obviously it’s a three-year deal uh he was making a what like 600 630k uh for per year so
I would assume he’s making closer to a million than 600k this year so that would make anyone happy I would say so we got to check that out tooo David I think you were to jump in and say something too yeah I’m good with that I’m good
With that yeah I like it I like it um and I know Jose is saying for what it’s worth Kai’s had four agents in five years which is concerning um to say the least but for now we’re still waiting on those details of the specifics of Kai’s rehabilitation program what the the
Numbers are for his three-year deal with the fourth year Club option for 2027 that in itself is going to be interesting inter because I’m sure as we all were following the news around Kai we are all expecting he’s probably was getting some very large offers and for
Him to decline those to stay here are huge but as you mentioned David there’s another player on the union that’s been declining some offers and that’s jul and caranza now what makes this very concerning is we’ve been talking about on the show just like everybody else that his future is questionable we don’t
Know if he’s going to be here or not and then to see a tweet come out from Lizzie ber excuse me Bano who was saying this Philadelphia unions julan coranza just confirmed to me he received interest from European clubs back in August and December but declined added quote I hope
To make a big career move in July so I like everything about that except for I hope to make a big career move in July so Julian’s a player that we’ve talked a lot about his future here if he’s going to remain with the Union if we see him
Um taking it any of these offers that he’s getting from European Club s David what are your thoughts on his quote I hope to make a big career move in July so at initial glance it’s basically what based off what I’m reading it as he’s expecting to get a contract
Extension in July because that’s basically what he’s trying to say is that’s when the transfer Market opens up for the European squads right so if he’s B playing at a high level which he will be if he is playing at a high level during the season you know Ernest Tanner
Is going to be saying do I really want to move him or do I want to pay him now because of how much money they’re gonna have coming off the books with some of these clining contracts are gone so now it’s just going to be where is he at so
That’s the big question right now yeah and that’s something that we’ve talked about will the union be willing to to pay to keep holing karanza or does it make more sense to figure out a way to get a deal where you can get money in return or you can you can now start
Planning for the future essentially I don’t know because if julan coranza is getting these large offers it makes you wonder and I know JP we’ve talked about it what what makes most sense for the future for the union because they have to be prepared in case they lose julan
To be able to replace him but you also I’d love to see them be aggressive and trying to pay to keep him right right yeah I told agree with that it’s like like I’m saying is in July if he’s playing very well you know that Ernest s is looking and saying okay what’s
European teams are going to be offering do I want to throw on the money now JP I know you have lots of thoughts on this because we talked about it on the show before uh does this make you more interested in going ahead and moving jul and coranza even before July
All right so obviously the plan that we draw up was what was best was him leaving now that way you can find a replacement that gives a full season for this replacement to acclimated with the squad now this may damper our plans just a little bit but I think one thing to
Keep an eye out and again optimism right Renee so the optimism in in me would say that if we can get production out of taiaro Quinn Sullivan and Chris Donovan then we can find ourselves uh a good situation and that and that alleviates pressure of selling holing caransa
Obviously I I made the joke here on Twitter I was half serious with the Roberto firmino because of you know we’ll probably talk about it next week the situation going on in Saudi Arabia but there’s like a group of players that we could probably take advantage of and
And probably go go ahead and buy but if it’s not that there are obviously options that we have constantly talked about of going out for in Europe but right now what it looks like is you wait to see with Kara’s values to rise up with his play you wait to see if Quinn
Sullivan Chris Donovan tyo elevate their play and then you know erns erns is erns er will use his connections and he’ll find that replacement but I do think that this time around we we’ve we’ve been whispering about this for like since he’s arrived here but I think this
Time around come July I think it will actually happen I think that we will uh will find another home in Europe for julan caransa yeah I think you’re absolutely right um you know I think at the end of the day when you look at this news come forward and we hear julan kind
Of make a statement in my opinion of listen balls in your court I’m getting these offers and he’s kind of putting the pressure on Ern Tanner and the union and also the other clubs as well that I’m getting these offers and I’m going to make a big career move and career
Move for me means he’s making a move that makes most sense for him for his future and he’s going to be entertaining some of these um you know thoughts around possibly finding the next chapter whatever that may look like is that more money with the union or is that playing
Somewhere else entirely we don’t know but I think julan coranza has set himself up to have the ability to do that I mean the last two season I know Jimmy King actually was the one that was tweeting this out I was like as I was astonished at the numbers of the
