The Soccer Journal Podcast

Another New York City FC match packed with storylines and twists, though also another New York City FC match without a win. This episode starts with hosts Mark Radigan, John Baney, and producer Andrew Leigh going back through the biggest moments of the 2-2 draw in Orlando, like the extremely late, potentially season-saving equalizer from Jonny Shore. So much went on for NYCFC before that goal at 90'+9' but nothing stirred up the reactions quite like Talles Magno attempting and missing a penalty kick late in the second half while New York City trailed by a goal. Lots of issues with the PK sequence and how it all played out, from the passing over of other possible penalty takers like Nico Fernández Mercau or Alonso Martínez, to the questionable levels of leadership and on-field decision-making shown as it all unfolded. The Shore goal kept it from feeling season-ending, but it definitely felt season-altering. After the long look back at the Orlando tie, it's on to a discussion about NYCFC's young players in light of the latest MLS 22 Under 22 ranking, which included no New York City players for the second time ever and the first time since 2018. Everyone agrees there are talented young players in the squad, like Shore, Luighi, and a few others, but there are different case-by-case reasons as to why none of them earned a spot on this particular list. From there, it's on to the extremely dire playoff qualification odds New York City FC now faces after their 2-2 with Orlando City and the results earned by teams above them in the table, plus a preview of this week's two matches at Citi Field against Atlanta United FC and CF Montréal. They have to be back-to-back wins if there's any dream of keeping Decision Day's trip to play DC United meaningful, but how much confidence is there that NYCFC can actually do what's needed even while facing the two bottom teams in the Eastern Conference? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The season is in sad shape for New York City FC after an unsurprising but still deflating 2-0 loss on the road against Inter Miami, followed shortly thereafter by a downright boring 1-1 draw with LAFC at Citi Field. That the club's three-match week, which began with that brutal loss on the road while up a man against Chicago Fire FC, ends with just one point gained and a tumble down the Eastern Conference table to 12th place has ripped the optimism right out of hosts Mark Radigan and John Baney and producer Andrew Leigh. They struggle to find much of anything positive to say about the performance in Miami, and lament how little NYCFC created in the 1-1 draw with LAFC. The non-Nico Fernández Mercau attacking players can't figure it out, and the preferred personnel in that attack, outside of Fernández Mercau and Agustín Ojeda, remains unsettled while only four matches remain in the season. A late-season improvement might not be coming, but what is coming: Etihad Park, in July 2027, a fact reaffirmed by the tour of the stadium construction site our own John Baney took prior to the LAFC match. John shares more about his tour and the progress made on New York City FC's future home, a discussion which also leads into talk about New York City FC's owners and the hot water they're in over in the UK as it relates to Manchester City FC and the Premier League's case against them. After the stadium and City Football Group talk, it's on to a preview of NYCFC's next match, the trip to face Orlando City SC and its new summer import, Antoine Griezmann. Orlando's turnaround after a slow start, and the different places these two teams now find themselves in since NYCFC earned a 5-0 win in their first meeting in March at Yankee Stadium, are discussed, with little expectation that a repeat of that comfortable win is on the cards for the struggling Pigeons. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The big questions are getting asked on this episode, like: Does the loss to Chicago, and the declining odds of playoff qualification that come along with it, represent rock bottom for a New York City FC team that made the Eastern Conference final one season ago? The nature of the loss, with New York City getting an early lead and getting a man advantage before halftime but wasting it all and losing on an error in possession made by Matt Freese, had hosts Mark Radigan and John Baney and producer Andrew Leigh wondering why all this keeps happening as the team spirals through a stretch in which it now has one win from 11 league matches played. There are questions raised about Pascal Jansen and some of his decision-making, the mentality of the squad, and even about the longer-term vision for this team. With a spot in the MLS Cup Playoffs slipping from the club's grasp, could a big roster overhaul be on the horizon this winter? How hot is the seat for Jansen, and what would missing out on the postseason mean, for the coach, certain players, and even just the perception of the team heading into a high-expectation 2027 that will include the opening of Etihad Park? The big-picture NYCFC questions will get answered in time, but before that, there are two more matches to be previewed, and the first one comes on the road at midweek against Leo Messi and Inter Miami CF. Miami is on its third coach this season and hasn't looked invincible at its new Nu Stadium (rolls off the tongue), but this matchup has been tough on New York City in recent years. Based on Miami's personnel, it looks like it's going to take a massive performance from the New York City defense to slow down the most prolific attack in MLS and get something positive while in South Florida. From Miami to Queens and a meeting with LAFC and its two-headed Heung-min Son-plus-Denis Bouanga attacking monster. LAFC has fallen on harder-than-usual times, recently firing coach Marc Dos Santos and not placing as high in the Western Conference table as you'd expect. NYCFC, meanwhile, has yet to win a match at Citi Field this year, and is this the one that ends that trend? