The Designated Players

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys are back to talk about gold ole US of A! We are going to do a recap of the recent group of games that the USMNT has played and give our reaction to the games, performances by individual players, and general outlook for the team. In addition, as everyone has been excitedly awaiting, we make our choices for who should/will make the Gold Cup roster. Gregg we know you're listening so make sure to take out a pad and paper and take some no...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys are back with part 4 of the best xi series! We continue with the dynamic 2 as we're unfortunately missing ATamburello7 for this episode. That leaves Andrew and Connor to decide on the best xi for the first 6 teams in the Western Conference. This is going to be a mini series for us where we determine the best xi for each team (except Miami, Nashville, and Austin) and then face them all off in a tournament at the end to crown an ...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys are back with part 3 of the best xi series! We continue with the dynamic 2 as we're unfortunately missing ATamburello7 for this episode. That leaves Andrew and Connor to decide on the best xi for the first 6 teams in the Western Conference. This is going to be a mini series for use where we determine the best xi for each team (except Miami, Nashville, and Austin) and then face them all off in a tournament at the end to crown an...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys are back with part 2 of the best xi series! We continue with the dynamic 2 as we're unfortunately missing ATamburello7 for this episode. That leaves Andrew and Connor to decide on the best xi for the last 6 teams in the Eastern Conference. This is going to be a mini series for use where we determine the best xi for each team (except Miami, Nashville, and Austin) and then face them all off in a tournament at the end to crown an ...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys are finally back! I know everyone must've been wondering where we went, don't lie we know you were thinking that, but we're glad to say after a week off we're back on schedule. Well 2 of us are at least back on schedule, as we're unfortunately missing ATamburello7 for this episode. That leaves Andrew and Connor to decide on the best xi for the first 6 teams in the Eastern Conference. This is going to be a mini series for use where we...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys are channeling their inner bob the builder and building another team. As opposed to a draft like last time, the guys are building a team based on a random MLS team that is given to us. Our "lovely" host Andrew will be using a randomizer and giving us a random MLS team, to which we then choose a player from that team. Once a player is chosen that player cannot be picked by any of the other hosts. Who will be the ultimate squad builder...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys are looking to get yelled at by more fanbases! This time we're making a tier list and ranking each team based on their entire history. A few teams such as Inter Miami, Nashville, and Austin will not be ranked in this case as there is not enough time to judge the teams just yet. The rest of the teams however are fair game. This is a very visual episode so we do recommend that you check out our YouTube so you can see the tier list as w...

And with the first pick, of the 2021 DP Pod MLS Fantasy Draft, Andrew Barnikel Jr selects... Well if you want to find out who was picked, then maybe you should listen to the episode. Yes you read that right we are doing an MLS Fantasy draft, but with a bit of a twist. We have determined a list of 15 criteria that must be met by the 15 players we are choosing, so one player per criterion. Then after we make our team we will be tracking their fantasy scores and seeing who made the best team! L...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys (minus one host) get ready for week 1 of the MLS season! We're so glad we can say that MLS is going to be back that soon and no better way to start it off than with a quick preview of each week 1 game. The guys give their take on what they are most looking forward to seeing for each matchup in week 1. In addition, the guys are also making more predictions, and we all know how good we are at making predictions! We'll be making our pre...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys give more fuel to the listeners to hate us, yes even more fuel for the Minnesota fans that already hate us. This episode is a look at OUR opinion of the top 5 players at each position heading into the 2021 MLS season. This episode I'm sure will be difficult for many to listen to without getting angry, but making these lists to please everybody is impossible, so just remember this is only our opinions and certainly not fact (unless yo...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys take a deep dive for the 3rd and final time, and no we STILL have not become an ocean podcast, if that's even a thing. We are taking a more detailed look into each team in MLS for the upcoming season, with a breakdown of nine teams per episode. The teams for round 3 are; Sporting KC, Columbus Crew, Orlando City, Vancouver Whitecaps, Houston Dynamo, San Jose Earthquakes, FC Cincinnati, Inter Miami, and finally Colorado Rapids. For ea...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys take a deep dive for the 2nd time, and no we still have not become an ocean podcast, if that's even a thing. We are taking a more detailed look into each team in MLS for the upcoming season, with a breakdown of nine teams per episode. The teams for round 2 are; Atlanta United, NE Revolution, Portland Timbers, Real Salt Lake, Seattle Sounders, CF Montreal, Austin FC, DC United, and finally Nashville SC. For each team in the episode, ...

