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  • Jansen Miller Leans Further into his Villain Era

    Jansen Miller Leans Further into his Villain Era
    2025/06/10
    For the Glory KC is back with the 135th episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City came back down to earth this week with a tough loss against Los Angeles Football Club on the road. Things looked bright early when Dejan Joveljic scored his 10th goal of the season off a Manu Garcia assist. But the lead didn't even last until halftime.Calamitous set piece defending led to a 1-1 halftime score and the capper on a bad game for Memo Rodriguez led to the game winning penalty kick for Denis Bouanga.Speaking of Bouanga, despite him having a goal and an assist, Jansen Miller seemed to be in his head. Maybe Bouanga gets the last laugh, but all the victimizing Denis did came at the expense of others, not Miller. Jansen more than held his own against one of the elite players in Major League Soccer. It's wild to say Miller (and frankly Pulskamp again) had good games when three goals went in. But they really did. And the joy Miller clearly gets from hounding attackers was all over his face.Sheena and I also discussed lots of other topics including: the return of Jake Davis from injury, the return of Stephen Afrifa from the bench, Khiry Shelton's ever-changing hair color, a bloody Shapi Suleymanov, who the heck was the captain after Daniel Salloi subbed off and many other topics from the SKC/LAFC game.Before we got to the winning KC team, we also had to talk about the big news that Benny Feilhaber has landed a job with the Oakland Roots of the USL Championship. It's a short-term deal. Is it so he can make sure he's available for the Sporting KC job?The KC Current went out and crushed it again, this time winning on the road against the newly crowned CONCACAF W Champions, NJ/NY Gotham. Michelle Cooper and Temwa Chawinga scored early, but it was the VAR that may have come to their rescue late. The officials seemed to get most things right when overturning Gotham goals, but that Esther goal is a little dicey to change.We also discussed a really good interview Forbes did with Chris and Angie Long along with the new 2,000 seat stadium the KC Current are building at their Riverside complex.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:More SKC II woesUSWNT/USMNT resultsThe Chicago Fire privately funding a new stadiumHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC come back to Earth in LA - 7:28Benny gets a job and more in the SKC roundup - 41:25KC Current get a big road win (again) - 49:25Another KC women’s soccer stadium and more in the Current roundup - 55:39Digital Crawl - 1:09:46Upcoming GamesUSMNT vs. Switzerland - Tuesday, June 10th at 7:00PM CDTKC Current vs Racing Louisville, Saturday, June 14th at 6:30PMSporting KC vs. FC Dallas, Saturday, June 14th at 7:30PMSKC II have 3 weeks offAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 22 分
  • Pulskamp has Proved Himself as an MLS Starter