Breakdown of when he was at in Miami versus when he was with the union and the change that we’ve seen from juli caranza in his overall production that for the MLS goal specifically not looking at all the international games to have 14 goals five assists this past
Season 15 goals seven assists this past season again not looking at any of the other International games that they’re playing throughout the course of the Year huge growth for juling Crown in the last two years he’s raised his stock he’s had the ability now to be able to
You know demand more yesterday’s price is not today’s price tag JP and he knows that and so he now can go into these negotiations saying this is what I’ve done the last two years he’s still obviously very young and only 23 years old and in in such a great spot of his
Career that he can now demand more and I felt like him coming forward with this statement was him putting the pressure on that listen come July money better start talking or I’m going to be walking because because he’s he’s has every right to uh want to get paid more and
Playing a bigger opportunity yeah and I think that’s like the tough part about MLS scheduling because we unfortunately don’t we we’re not align with Euro right so like our off season is their middle of their season so it is tough to sell off players like this in our allseason
Because of just the calendar but I mean I get it I think more so the union need to prepare themselves for this because what I think Cincinnati handled the perfect way last year brener gets sold off into UD and they had um OB Benso ready in the wings and they boom they
Sign him right away that’s what you want to do you want to have that backup plan set up and that I think that’s where a lot of the concern is for the fan base is that yeah we all under agree and say caransa probably should be playing in
Europe again or at some point I should say but what’s our backup plan because Kara does score a good amount of goals here and one thing to mention too Kara yeah he may won that big move but the one knock on caransa is consistency my brother you need to be consistent here
If you want to get sold before July or during July so yeah one year left on his contract we already knew that this was going to be an issue um and a concern in that sense and now it comes down to on both sides for for coranza specifically
As you mentioned JP he has shown a lot but he still has a lot of room for growth in terms of definitely consistency and then on the other side for the union all right if if July is kind of that deadline then take this time between preseason all the way
Through July to see what you’ve got is tyo going to be able to settle in and have more of a role on this team are you gonna be able to get more from guys like Quinn Sullivan and uh Chris Donovan you know what’s Daniel gazda gonna look like
He’s another one that we should be able to get more from so in the attack specifically uh in order to replace the the shoes of jul and karanza if he does go to a different club and leaves the union this is the time to start preparing for that essentially
Absolutely you got to prepare now Jose what do you mean henza was busy filming filming what is he an actor now well you know what also has been very busy and and and doing a great job of helping to support people that is that’s mortgage CS so mortgage CS which
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Dropping some tea in the chat baby asked and J and Jose replied uh y some inappropriate filming has been happening Jillian and and everybody else I’m sure you were not expecting this te I was not expecting that we’ve already gotten so much information over the last
24 hours this was not on my bingo card for what we were going to be getting information on Jose but thank you for enlightening us on what kind of filming was happening JP you asked there you go listen that that’s not MLS I don’t know what it is
And Jose is clarifying he’s not kidding or Jose are you the source of this uh this rumor here or this this story here tweet out her Jose nun just kidding put the name on yeah I won’t put that out there I won’t put that out there but it
Is listen what these people do in their own lives or outside of you know work sometimes gets publicly shared and that’s why going I’m I’mma bring it on back to Kai that’s why with Kai I would like to know some information on what’s going on because because you know your
Your personal feelings and thoughts and slip ups and mistakes are one thing but let’s make sure they’re not a habit so I do want to give a quick thank you though to David for joining us you can give him a follow at davem reports David as you
Can even see today on the go all the time always covering a lot of different uh stories and whether it’s college sports or or Pro Sports here in Philly David Milan does a great job with that so shout out to David for taking time to
Join us today on the show and uh JP yeah Jose said it you ask he deliver and you can volunteer to confirm it uh real quick I I just cuz on the K front I just want to bring something up that a lot of the fan base has been
Bringing up too yeah so I think that listen I I think we’re all forgiving people I think we can all move on from this as well but I think what’s important to Renee is what Kai does to kind of I I don’t want to say build his
Name up again but like look it was pretty serious what he did and I I’m not Asian I’m not Asian American I can’t speak upon this for for that Community but I would assume that what would be best is him doing something as far as an Outreach you know doing outreaches with
The our Asian American Community it’s we have a beautiful Community that’s right down the street here so I I think that Kai has to do some actions he’s done plenty on actions on on the pitch off the pitch the actions have to speak louder so I think that would put some of
