Extratime

We are a few days away from the biggest season in MLS history. With more clubs and star players in the league how can you keep tabs with it all? The guys have you covered they talk TV broadcasts with John Strong of Foxsports, MLS Live with Mark McClure, and MLS Fantasy with Ben Baer (join ETR Fantasy league code 12-308).

Check out ETR all week for your season preview a new episode dropping everyday.

Direct download: H2BF_1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:17pm EDT

The guys are back all together to rev up for the start of MLS season. With one week left it is time to give every team their due and get ready for 2017. The guys start with Chicago and head all up and down the east ending on the new boys in Atlanta. Who will be the 2017 NYCFC with the biggest turnaround? Has Toronto gotten better? Are Crew heading back to MLS Cup contenders? We hit all these question and so much more.

In the third segment Jesse Marsch stops by to preview CCL, the 2017 season, discuss the NY Red Bulls offseason, and more,

Check out ETR all week with specials and previews leading up to Portland and Minnesota Friday night on Fox Sports 1.

Direct download: ETR_Feb27_3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:05am EDT

What’s soccer without supporters? Very little, if you ask us. That’s why, on the eve of the 2017 MLS season, the ExtraTime crew reached out to five folks with skin the game to help preview what’s to come on the field and in the stands.

First up, expansion check-ins with Minnesota United FC and Atlanta United. Bruce McGuire calls in from the Twin Cities to provide some much-needed insight into the culture of the club and its supporters, then Terminus Legion Outreach Coordinator Andrea Bustamante explains what it’s like to start from scratch and what will make Atlanta a unique market in MLS.

After the break, Ruckus president Jerry Updike is jacked about Orlando City’s new stadium and literal wall of support as well as a new opportunity to grow the purple army that’s followed the club from USL to MLS. Mike Coleman knows a thing or two about armies. Coleman leads tifo creation and execution for the Timbers Army, and he shares some tricks of the trade (without giving anything away!) for those who admire or might try to replicate what they see at Providence Park.

Last but certainly not least, MLS original and New York Red Bulls supporter/reporter Mark Fishkin shares the ups and downs that come with being there from the very beginning!

 

Direct download: ETR_Supporter_Special_1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:44pm EDT

After a long weekend, the guys are back at it sans Matt Doyle, who may never come back from Mexico. Know what’s also back? The CONCACAF Champions League. Do you have CCL Fever? Are there varying degrees of regional soccer anticipation? David’s not sure Andrew’s temperature is high enough as the Red Bulls and Whitecaps clash and FC Dallas take on Arabe Unido this week. What makes the tournament special? Who has an edge? Get caught up before quarterfinal first legs on Wednesday and Thursday.

In other news, Tommy Thompson’s backheel goal gets the hype train back on the tracks, but the guys want to know what other MLS hype trains are primed and ready to leave the station. Alphonso Davies, anyone? Plus, Toronto FC use TAM to sign an attacking midfielder who could get them over the MLS Cup hump, Adrian Heath says Kevin ‘Hot Boy’ Molino could be the league’s best player and David Villa gets slap happy.

In the second segment, Timbers coach Caleb Porter joins the guys for a must-listen interview that dives deep into MLS’s tactical identity. Listen as the Portland boss details his plans for 2017 and explains what makes a successful MLS team. There’s plenty more, too. What’s the best way to teach tactics to pros and youth players alike? What’s holding the league back in CCL? How has TAM affected rosters? What the next phase in his own coaching career?

 In the mailbag, Andrew tells tales from his Minnesota trip, including a shout out to a young listener, a Soccer Tour helper asks for advice on convincing his wife to open their home to a soccer vagabond and a serviceman emails with a touching story about how soccer brought people together on the other side of the globe.

Direct download: ETR_Feb21_1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:47pm EDT

On Monday, the guys talked Homegrown players and MLS academies. This time around, they’re tackling star power, the big names who garner Designated Player contracts as well as the increasing crew of TAM players raising the level of the league.

Fredy Montero is certainly a star, and Ben ‘The Research’ Baer joins to break down the stats behind the Whitecaps much-needed forward signing. Plus, Red Bulls banter after the club parts ways with Ali Curtis, and intel on NYCFC’s new DP.

Alexi Lalas knows a thing or two about Designated Players. Now coming live and direct to your living room on Fox Sports, Lalas was LA Galaxy GM when they signed none other than David Beckham. How’d that deal go down? How did it change MLS? What is it’s legacy? What’s the state of star power in the league today? You’ll want to hear what Lalas has to say.