    Pulskamp has Proved Himself as an MLS Starter
    2025/06/02
    For the Glory KC is back with the 134th episode of the show!Sporting Kansas City went on the road and picked up a massive three points in a statistically defiant weekend. It was their first win in Houston since October 3, 2020. They had been 0-3-3 in their prior six visits in all competitions. The victory also broke a 19-game winless streak when they gave up the first goal in a game. Adding to all of that, Kerry Zavagnin has now been in charge for 10 games and has led his team to an appropriate 4-3-3 record. KZ is now responsible for 15 of the team's 16 points in 2025 and Sporting KC find themselves just four points south of a playoff spot.A big part of this successful run under Zavagnin is the emergence of John Pulskamp as a quality starter in Major League Soccer. Despite getting beat by another goal of the week candidate, he absolutely stood on his head for stretches of the game against the Houston Dynamo. He actually had a career high eight saves, including perhaps the save of the night when he shut down Griffin Dorsey one on one.Going into the season, it felt like a big risk to have three very young goalkeepers. There had been an expectation all offseason that a veteran goalkeeper would be added to a group that was 23, 22 and 17-years-of-age coming into the season. And it is not as if there haven't been growing pains. Sporting KC have allowed 28 goals in league play, but by no means has the defense helped out Pulskamp for large stretches. Personally, it feels like John has saved many shots he shouldn't save, which is supported by him being in the 95th percentile of post-shot expected goals per shot on target. Elite numbers.Elsewhere on the podcast, Sheena and I discuss the comeback by SKC, including a brace from Dejan Joveljic, Santiago Munoz's first goal with Sporting KC, Zorhan Bassong's delightful free kick and header, both of which led to goals and many other moments from the game.However, even with the win, I can't help but bring up the terrible officiating from referee Jair Marrufo. He has a dicey history refereeing Sporting KC games and that didn't change on Saturday. He had numerous questionable calls, which I break down. Perhaps the biggest questionable moment was a miss by Marrufo and the VAR when a handball went uncalled in the box. It wasn't as egregious as the error that may have eliminated SKC from the 2023 playoffs (also against Houston), but it seemed to be a clear handball. The lack of camera angles is an indictment on MLS too.The KC Current made plenty of news. Chris and Angie Long bought their second soccer team when the club announced the purchase of HB Køge Women in Denmark. Lo LaBonta also made her debut with the US Women's National Team, Michelle Cooper started that same game and added an assist and Mary Long and Katie Scott scored for the US U-20 women to qualify for the U-20 Women's World Cup.In another big move, the KC Current announced the Teal Rising Cup.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:St. Louis City fired their coachUS U-20 Men's World Cup Draw and learning about New CaledoniaMexico to co-host 2031 Women's World CupHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):Sporting KC win big on the road - 7:09SKC Round-up - 39:30KC Current have a big bye week - 47:02Digital Crawl - 58:32Upcoming GamesUSWNT vs. Jamaica, Tuesday, June 3rd at 7:00PM CDTKC Current at NJ/NY Gotham, Saturday, June 7th at 12:00PMSKC II at Houston Dynamo 2, Saturday, June 7th at 7:00PMSporting KC at LAFC, Sunday, June 8th at 8:00PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 6 分
  • A Wild Sporting KC Comeback and an Ode to Gadi Kinda

    A Wild Sporting KC Comeback and an Ode to Gadi Kinda
    2025/05/26

    For the Glory KC is back with the 133rd episode of the show!

    Sporting Kansas City had a very heavy week. After the unexpected passing of former teammate Gadi Kinda, the team had to try to find a way to host the New England Revolution. It looked grim early as the team fell down 2-0 before staging a wild eight minutes in the second half where they scored three times to take the lead.

    Ultimately, the Revs stole a goal late to tie it, but the outburst of goals was the loudest I can remember hearing Children's Mercy Park in a very long time.

    Sheena and I break down key moments from the game from Daniel Salloi's standout performance to Zorhan Bassong lighting a spark in the midfield.

    Coursing through everything was the weight of Kinda's passing. From the pre-game warm-up tops to the "Gadi" armbands, video memorials, on field tributes and everything in between, his presence was felt in the stadium.

    We also got an injury update on Jake Davis, who popped back onto the injury report and showed up in a boot on Saturday. Don't worry, he said he doesn't even need it, so it's likely just a precaution.

    The KC Current continued their winning ways on Saturday night. They went to Illinois and dispatched the Chicago Stars 3-1 behind goals from Bia, Temwa Chawinga and Kayla Sharples. We also had to work through the news of the devastating injuries to Alana Cook and Debinha as well as the unbelievably positive news of Lo LaBonta's first call-up by the USWNT.

    The podcast also got off the rails more than usual. Did you ever want to know when boxed mac and cheese was invented? Well, we've got you covered for some reason.

    In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:

    • Bassong called up
    • SKC II lose again
    • Venezia relegated, is Busio available?

    Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):

    • Sporting KC have a wild comeback - 10:52
    • Gadi Kinda - 50:15
    • KC Current win again! - 1:00:09
    • Kansas City Current Injuries and Lo's Call-up! - 1:06:53
    • Digital Crawl - 1:16:45

    Upcoming Games

    • USWNT vs. China, Saturday, May 31st at 4:30PM CDT
    • Sporting KC at Houston Dynamo, Saturday, May 31st at 7:30PM
    • SKC II vs. Colorado Rapids II, Sunday, June 1st at 12:00PM
    • KC Current have a bye (International Break)

    As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!

    Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 28 分
  • Defense and Villain Appreciation

    Defense and Villain Appreciation
    2025/05/19
    For the Glory KC is back with the 132nd episode of the show after an unexpected week off. Sporting Kansas City had a very busy week loaded with (frankly, ridiculous) travel. After nearly 5,000 miles, they picked up two hard fought points against St. Louis City SC and San Diego FC. The draw against their cross-state rivals definitely felt like a victory as they snatched the point from the jaws of defeat. The San Diego game was more of a slog, as though a team had travelled a ton, heavily rotated their lineup, missed one of their two Designated Players and were playing a superior opponent at home. Despite that, they still earned a draw.Sheena returns after a brief hiatus, and we work our way through both of those games as well as a brief mention of the 1-0 loss to the Portland Timbers from last week we didn't get to cover.The theme of the three games was definitely defense, villains and goalkeeping. All three get high marks as Shapi Suleymanov and Jansen Miller tortured the St. Louis fans. Pulskamp also stood on his head across all three games. And Robert Voloder may have cemented himself as the starter next to Miller at center back, with a revolving door of fullbacks playing next to them.Since our last episode, MLS also released roster compositions for all 30 MLS teams. Sporting KC have no surprises with two open international spots and the ability to add a Designated Player along with a U-22 Initiative player, or two U-22 signings. To aid in that addition this summer is $1,928,679 in General Allocation Money (GAM), of which at least $500,000 is burning a hole in their pocket and has to be spent. Also, we get into the movement of the LAFC/SKC game from a crowded week to an international break weekend.The KC Current got back to their winning ways with us taking the last week off. They beat Bay FC 4-1 before heading on the road to take out the Orlando Pride 1-0. The biggest questions coming off the victory that further cemented their first-place status is, at what cost did it come? Alana Cook, Debinha and Temwa Chawinga all left the game injured.In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:SKC II slightly improving on their strugglesFormer SKC player updates on CJ Sapong, Kei Kamara and Gianluca BusioGreg Vanney gets his contract extended after the worst start to a season in MLS historyHere is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):A Hard Fought SKC Point against San Diego - 6:36Sporting KC’s big comeback vs St. Louis - 18:41A quick look at SKC vs. Portland - 48:10Sporting KC have room to spend - 52:17KC Current slip by Orlando and crush Bay FC - 1:06:28Digital Crawl - 1:14:33Upcoming GamesSKC II vs. LAFC2, Friday, May 23rd at 6:00PM CDT KC Current vs. Chicago Stars, Saturday, May 24th at 6:30PMSporting KC vs New England Revolution, Saturday, May 24th at 7:30PMAs a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 26 分
  • The Force was With Sporting Kansas City

    The Force was With Sporting Kansas City
    2025/05/06

    For the Glory KC is back with the 131st episode of the show!

    Sporting Kansas City made Major League Soccer history this week. While it's not the history that anyone really wants to make, taking zero shots in a game, the part that is historic is they won. No team in the 30 years of MLS has ever failed to take a single shot and still found a way to win.

    The 1-0 win over the basement dwelling LA Galaxy wasn't easy. Los Angeles had two of their Designated Players in the starting lineup and arguably their strongest lineup since MLS Cup 2024. Despite that, they fell for Sporting KC's first home 1-0 win since August 27, 2022 against the San Jose Earthquakes. The Galaxy's own goal from captain Yoshida, left SKC with a 0.00 expected goals (xG) mark, in victory.