The fan base at ease it’s weird because like it does feel like we are divided in that some some fans can look passive passive some fans can’t but I think it’s for Kai he needs to do something off the pitch I think to your point JP it’s kind
Of like when you’ve been I always use the dating Manor I probably should stop doing that but it’s kind of like when you or even a friend like you’ve known somebody all this time and all of a sudden they like show their true colors and you’re like wait a minute I don’t
Think I knew you as well as I thought I did you know kai is going into his sixth season this year with the union and in all this time I mean this the things that we’ve seen from Kai 138 appearances 136 starts since he joined the club in
2019 um he in that time as I mentioned earlier with David on the show registered the second most assist in club history with 39 assists 12 more than any defender in the league since making his debut in 2023 finished the second most assist on the team as well
As led in multiple categories crosses tackles Pass Key passes interceptions dual percentage amongst players Corner kicks taken and the first um uh yeah the first defender in club history to record 10 assists in a single MLS season which happened against the revs on July back
In 2022 and on August 31st 2022 I say all this to say with all these great things we’ve seen from Kai over the years and the Great Moments I can vividly remember some of his assists and plays and you know flying down the Left Flank that you’re like you love to see
Kai in action but this is what leaves a bad taste in your mouth you know and it’s hard to just look past this and move on because he’s been resigned without in the back of your mind thinking well which Kai is the real Kai
And I think all of it is him I mean he is human we all make mistakes guys some people go out and accidentally film things inappropriately some people make inappropriate comments some people make racist comments um in this situation though it’s hard because we don’t know
You know I think to to what Jose was talking about earlier if we had a little bit of insight on what’s going on behind the scenes know I felt better about John morance and Draymond Green knowing the rehabilitation programs that the NBA had them working through okay for the MLS I
Want to know what Kai’s doing I don’t need to know everything I don’t know I don’t need to know times and dates and what location but I’d love to know hey we as a league actively speak up against you know insensitive discriminatory behaviors and comments and this is what
We’re mandating he does because you can’t say it as a league and even for the Union as a club and then when something like this comes up it’s just radio silence like we should hear something especially now that he has been resigned and is no longer a free
Agent so I think to your point that’s exactly why you get a mixture of fans similar to kind of how I am of it’s definitely like see Jose it’s definitely kind of like happy he’s back from the side side but a lot of question marks around which Kai are we getting back
What is going to be the response is it going to just move be moving forward business as usual or are we going to get some sort of a change or like you mentioned maybe more um advocacy or humanitarian work or anything like that philanthropy work remember Mike vict I
Mean he had to do all that Community work with Peta and he’s still getting killed for it um I think too like I think it’s best for him to do some type of Outreach like that but let’s also remember this was the Union as well that also doubled down
On what happened and tried to bring up with Bobby which listen if Bobby was coming at his family okay but it’s just the timing of everything was just wrong and so yeah I it feels like ever since the season kind of ended or when that situation happened they were willing to
Reconcile and bring them back so you know I I guess at the end of the day we are the fans and they are the ones working out there every day and so if they are fine with it I I guess they’re going to expect us to be fine with it as
Well guess so I guess so I know ER s was saying uh in a release how you know Kai’s proven himself year after year to be one of the best left backs in the league as we know he’s been an integral part of their success uh he also was
Talking about just how he consistently with his defending and aggressive attacking has helped contribute to a lot of Milestones the team has achieved every year and I agree I think you know that’s why as he’s saying they’re looking forward to having Kai in Philadelphia for years to come as we’re
Mentioning for the soccer side definitely that’s why we’re looking forward to having Kai with the union for years to come as well so more information on that to uh be able to talk about in the future as we’re getting more details as we’re getting you know the outline of his of his deal
And any sort of insight on the rehabilitation program and so we’ll be sharing that as we get it um but you know what else you can get that’s the game time app because the game time app is a great place to be able to easily download the app and find great tickets
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Use it for the first time you get $20 off with that code pH h l y all right so uh some other exciting things that we have just going on personally in house while I’m running through some updates actually might as well update you on some of these things as well because we
Have a watch party happening this Monday uh although we are six weeks away from the start of the 20124 MLS season we are less than a week away from the start of the NFL playoffs so over at the Wicked Wolf on Monday we will have a watch