In this episode of the Designated Players Podcast, the guys take a deep dive, and no we have not become an ocean podcast, if that's even a thing. We are taking a more detailed look into each team in MLS for the upcoming season, with a breakdown of nine teams per episode. The teams for round 1 are; NYCFC, LA Galaxy, Chicago Fire, Philadelphia Union, Minnesota United, FC Dallas, RBNY, LAFC, and finally Toronto FC. For each team in the episode, and yes even for FC Dallas even if one host refuse...

The Designated Player's Podcast is back! In this episode we discuss all the coaching changes that have happened so far in the season for the western conference, as well as the western conference transfers that have been made (as of 2/28/2021). And don't worry, we gave grades so there's plenty of opportunity to tell us how we're wrong! Starting with the coaching changes, we take a look at the two new coaches in the western conference. We briefly go through each of the coaches and talk about h...

The Designated Player's Podcast is back! In this episode we discuss all the coaching changes that have happened so far in the season (as of 2/21/2021), as well as the eastern conference transfers that have been made. And don't worry, we gave grades so there's plenty of opportunity to tell us how we're wrong! Starting with the coaching changes, we take a look at some familiar faces, as well as some new faces in the league. We briefly go through each new coach and talk about how we think they ...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, we have our final episode of the season! What better way to wrap it up than with one giant MLS quiz, testing our knowledge (or lack thereof) of the 2020 season. This season felt like a millennium so let me be the first to say this was not an easy quiz. We also discuss the recent semifinal CCL game for LAFC, who now are set to face off with Tigres in the CCL final! We start off by talking CCL, more specifically LAFC as they are now rep...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, the Columbus Crew are your 2020 MLS champions! Congratulations to Columbus and your fans, a well deserved victory and a very good cap on a very interesting and weird season. We break down the game for you in case you missed it or want to hear our take on everything that happened. We also talk about trade day in MLS! You know that part of the beautiful game where you trade an international slot for GAM and/or TAM, classic. We talk about all t...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, the holidays have come early, and big Greg has gifted us another exciting and young USMNT roster for the upcoming December camp! We break it down and tell you who we're excited to see and how we believe the team will line-up for the upcoming friendly. We also make sure to talk about the recent roster moves that a few of the teams in MLS has made. Finally we finish off with quick fire predictions as to who will win the remaining games in the ...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, aka the Rodrigo Schlegel Fan Club, the guys recap quite possibly the best first round of playoff games in MLS history. Things were wild from the first play-in game up until the last game before we recorded (Portland-Dallas for those wondering). We talk about each of the games, and yes don't worry, we make sure to talk about the greatest PK shootout ever! Here you go Nashville and New England, this is your invitation to the MLS Cup Pla...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, the guys make their picks for who will win their first round matchup in the MLS Cup Playoffs, as well as make their picks for the two eastern conference play-in games. Before any of that, we make sure to quickly recap the USMNT games from the last week. THE GOLDEN GENERATION FOR THE USMNT?!?! Hopefully not because we want to have even more talent in the future, however this is still quite possibly the most talented group of young US players...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, the guys take a look back at their predictions from the beginning of the season! This includes their bold takes, season standings, and their award winner predictions. If there is one saving grace in this episode, it might have to be the bold predictions for us, cause while there are some bad, bad takes, there are some that are pretty spot on if not perfectly spot on! Next we looked back at the standings predictions we made, way back in ye ...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, the guys talk about the recent announcement of the MLS 25 greatest! We make our picks for who should be picked out of the 137 players that are available for those spots. Before we make our picks, we analyze the list of 137 and see who we're surprised to see included and who is missing from the list. Certainly some surprising names both present and missing! Finally we make our picks, but as we have done in the past we only look at the...