    The game featured an amazing defensive output from goalkeeper John Pulskamp and center backs Jansen Miller and Robert Voloder (earning Robi team of the week honors). It also featured a trio of injuries for Logan Ndenbe and LA's DPs, Gabriel Pec and Joseph Paintsil. On top of everything else it was Star Wars night and the Sporting KC media game. To cover all of that, guest host Kevin Ferstl of Seven.One Magazine joined me for the show with Sheena out of town (she's back next week).

    Despite the good results in Kansas City, the same wasn't present for the KC Current who lost 1-0 on the road to the Seattle Reign in controversial fashion.

    In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:

    • SKC II continue their struggles
    • Vancouver Whitecaps make CCC final
    • Desiree Scott's first professional goal!

    Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):

    • Sporting KC are breaking records - 9:12
    • KC Current lose with controversy - 53:22
    • Digital Crawl - 1:06:28

    Upcoming Games

    • Sporting KC @ Portland Timbers - Sat. May 10th at 9:30PM CDT
    • KC Current vs. Bay FC - Sun. May 11th at 11:50AM
    • SKC II have an off week

    As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!

    Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 19 分
  • Kansas City Soccer had a Pretty Tough Weekend

    Kansas City Soccer had a Pretty Tough Weekend
    2025/04/28

    For the Glory KC is back with the 130th episode of the show!

    Sporting Kansas City continued their up and down form with a loss to FC Cincinnati after a fun win last weekend against the San Jose Earthquakes. Even though the results didn't go their way, it was a pretty competitive game. Many pundits are picking Cincy to win the Supporters Shield, MLS Cup or both and Sporting KC hung right there with them. If not for a "goal of the year candidate," maybe they earn the result.

    We talk about all the key moments from the Sporting KC game, including Zorhan Bassong's first professional goal, why Jacob Bartlett is taking free kicks, Keven Denkey's ridiculous goals and other random observations.

    Beyond just the game, it was transfer deadline week for the Major League Soccer primary transfer window and Sporting KC were busy. They made a signing and a trade and set themselves up to be active in the summer transfer window (they have to spend the GAM they acquired).

    The signing is 22-year-old Mexican American striker Santiago Munoz (more on him here). His arrival cleared the way for Mike Burns to deal William Agada to Real Salt Lake. Willy isn't the only former SKC player to end up in Salt Lake City this week as Johnny Russell also made the move. We talk about RSL as a rival, worse potential destinations (there is only one) and everything else related to those moves.

    Usually, we count on the KC Current to lift our spirits but somehow nothing went right in KC soccer (including SKC II). The Current were stunned late against the North Carolina Courage, breaking all kinds of streaks.

    In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:

    • SKC II signing and a two-loss week
    • The NWSL is trying to start a new second division

    Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):

    • Sporting KC fall in a close one with Cincy - 4:52
    • A signing, an Agada trade and goodbye Johnny Russell - 28:08
    • KC Current lose a stunner - 52:01
    • Digital Crawl - 1:08:58

    Upcoming Games

    • SKC II @ Austin FC II, Friday, May 2nd at 7:30PM CDT
    • KC Current @ Seattle Reign, Friday, May 2nd at 9:30PM
    • Sporting KC vs. LA Galaxy, Sunday, May 4th at 6:00PM

    As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!

    Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 22 分
  • For the Glory KC After Dark III

    For the Glory KC After Dark III
    2025/04/22

    For the Glory KC is back with the 129th episode of the show!

    Sporting Kansas City played a wild, eight goal thriller over the weekend against the San Jose Earthquakes. We celebrated the double KC win too hard and had to push podcast recording until Monday and it got weird. Welcome to For the Glory KC After Dark III.

    When we stayed on topic, we moved through all the delightful, exciting goals from Daniel Salloi, Manu Garcia, Logan Ndenbe and Erik Thommy. Plus, so many assists, including a goalkeeper assist by John Pulskamp (and a fun story from Salloi about it).

    But we definitely got off topic talking Sporting KC trialist Dru Yearwood, which led into Dru Hill, the "Thong Song" and Dejan Joveljic's inappropriate gesture.