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All the support right now they can possibly get so head on down to the Wicked Wolf you can get those details on our website uh we’re also tweeting out that information for the pH eagles watch party we’ve got new merch we’ve got watch parties we got a lot of things
Going on guys have you seen some of the merch that we’ve dropped lately all right one last thing and then we’ll move back into soccer check out this merch that we’ve got we have been releasing some really cool stuff it’s been hoodies t-shirts we try to make sure that we’re
Dropping merch that’s specific to what’s going on so right now we’ve been dropping a lot of eagles Sixers and flyers merch rightfully so since they’re in the thick of their Seasons you can check out those hoodies there’s some of them on your screen for those that are watching anybody that’s listening on
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Name it we’ve got it it’s all at the pH Locker that you can check out our hats our hoodies and all of our new merch so lots of exciting things that are happening because uh it’s always an exciting time here there’s always something to talk about there’s always
Plenty going on and with all that happened in the last 24 hours we’ve all been processing so we’ve got the kai vogner news we’ve got uh Hing Kuran in the Tweet also I did see something that came out as well about ali badya um towards the end of the piece about Kai
JP they were just talking about of course Still Remains a free agent and Jim curtain’s group is expected to run it back in 2024 starting with of course the home opener February 24th so that’s all we got on Ali that’s the only mention I’ve heard so far of Ali woya
But I was like okay that leaves me optimistic that yes Alejandro Boya is still a free agent and with Jim curtain expected to run it back I would expect that means maybe Ali would be included in that running back roster that is the other interesting question mark because
All right Ally I think we all expect to be back but I don’t think anyone expects him to be a full-time starter again I hope I I would yes I agree so here’s the question Renee so every year Jose bro Martinez is always linked to a team Leon flocked
Already linked to a team Jack mcglenn I feel like it’s it’s about time soon so I think you need to prepare for that I think this is the moment Renee you do Union ball that you know finding that piece it’s cheaper Maybe little younger you can develop I think that is when you
Go Union ball so you can prepare yourself for you know if someone does get in the Midfield does get sold off in the middle of the Season uh you don’t honestly you don’t know about allly unfortunately I would love to say Alli is gonna play almost every match but you
Saw the amount of match he’s missed over the past couple Seasons so I think that that’s something to keep an eye out for and if erns wants to do his Union ball I think that is a position a shuttle midfielder specifically that can uh that can fill in and be a development piece
Here no completely agree with you I think that uh Ali for sure in my opinion should be brought back on like a one-year deal but with the expectation his role is not going to be as a starter you know I think and what’s up spiral
Out nice to have you here make sure you guys are hitting that like button while you’re here join the conversation jump in the chat um I think for Ali badya where he’s at in his career that’s just kind of his role more of the voice the presence in the locker room the guy
That’s G to give you minutes were needed role player type of a player um in that sense versus someone that you’re expecting to play 90 minutes and be able to just log a lot of the wear that’s needed to lift this team up so I think
For ali badya um and I’m hoping that with maybe Kai Vagner was possibly the priority getting him signed bringing him back that maybe now we’ll get some alib badya news who knows in the next week or so I’m just going to throw it out there anything’s possible that we could
Possibly get some Aliya news uh what I will also say is I was quickly doing a account and I should have did this before I’ve got my handy dandy scoreboard I’ve been using wait let me not do the red side cuz y’all will cancel me for doing something in red
Because every time I even have the fact I even have a little bit red on my sweater is too much for f the only time you can’t wear red is in the River end so we’re gonna get rid of the red side 44 days apparently yes let’s go 44 is
The IM this is our scoreboard that I purchased actually for the office because we have the need for scoreboards for a lot of things whether it’s our pingpong table or countdowns and the countdown is 44 days until the MLS opener the union for the Union against
The Chicago Fire so 44 Danny Cruz days for all my OG Union fans out there 44 what Danny Cruz remember Danny Cruz oh wow yeah I was like quickly doing the math that one two three four five six yeah 44 and three days until till training camp starts essentially I know
With it already being January 11th we are already nearing the start of training camp m are moving fast guys things are moving fast any news on inis that’s a great question Mike begs what’s up Mike begs nice to have you here um yeah nothing really actually we haven’t heard we saw
I just saw updates about him training but I haven’t heard anything about inviso that’s the thing it’s been so quiet for the Union right now that we haven’t heard anything outside of Jack and Nate being called into the US Men’s National Team we’ve gotten the occasional image of guys training you
Know we saw Jose Martinez training we’ve seen training um but we actually haven’t had any sort of an update it’s been very quiet I know spot you’re asking um rookie question but is selling a player in soccer the same as a trade in other sports yes and no it’s actually more