In this episode, Adam sits down with Clay from the Pharmaceutical Soccer Podcast and chat about all things Nashville SC related. We discuss the early history of their podcast, thoughts and reflections on how Nashville's first official MLS season has gone as well as how their roster was built and whether or not they can lock down a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. As always with our guests we play a game of Who Am I and end off the episode with a look at how Nashville can add to their s...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, Connor returns and rejoins Adam and Andrew to talk about this week in MLS. We start with a moment of silence for the loss of Benny ball in DC, followed by some analysis on the pair of debuts from the Atlanta-NYRB game. We also make sure to discuss who we believe is going to grab the last three spots in the western conference with many teams close and in the running. Will a team like Vancouver sneak in, or will San Jose and the others stay h...

In this episode of the Designated Player's Podcast, Adam and Andrew talk about JT Marcinkowski's recent performances and his impact on San Jose's results against the Galaxy and LAFC, as well as debate who should be the starting keeper for the USMNT. Should it continue to be Zach Steffen? Or has Matt Turner performed well enough with New England to merit playing time? Does someone else entirely deserve the number 1 shirt? We end the episode with a discussion on who the current best team...

In this episode, the guys look at whether MLS teams can be considered overly reliant on one player, as well as some Americans Abroad and the future USMNT players you should be keeping an eye on and the staggering number of red cards that MLS referees seem to dish out. Is it too many? As always we end with our fantasy must haves and differential picks for the upcoming double game week. Let us know your thoughts/comments on the episode! Send any emails with questions or comments ...

In this Full Episode, the guys sit down and talk about the biggest headlines from MLS in the past week. Defensive Struggles are plentiful around MLS this week, as Andrew breaks down Seattle's 7 goal rout over San Jose goal by goal. Also, Adam gives his thoughts on who's the next coach to follow Chris Armas out the door! As always, we end on our Fantasy MLS must-haves and Question of the Day! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media...

In this episode Adam and Andrew discuss Chris Armas's departure from RBNY, Blaise Matuidi's and Emanuel Reynoso's debuts for Inter Miami CF and Minnesota United, as well as some current Ingoing/Outgoing transfers throughout the league! We were recently fortunate enough to be included at #16 on Feedspot's Top 30 MLS Podcasts! Be sure to check the full list using the link https://blog.feedspot.com/mls_podcasts/ and feel free to share it and help spread some of the awesome podcasting content c...

In this episode, Adam and Andrew review the two biggest games post MLSisback tournament: Orlando vs Inter Miami and Seattle Sounders vs Portland Timbers, as well as preview the two biggest matches coming up: New York Red Bulls vs Philadelphia Union and Montreal Impact vs Toronto FC. We finish up with our biggest transfers in and out of the league and our fantasy segment where we discuss the Must Have players and differentials you need in your fantasy team! #TheDPPodcast Have a thought, commen...

In this very Full Episode, the guys sit down with CURRENT MLS pro Quincy Amarikwa to talk about... well everything. This is definitely a long one, but it really is worth the listen! We talk about Quincy's playing career, his own podcast show (Perfect Soccer) and the Mental Strength League, as well as the Black Players for Change within MLS. In addition to all of that, we also make sure to play "Who Am I" as we do with all our guests, and introduce a new segment "The 2 minute drill" so make su...