    We also have to discuss the officiating that could have marred the results by Joe Dickerson. He was inconsistent and missed a foul that could have really injured Ndenbe. Chicho Arango's nonsense went basically unpunished, but at least Jansen Miller continued his "villain" role.

    The KC Current broke the record for the most wins in a row in NWSL history. It was so dominant it was almost a little boring (though we'll take boring!) with the thorough victory over the Houston Dash. The team was depleted and still looked pretty unstoppable. And the KC Current II are back and participating in TST.

    In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:

    • US Open Cupset Update
    • Cam Duke on the move
    • CeCe Kizer too

    Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):

    • Sporting KC win a Wild 8-goal Thriller - 3:18
    • SKC Round-up - 37:33
    • KC Current break the Wins Record - 51:41
    • Digital Crawl - 1:05:20

    Upcoming Games

    • SKC II vs. Tacoma Defiance, Wed. April 23rd at 6:00PM CDT
    • Sporting KC @ FC Cincinnati, Sat. April 26th at 1:30PM
    • KC Current @ North Carolina Courage, Sat. April 26th at 6:00PM

    As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!

    Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 13 分
  • One Step Forward and Two Steps Back for Sporting KC

    One Step Forward and Two Steps Back for Sporting KC
    2025/04/14

    For the Glory KC is back with the 128th episode of the show!

    Sporting Kansas City returned to their struggling ways, at least in terms of results. If Twitter were the judge, fire everyone, cut the whole team. But it's less than two weeks into Kerry Zavagnin being the coach and there was absolutely promise (at least on offence) in the second game under his leadership. Sheena and I work through the highs and lows from the game. The team showed good fight when they made two comebacks, but their third attempt didn't come off.

    They'll have to work on not falling behind. One reason they fell behind was all the defensive lapses. Jansen Miller actively asked to speak with the media and owned the team's failings. It was a big character moment for him on the heels of a really poor game for the defense. We also ask the question of if Miller deserved the own goal that was scored to him since Portland appeared to poke the ball into the net.

    In addition to that, we talked through some of the interesting refereeing decisions that kept it 11v11 for the whole 90 minutes. We debated who should take PKs after Dejan Joveljic made one and missed one and who should be the captain of this team since leadership isn't jumping out at anyone during these poor performances.

    Then we turn our attention to some fantastic reporting by Sam McDowell of the Kansas City Star. McDowell sat down with Mike Illig and we got a lot more information about Peter Vermes losing his job, some of the factors that went into it, what he's looking for in his next coach (and maybe Chief Soccer Officer) and a whole lot more. I highly encourage you to read Sam's work.

    Finally, the KC Current just kept doing what they do. They pulled off a convincing 2-0 win over the San Diego Wave on the back of goals by Debinha and Lo LaBonta. Temwa's goal scoring streak ended at eight games (again) and she won't break her own record quite yet. Plus, Vlatko Andonovski addressed the Sporting KC coaching rumor.

    In the Digital Crawl, we touch on a few more topics, including:

    • USWNT 2-1 loss to Brazil
    • USMNT Gold Cup draw
    • Olympic Soccer changes for 2028

    Here is a rundown of topics (and approximate start times):

    • Sporting KC lose a wild one - 6:04
    • Illig talks to the KC Star - 42:58
    • SKC Round-Up - 59:23
    • KC Current remain perfect - 1:03:42
    • Digital Crawl - 1:15:28


    Upcoming Games

    • KC Current vs. Houston Dash, Sat. April 19th at 6:30PM CDT
    • Sporting KC @ San Jose Earthquakes, Sat. April 19th at 9:30PM

    As a special gift to For the Glory KC listeners and KC Soccer Journal readers, Backheeled dot com is giving away 30 days of their amazing, independent American soccer coverage for free. If you decide you want to turn that into a paid membership, they'll give you 10 percent off too. Just follow this link!

    Big thanks to Splitter Conspiracy (listen to them here) for our theme music made with the permission of the KC Cauldron.
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    1 時間 23 分