Complicated because in soccer you can also sell players between leagues in a in a whole different way you can loan players out um in fact the union did just loan a player out this just dropped shortly before our show the Philadelphia Union have loan have loaned forward
Nelson Pierre to scovi aik it’s a Swedish club and Nelson Pier is a homegrown player he’s going to join the Swedish Club on loan through 2024 so not only do you get the opportunities for players to be traded or signed in free agency but you also get a lot of times
Where clubs will loan a player out to another club typically it’s a club in a different country but we’ve also seen it happen where they loan them out to a club in the MLS so there are so many different types of um ways that teams can just work through their their money
It’s essentially like there’s a lot of ways to to create your roster and that’s insane what’s also insane is Jullian I love that you’re watching in a bar with an lafc beer oh mine is hey all beer is good beer I guess um so the details on Nelson Pierre Nelson Pierre as a
Homegrown uh currently is going to be joining the Swedish Club they play in the second tier League over in Sweden Nelson is a graduate of ysc Academy he’s been a homegrown and signed a contract back in February 2023 on the 21st he became the 20th homegrown in Union history there’s something interesting
And at the age of 18 years old back in 2023 he made 28 appearances 15 starts for the Philadelphia Union second team um and then also scored four goals and had four assists so now is going to get his chance um to move along and play with the Swedish club and that’s pretty
Exciting for him I mean hey a chance to develop uh you know after playing with the MLS next Pro uh level and now getting to go play with the Swedish Club it is a second tier League over in Sweden but it’s another opportunity for him I guess to develop so yeah some news
So um who we had on on the show um Evan conen a couple weeks ago we had on while while you we had a nice day off there so Evan Evan was in and he he put out a good tweet so I haven’t really watch a
Lot of union2 which I that’s one of my goals this year is to watch some more union2 so he did mention that throughout stretches Nelson did struggle for Union 2 he’s a young kid but he’s got the body type to play forward he’s got a lot of
Raw ability and I think that’s a great move like him going over to you know you know we talk about all the time young players going over to Europe talking about these ufmt kids it’s it’s tough It’s a different environment and it and it probably will bring out the player
That probably Nelson Pier needs to be being in those tough situations we talked about with tesho being in those tough situations always brings the best out of you so I think for Nelson more happy for him I think this is a great move move but we’ll have to wait and see
You know he mentioned he’s the 20th homegrown we’ll see if he can come back here and and build a union career if not a career for himself but yeah I think overall I think this is a great move for a young player like this that’s the
Thing he’s so young he’s only 18 years old so um you know you think about for the MLS a lot of times for the SEC that MLS next Pro is similar to the farm system that you have in like major league baseball that’s like what I can
Compare it to for your question spiral out so a lot of times you’ll see where you know the senior team is going to loan players or move players around to help them develop with other either other clubs or with their Farm program which in this case is the union 2 so I
Think for Nelson Pierre again he was just 18 years old when he started playing with the Union uh two team last year or this yeah last year in 2023 so he’s got time and I think to give him meaningful minutes somewhere see how he can develop the hard part is whenever
You make a change like that you’re now going to play with like a Swedish Club it’s a whole different brand of soccer a whole different different culture a whole different league but sometimes you need that you need a fresh start you need a change of envir environment just
To see what you can do so exciting news for him uh also our other homegrown I know we talked about Jack mcllin and Nate harriel on on our Tuesday show and we were talking about them getting their first ever call up to the US Men’s National Team but we did not get a
Chance to talk about what they said because they actually came out and talked themselves about how exciting the opportunity is now for these two they’ve played with the U23 national team they’ve gotten opportunities they’ve been progressing and so I actually really enjoyed their comments that they said and I’m going to
Just share with you some of them because they’re now currently attending the training camp in Orlando with the US Men’s National Team then they’re going to be traveling to represent the team uh the country I should say against lania in a friendly on the 20th uh that’ll be
Taking place down in Texas so this is a great opportunity for them so Jack was saying things like of course he’s excited um he was saying also you know when they sent out the preliminary email so I was like oh I have a chance here
And then two weeks or so after that Jim curtain texted Nate and Jack saying congrats and then Jack’s agent told him he said it was just a really cool feeling and he can’t wait to get started and get there and how he’s been looking forward to it for a while you know
Whether with the U23 team the u20s get to play at the World Cup and now this opportunity um you know he’s saying everyone wants that first team call and he’s just really happy that it finally happened and he hopes to be able to show what he’s capable of he’s like I think