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The extra-long FIFA international break finally nears its end, with New York City FC set to return to league play, but before it's time to preview a next MLS match, Michael Battista joins the usual trio of hosts Mark Radigan and John Baney and producer Andrew Leigh to discuss a trio of other topics. First, the United States men's national team, specifically the national team debuts of local Red Bull New York products Julian Hall and Adri Mehmeti, and the general excitement around the next generation of the USMNT, with 17-year-old Cavan Sullivan continuing to break out and looking right at home while the United States beat Mexico in a friendly. After the USMNT, the conversation shifts to local matters, beginning with the leadership changes for the New York Cosmos. Erik Stover, who'd been the club's CEO, was abruptly announced to be out of his role only two weeks after the Cosmos parted ways with their Head of Soccer, Giuseppe Rossi. Michael Battista sheds some light on the differing club-building strategies that led to rifts within the Cosmos hierarchy, then covers what could come next for the Cosmos under new sporting leadership and heading into a second season in USL League One. Another different local team is rumored to not be returning for the next USL League One season, and that's Westchester SC, with the Mount Vernon-based club mentioned alongside Texas side Corpus Christi FC as teams that could cease operations in the near future. Michael shares what he's heard about that possibility, and that leads into a wider discussion about the challenges faced by all the local, non-MLS pro teams. Then it's on to New York City FC playing the first of its final six regular-season matches of this season, heading to the Windy City to play Chicago Fire FC at Soldier Field this coming weekend. Are we in "must win" mode for NYCFC to salvage this season, as they sit just barely in a playoff spot? What kind of big lineup calls might Pascal Jansen make while in search of a late-season spark for his sputtering side? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

A guilty verdict is now confirmed for Manchester City FC in the 115-charge case brought against it by the English Premier League over violations of the league's financial rules. In this episode of The Blueprint, hosts John Baney and Trey Fillmore try to get to the bottom of how this massive development for City Football Group's biggest club will impact its sister team in the United States, New York City FC. The 115 charges have hung over Manchester City since 2023, but there's finally a ruling. Before getting into the "what it means for NYCFC" portion of the issue, there's a need to run through the long-running case itself, as well as other financial rules-related scandals that have swirled around Manchester City going back years even before the 115 charges. Then it's on to the ruling. The Premier League's case found that the club created "sham" sponsorship arrangements that disguised injections of cash from CFG's United Arab Emirates-backed ownership as sponsor revenue, while generally being in breach of both the Premier League's and UEFA's spending limits. Manchester City and its leaders publicly remain defiant and claim innocence, but the club's window to appeal the ruling is short, and that appeal can only address legal or procedural errors made in the case — so the next big question becomes, how will Manchester City be punished? The punishment, whether it be stripped titles, forced relegations, gigantic financial fines, or some mix of that or more, remains unclear, and your hosts doubt any penalty will be proportionate to the size of the violations, though they also don't think Man City will ever be the same once the dust settles. Part of the settling of the dust is how all this trickles down to the other teams inside Man City's shared City Football Group ecosystem. John and Trey think there are multiple possible points of complication for New York City FC, like the MLS club not turning a profit and relying entirely on CFG's funding, the multi-club group's global influence in the realms of scouting and player recruitment, and the ubiquity of Etihad Airways, UAE state-owned airline, as a NYCFC sponsor, on a club and now stadium-naming-rights level. There are also people inside the MLS and NYCFC spheres of orbit wrapped up in the Manchester City situation, like NYCFC's current Chief Financial Officer, who was Man City's finance director during the period covered in the Premier League's case. There are a significant number of unanswered questions still swirling around in the wake of the ruling, but this episode covers as many of the possible points of connection between the scandal and NYCFC as it can, with plenty more still to come in future episodes or in future developments that occur as a result of the case. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.