In this Full Episode, the guys sit down with Timber Joey of the Portland Timbers! We talk about how he started with the club, and where things are now with the role. Some good stories in there about some of the Portland players that you'll definitely want to hear. We also made sure to talk a bit about Portland's upcoming appearance in the final of the MLS is Back tournament. Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys make their picks for the semifinal of the MLS is Back tournament! There are great games coming up as we find out who will be in the final of the tournament so don't miss out on us talking about every game. As well as the previews, the guys review the quarterfinal games that recently took place and give their takes on what happened in every game. Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys make their picks for the knockout stage of the MLS is Back tournament! There are a lot of exciting games coming up as we get closer to the final of the tournament so don't miss out on us talking about every game. As well as the previews, the guys discuss the recent firing of Frank de Boer and other coaches on the hot seat. Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys with special guest Defender of the Banc make their picks for the third games coming up in the MLS is Back Tournament, and talk about a few of the games that happened during week 2! This week had some really wild games so if you missed any of them be sure to check out our week 2 recaps this episode! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys make their picks for the second games coming up in the MLS is Back Tournament, and talk about a few of the games that happened during week 1! We haven't been great at predicting thus far so be sure to listen and tell us where we were wrong and if we were ever right! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys make their picks for the first games coming up in the MLS is Back Tournament, and discuss if this tournament should be happening at all. Make sure to listen to each matchup in order to hear our prediction as well as some of the key players we're going to be keeping our eyes on! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys forget what they're talking about... wait actually its just the players they forgot about! That's right the guys are looking into players that they forgot played for each team. There's a mix of some international legends, MLS legends, and some personal favorites. Be sure to tune in and let us know who you forgot played for your team! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys are back to making predictions, but unlike in one of the earlier episodes, the predictions this time around are for the MLS is Back Tournament! Everyone is excited for the season to get rolling again and the guys are here making their picks for who will finish where in each group. Make sure to give us feedback on our picks, so we know what we got right and what we got wrong! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Sup...

In this Full Episode, the guys interview the guys behind Sactown FC! We talk about everything from their many podcasts, as well as incoming MLS expansion side Sacramento Republic! A lot of great information to hear about the team soon to be joining the league that you won't want to miss. We also introduce a new game with our guests, so be sure to find out how they did! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys make their picks for start, bench, cut at each position on the field used in our MLS team of the decade! Some choices easier than others, but definitely plenty up for debate. Also, question of the day returns after many weeks without it, and the guys really get into this one! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support the show

In this Full Episode, the guys interview former Leeds United and San Jose Earthquakes Striker Davide Somma! We talk about everything from his early career in Spain and Italy, relegation battles abroad and his time on loan with Chesterfield and Lincoln, and of course breaking through into the Leeds first team as well as his brief stints in MLS! He has tons of great stories that you won't want to miss! Have a thought, comment, question, or suggestion? Send us a message and let us know! Support ...

In this Full Episode, The guys give their picks for Extratime Radio's Best MLS Team EVER Bracket. Some surprising picks on this one, but we want to hear YOUR thoughts! Comment below who you think we messed up on! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designated_... Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheDPPod Follow...

In this Full Episode, Adam, Andrew, and Connor make their picks for who was the biggest flop for each team in MLS. There are lots of really good picks in this one and one host had a lot to say about one pick in particular during the episode that you won't want to miss! Check it out and share! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www...

In this Full Episode, Adam is back to join Andrew and Connor in the debate over who belongs on the Mount Rushmore of every Western Conference team! Some hot takes in this one and some...well not so hot..Check it out and share! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designated_... Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Th...

In this Full Episode, Andrew and Connor debate who belongs on the Mount Rushmore of every Eastern Conference team! There were some VERY strong disagreements in this one, so be sure to listen to each team and let us know who we missed! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designated_... Facebook: https://www.f...

In this Full Episode, the guys interview the Manager of the Sports Research Department for NBC Sports Brandon Glass about his time working with some of the biggest names in football. We dive into his time on Premier League Live, fan fests, how he got into the job and more! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/desig...

In this Full Episode, the guys interview former Bolton Youth and AC Pro Aviano Striker Tracy Blake, who also currently resides as head coach of Alfred University's Men's Soccer Team in D3! We go into everything from time playing overseas, to his path to coaching and much more! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram...

In this Full Episode, the guys make their picks for MLS Team of the Decade! Great arguments and conversations between our hosts in the process to decide who were the best of the best in the 2010s! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designated_... Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheDPPod Follow Andrew on Soci...

In this Full Episode, the guys go FULL MINGO in their interview with Jason Klein, digital content manager for Forward Madison FC of USL League 1. They discuss everything from social media ideas, pros and cons to being a small club, and of course the pro rel debate! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designated_....

In this Full Episode, the guys interview Max Ramos, president of the Siege Supporters Club for Inter Miami CF, to get an inside look at what its like to be a part of one of the newest supporters sections for one of the newest MLS teams! Send any emails with questions or comments to: [email protected] Follow the Pod on Social Media! Website: https://thedppod.buzzsprout.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheDPPod1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/designated_... Follow Andrew on Social Me...