Union fans know what I can do I think I personally know what I can do and I’ve been working really hard the whole offseason to stay fit and sharp and get ready for this game so I’m just excited to go out there and show what else I you
Know show them what I can do so Jack had some great quotes and then JP Nate was saying some similar stuff of it’s all moving so fast now with the Olympics coming up soon I could be on that team and solidifying my starting spot here at the Philadelphia Union it’s all
Happening so fast but it’s exciting at the same time it’s always a goal to play at the highest level you can obviously to be on the senior national team the matter what camp it is in January or anything else it’s always a privilege it’s an honor it means you’re doing the
Right thing performing well you can only go up from here and so you know they’re just talking a lot about the excitement of being able to get a chance and for both of them they definitely have had their role grow and improveed with the union and with the Men’s National Team
So that’s as Nate was even saying I was like oh my gosh that’s that’s even more special like you’re getting a chance to be a starter get more minutes with the Union but also with the national team you get that role as well um so JP very
Very exciting for both of them and this is a lesson for everyone not only for Nate and Jack but networking is a big part of life ladies and gentlemen espe you want to advance in life and Jack and Nate are gonna be able to take this opportunity to network with MLS veterans
We talk like guys like miles Robinson are on that roster in this January Camp so this is an opportunity for them to just improve upon their game and to Mike’s question here uh unfortunately Brandon with just a tough season he had Jack and and were very consistent on a
Playoff MLS team so that’s a reason why they get called up here Brandon is going to have to kind of put himself back in the Limelight here for the US Federation uh and he’s just gonna have to work his butt off he’s back here in Philly he’s
Done with his Loan in Austin again we don’t know what the what the future holds with Brandon because you still have yaka uh Jack and you have Damen low in the in the in the fold um ALU who we signed during the season with the under
22 initiative is still here as well so it’s gonna be tough for Brandon Brandon’s gonna have to come in here and fight for a roster spot with the Union if not I don’t know what the union are going to do with him yeah I know to Mike’s question as he was asking about
Brandon I mean as you mentioned not only other not only did Nate and Jack benefit from being able to have a strong MLS season but you have to look at the other names that are across this list now because of the timing of these um of the
January Camp it is all MLS players only so you’re not going to get someone like a Christian pic you know you know you’re going to get only MLS guys because a for Greg ber halter he was saying this is a chance to see what other players can do
See what those younger guys can do but also the timing of the schedules with other leagues but even with that you still have across the back line I know they broke the the roster of 25 down by position and someone like miles Robinson is one of those guys I mean you’ve got
Jackson Reagan from Seattle James Sans from nycfc John tolken from the Red Bulls Caleb Wy from Atlanta you’ve got uh dwan Jones from New England of course Nate Shak Moore from Nashville you know the defense alone uh tafari from FC Dallas is is very competitive it’s a lot
It’s a mixture of guys getting their first opportunities and some others that have already played and gotten you know 27 caps like miles Robinson so for brandan Craig um he didn’t have it’s hard to crack into that group and in fact did he get called he did get called
Into the U23 group back in like November December yeah because he didn’t Quin not get that opportunity but he did have a struggle he did have a tough season Mike to your question about Brandon I wouldn’t say bad just rough because injuries and then I don’t know what Josh
Wolf’s issue was down in Austin but just kept playing the same center backs and he wouldn’t even give Bron Craig a chance which is just so frustrating for Brandon so it’s just he just has to play that’s all it is Mike he just really has
To play and play his game yeah and I think that’s what it comes down to it’s more of he hasn’t had opportunities and unfortunately as we know the backline is not a position where you’re getting a lot of opportunities to begin with it’s very slim chances that you actually get
On the field so you really have to show it in training typically coaches might rotate a little bit more with their front three or whatever formation front forwards their midfielders um they’ll rotate them more but center backs especially you’re not really you’re not rotating center backs you might have two
Maybe a third person and a friendly that you try out but it’s a very slim opportunity to crack into that so I think to be honest Brandon’s just in a tough situation similar to actually what he dealt with with the Union that’s why I was with awon to begin with it’s just
There’s nowhere for him at this time and so it’s a shame to see but he’s still is Young still has chances to maybe turn that corner absolutely Just One Day at a Time Brandon we we got trust in you we got trust in you yeah so definitely an
Exciting time though I I know we didn’t have a chance to talk about the quotes that they said on Tuesday because the show we had so many other things that we got into um but I love just the humbleness and just the excitement and the pure joy from Nate and Jack to get