In the mailbag, the Union are looking for a Chief Tattoo Officer, Brad Evans is stoking rivalry flames in Cascadia, more MLS bucket lists and an ode to MLS LIVE in which one listener calls Andrew a big fat liar.

Direct download: ETR_Feb16_3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:25pm EDT

Eight months, 35 games, 20,000 miles. It’s the ultimate soccer road trip, and Steve Bernasconi is just crazy enough to take it on. The 25-year-old will start Feb. 25 in Tampa, Fla., and end Oct. 15 at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif. But how is he pulling this off? Why is he doing it in the first place? ExtraTime Radio got the intrepid soccer fan on the phone to find out what The Soccer Tour is all about and how you can be a part of it when Bernasconi comes through your city!

Direct download: The_Soccer_Tour_1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:37pm EDT

We know it's hard to wait for the 2017 MLS season. That's why we put together a 10-show run to take you throw March 3, including another ExtraTime Extravaganza leading up to Opening Weekend. Might as well just subscribe on iTunes now.

 First up, a show devoted to Homegrowns and the academy system, the conveyor belt of talent that clubs (and the US and Canadian national teams) hope will sustain them long term.

 Matt Doyle gives his thoughts on the 2017 Homegrown class, then Sporting KC academy director Jon Parry joins Andrew and David to explain why producing talent from within is so important. And while the "why" is crucial to the process, it's all about the "how" when it comes to producing future pros, and Parry goes deep to help listeners understand what SKC are doing to seed their first team with local (and recruited) talent.

 FC Dallas and USMNT midfielder Kellyn Acosta is a Homegrown success story, and he calls in from preseason camp in Argentina to tell his own story -- from the U13s to the first team. When and why did he join the academy? How did FC Dallas help him make the jump from grassroots to the pros? What's next for one of the most talented young players in the league? MLSsoccer.com and iTunes listeners get the full story!

 

In the mailbag, the guys decide the fandom of an unborn child and discuss (then cross an entry off of) a rather creative MLS bucket list.

Direct download: ETR_Feb13_1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:02pm EDT

Super Bowl hangover? Spend an hour with ExtraTime Radio!

 After reminiscing about the most painful MLS losses ever – sorry Falcons and Atlanta United fans – the guys turn their attention to the US national team, which concluded January camp by knocking off Jamaica 1-0 in Chattanooga thanks to some Benny Feilhaber magic and a Jordan Morris finish. The results against the Reggae Boyz and Serbia weren’t incredible, but Doyle says it’s the process and the system that should reassure US fans ahead of a huge Hex game against Honduras in March. What should Bruce Arena’s XI be for that match? Who should get the nod at the No. 10? Will Da Boy be a 2017 revelation? All that, plus the latest MLS news.

Speaking of (potentially huge, massive, gigantic) news, FourFourTwo’s Paul Tenorio reports Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez could come to MLS as soon as this summer. You know what that means. Andrew and Dave get on the phone to grill Tenorio about which teams could be in the running, how much moolah is would take to get a deal done and prognosticate about the Little Pea’s impact on and off the field. It could be THE summer blockbuster in MLS, so you might as well prepare yourself for the possibility now.

In the mailbag, Doyle gives his take on what Chicharito could bring to MLS, listeners chime in with more #MLSDPbusts and Andrew suggests a name for the award, then the guys brainstorm some 2017 MLS bucket list items.

Direct download: ETR_Feb6_3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:48pm EDT

More Designated Players? Yes, please. After Atlanta United and Portland snagged big-time attackers in Sebastian Blanco and Josef Martinez, the guys sit down to try to pin down what the expansion side's formation might look like (2-3-5 anyone?) and whether the Timbers are in position to spoil their rivals' title defense despite a big injury on the backline. Meanwhile, in Orlando and New York, Jason Kreis and Jesse Marsch put out quotes that raised some eyebrows. Which players are on the outs with the Lions? Why does Marsch feel bad about the way the Dax McCarty trade went down?

After the break, MLS president and deputy commissioner Mark Abbott sits down with Andrew and David to discuss the expansion rush that saw 12 cities and ownership groups make their case to be teams 25-28. Why the new process? What comes next? Who'll have the final say? What's going on in Sacramento? Plus, Abbott describes what it's been like to build the league from scratch and what the future looks like.

In the mailbag, the guys try to settle on the worst DP of all time, hear expansion pitches that revolve around tacos, ponder DaMarcus Beasley's future and pass on breaking news from San Jose.

Direct download: Feb2_MLS.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 4:29pm EDT

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