This opportunity and as we talked talk about their role is growing this is when you’re really starting to feel your hard work paying off with the union with the national team to get that first call up and it is something that when you first start playing that’s what you look to do
Your goal is to play at the highest level and with the Olympics coming up I would I would just love for the union to have players represented and I’ve said that before to have players represented on the Men’s National Team come the Olympics the World Cup is is
Obviously not too far behind that we now can have Union players to talk about her on the show that are off representing just like we talk about Andre Blake and Damen low and Jose and Jesus breno you know the more guys from the union that can get caps and appearances on their
Respective national teams it makes it that much sweeter that means this team has that says a lot about your talent that you have several guys that come International breaks are getting on the roster but then also getting me meaningful minutes you know Daniel gazak of course struggled with that we want to
See these guys get their names called up and then actually get to play that’s it that’s all we want and it’s a good it’s a good name for the club too because like when even it doesn’t matter who’s the coach down the line for the US men
National team at least they know all right Philly’s got that pipeline so let’s go check out what these young kids are doing they’re getting first minutes let’s give them the opportunity I think that’s what really has helped guys like Nate and Jack and even Quinn and Brandon
With with the under under 20 teams so it’s it just keep doing what they’re doing that’s all all it is here for this oh yeah oh yeah um I didn’t even see spy’s comment about he didn’t realize the complexity of roster SOC it’s a lot lot yeah and you know
What it’s it’s a blessing and a curse because there’s a ton of opportunities but also kind of makes it overwhelming that it’s not just you know when you compare the MLS to or soccer in general to like basketball for example basketball it’s like NBA is typically the goal for most basketball players and
Then you have the other leagues you’ll have like the g-league you’ll have the European leagues and they’re all pretty great great developments League wise but you rarely see a guy go from the NBA to to a European League then back within like a year like the way that you see in
The MLS for example but in the in soccer the MLS the NW doesn’t do it as much they will literally loan a player it’s weird to me to loan a player first of all a person here you’re just gonna take them for a temporary time Brandon Craig
Go play with Austin for a little bit and then come back uh just for x amount of months and then we’ll have you back but yeah it’s very complicated and there’s a lot of components to it before we even get into like the farm system and the
Development side of things I feel like like deadlines for like NFL NBA NHL MLB I think that’s I feel like that’s alone because some a lot of a lot of times that’s a good point a lot of those Leakes like they’re making those they’re the teams that are buying they’re making
Those moves because they’re trying to make that last playoff uh push these players are on expiring contracts 10day contracts all that fun stuff yeah loaning and selling a player definitely sounds weird but I’ve always said the um business side Sports does have some weird things of like you can trade a
Player and and players have talked about this all the time like I was in the middle of taking a nap and I woke up and I found out I got traded or I was practicing and I left practice and found out I got traded like it’s Cutthroat and
It very much is weird and property like that the way these athletes are treated wait till we tell spal about theem oh my gosh I know the academy side of soccer is even Wilder that’s where it all begins that’s where it all begins they’re trying to fix it in Youth Soccer
Though um but again a lot of exciting things on the horizon we will have in our Tuesday show JP and I will have a chance uh to cut into all the things that have been going on around the league there’s been a lot of signings
That we’ve been seeing we saw um just a couple to run through we saw Atlanta United signed uh Norwegian International Center back Center back uh ston Gregerson possibly say his name incorrectly I apologies on that then we also saw FC Cincinnati added another one Cory be they’ve added another free agent
We’ve seen a lot from FC Cincinnati they’ve been pretty active so far this off season Real Salt Lake picked up Mexican youth National Winger Fidel baras who’s going to be joining he actually is coming from the USL Championship side Charleston battery um so he’s getting that move and he’s only
17 uh getting the call up and then we also saw San Jose Earthquakes have resigned midfielder Jack Jax Gahan I almost flipped his name Jax Gahan is resigned and returning back back through the 2025 MLS season with an option for 2026 so right now it just feels like
There’s a lot of moves uh Vancouver also they have signed free agent forward Fafa picall I never can say his last name faf I’m happy he’s still in the league Fafa Pico Union Legend P glad still got a job there’s a name you guys recognize for sure if you understood how I butchered
His last name because I can never say Pico the right way there we go Pico and Vancouver I don’t know if you ever got the to me Fafa was a was a dope man but he is going to fit perfectly at Vancouver with that food scene out there
Mhm that’s what they they’re very excited to bring him in uh he’s going to be a good addition definitely he’s played for a lot of teams of course the union FC Dallas the Dynamo uh Nashville now his next stop Vancouver so plenty of other things to talk about as we
Continue to follow the signings that have happened there’s been a coaching Carousel not just in the NFL and in college football but also in this football as well of a lot of coaching Chang that have been happening in the MLS um it’s a time of change it’s a time
Of like uncovering all that because also as we’ve been talking about we know just days away from the opening parts of of uh preseason for the union which means every team is of course starting preseason in the next couple of days friendlies are coming up January and
February is packed then the union will be going down to clearw to have their preseason camps and more friendlies are are going to be taking place so it’s a lot going on which means teams are now making those final decisions of okay this is the group we want to start out
With for preseason see what they’ve got and then maybe after preseason we’ll see some more moves as well so to me this is kind of like that next tier of roster changes signing some free agents resigning players to an extension to see you know what group you can run it out
There with in terms of preseason before you make another pivot for the actual season JP Toom before the storm I would say guys and the what’s the frustrating part about this is that because this transfer period for the MLS open till April 1st yeah a lot of teams probably
Are going to use up that time period too so our Union could also be bringing in a player that late as well and I’m going to go on a bow take here I say on Tuesday when we record live here which make sure you guys are watching we’re
Gonna be talking about alya resigning with the Union wow say that I think the deal gets done this over this weekend I do I do feel like Kai was the first Domino right and to me it seemed as though they had to finalize those those details so
It also in my opinion depends on how quickly we get the details of his three-year deal with the fourth year Club option um because I think once they get those te’s crossed eyes dotted signs everything all the you know little F print and stuff figured out then they’re
Going to be moving on to the next decision and if the union are planning to run it back why wait go ahead and get Ali assigned get him started because the other thing as we know as we talked about is you’re you’re starting preseason this weekend so absolutely
Makes sense that they would move a little bit quicker because you want to have these guys locked in for preseason day one if you can or maybe day two or three that you have them locked in so okay I like it and you know what else
I’m thinking about too I like it and I think I’m about to piss off Union fans but like all right so Kai vogner sign right ping cuton surpris going to stay here Leon flock that’s up in the air so what are the signings going to be are
There going to be any other big signings if like the starting 11 is already set in stone it doesn’t have to be that starting 11 now I I like what what kind of signing are we expecting here guys JP coming in being a you’re just being a devil’s
Advocate right now playing the other side of the fence listen I would I want to see a big signing I want to see a signing a veteran oneyear deal for a guy that’s what I’m waiting for for the the union and not someone that’s already on the union like Ali I’m already expecting
A one-year deal deal for Ali I’m expecting a oneyear type of a deal a Gareth Bale deal for someone and the thing is like I I I think we were GNA do I was hoping we do something like that but I was thinking it was going to be
For aansa replac him which if he’s staying till July that Pro that deal might come till July that’s why it’s important that Kar gets sold you need that backup plane ready to go boom so the K tweets out signing tweet out as well goes out and comes a new but yeah
That being said that is where we are right now that’s the State of the Union we’ve got uh kers in jul and caranza could possibly be out and of course you wait till the final minutes of the show to try to drop these last like F this
Food for thought of wait a minute if the union are running it back and Ali does sign and Leon is here to stay does that mean this is the same group that we’re running the back with I don’t know but we’ll see and that’s what we we’ll be
Talking about on Tuesday day so again we’ve got some new merch for you guys to check out uh I know if you haven’t already head over to Phi Locker to check that out also make sure to give us a follow because we’re sharing more merch and more information like these things
That are here hats hoodies t-shirts all types of apparel we’re going to continue dropping more as the year goes on and uh for all of us here at Phi Union podcast we appreciate you for taking time to join us and tune in hit that like button
On your way out the virtual doors make sure you’re following subscribing keeping up to date with all we’ve got going on because as JP mentioned come Tuesday there could be some more news we knew there was going to be roster news from the US Men’s National Team from
Last weekend to talk about this week we knew there was going to be something nobody expected Kai Vagner was going to resign with the Union yesterday so we’ll see what happens today or tomorrow or the next day or the next day so for our special guest David Mander who had time
To join us today who does a fantastic job covering all things Sports and Philly make sure to give him a follow again at Dave M reports for JP myself Renee our buddy Tyler is away hopefully enjoying some great RNR so long have a great rest of your Thursday we’ll see
You right back here at a regular time again 3:30 p.m. next week Tuesday and Thursday live go Union Yes just a few more weeks Mike and spiral out and everybody else that tuned in We Appreciate You the countdown continues 44 days until the MLS opener even less until the first game in
General so see you guys on Tuesday have a good one
