00:00Good morning, 97.1 Jim Costa with Stoney in for John Jansen. We've got Gov and Greg behind the glass
00:05locked in on a Monday.
00:07Tonight, Monday night football.
00:11Balogun back as a birthday present.
00:15I look at it like this. Ball don't lie. He never should have been handed the red card in the
00:18first place.
00:19Is it slimy that a player gets this break? Sure.
00:24Yeah. But you know what? Tells me we're becoming a soccer power. We get some corrupt decisions on our side
00:28every once in a while.
00:29Yeah. As far as tonight goes, I feel great.
00:33We're winning this game and it's a cost of luck.
00:37Oh boy. Oh boy.
00:39And I want to know if people are with me tonight. I thought we were going to win this game
00:42and then you get Balogun back and I feel even better and I've upgraded it to a cost of luck.
00:48This team can finish. We've seen it. They've got 10 goals as a team.
00:53Balogun has the majority. Well, he has more than anybody else.
00:57Greg's going to tell me it's a plurality.
00:59Balogun has the most. He's back. He's our striker, but it's also a collective group.
01:05We've got the 10 goals. It's the most we've ever had in any World Cup and we've got guys that
01:10get them the ball.
01:11Pulisic and McKinney and Tillman and Adams.
01:13These guys are all in their prime and it's the best crop of soccer players we've ever had.
01:18Contrast that with Belgium, who had a draw with Egypt and Iran and was down to nothing to Senegal through
01:2586 minutes before roaring back and tying it despite being outplayed and then winning in PKs.
01:31They are not very good. We are playing our best and we have our best playing and we're playing at
01:36home on our soil.
01:38Yes, they should win, but I wouldn't get complete.
01:41I wouldn't call any of these games no matter who you're playing at this level.
01:48It costs a lot.
01:49I want to know my fellow Americans.
01:51Who's got my back to four eight five three nine ninety seven ninety seven.
01:55Are you confident in the gold tender?
01:59The goalkeeper, I should say.
02:01Turner really doesn't do much for me.
02:04The games I've watched.
02:05I mean, look, it hasn't been pressured that much.
02:07He's not great.
02:09I think in a game like this, you got to make sure you have a great goalie.
02:12Our goalies freeze, right?
02:14Oh, Turner's just a backup.
02:15Yeah.
02:16Yeah, I was going to correct you, but I wanted to make sure I was right.
02:21But yeah, when I heard about the team and I've learned more about the team and I'm going, we got
02:24an MLS goalie.
02:25I don't know about that.
02:26Yeah, I mean, you know what?
02:27The defense is supposed to be a weaker spot of this team.
02:31The back side, you know, our our side of the pitch is not our strength, but I'm seeing a team
02:35that could score goals in the last World Cup Team USA had three goals in four games.
02:39We look like a completely different group that can actually apply pressure.
02:42We hired an Argentinian to be our coach, and he's been outstanding.
02:46By the way, he threw a nice first pitch at the Mariners game.
02:49Did he?
02:49There you go.
02:50So, yeah, we're playing on our soil.
02:52We got a good coach, good tactics, good players.
02:54They're in their prime.
02:54We're playing well.
02:55We're scoring goals.
02:55And Belgium's kind of been just dancing with teetering on the brink of elimination.
02:59Look, I agree with you.
03:01They probably should win, and they probably will win, but I would never, in this crazy game, in this nutso
03:08tournament, have anything as a lock.
03:11If there was anything, and it proved to be a lock, you know, was the other Friday night, the Argentina
03:15-Cape Verde game.
03:16I mean, never a doubt.
03:18You know, obviously, you know, Diego Costa of Sports Radio Buenos Aires, I'm sure he did a Costa lock.
03:26And they, look, they almost lost.
03:29Yeah, but he was right.
03:30I know.
03:31I know.
03:31It's not all.
03:32My Argentinian brethren.
03:34Doing radio in Buenos Aires.
03:35That's right.
03:36Diego Costa.
03:37I gotta be, it's gotta just be all soccer talk all the time, right?
03:40Oh, absolutely.
03:41What else do they have?
03:42Well, they have basketball.
03:43They do have a good Argentinian basketball team.
03:46Yes.
03:46Manu Ginobili.
03:47Yeah, he's been at the games.
03:48That's right.
03:49Any baseball down there?
03:51I don't know.
03:52It's just all soccer and basketball.
03:54Pretty much.
03:54Okay.
03:55And tennis.
03:56They've always, they've had some good tennis players over the years.
03:58Buenos Aires radio.
03:59I'll have to check it out later.
04:00Exactly.
04:01You call in as, what was your alias?
04:03Oh, years ago, Rick.
04:05Oh, Max from Michigan.
04:07Yeah, you call it as Max from Michigan and break down what's going on?
04:10Absolutely.
04:11248-539-9797.
04:13We got texts rolling in, not only on the Costa lock and your confidence, but also on the reaction to
04:19Balogun playing.
04:20Some people are just not okay with it.
04:21But it's, it's slimy.
04:23There's no doubt about it.
04:24It's corrupt.
04:25But that's what FIFA is.
04:27It's not necessarily just that the president is getting involved.
04:30Right.
04:31We had the guys say.
04:32They would probably, there'd be some, you know, I'm not saying it's him.
04:35Okay.
04:36Because I can't think of anybody else off the top of my head.
04:38But Elon Musk or Steven Ross going to FIFA and says, hey, we'll give you $6 billion if Balogun can
04:46play.
04:47They would change it.
04:48Yeah, I look.
04:49FIFA is just corrupt.
04:50And if you ask people if the shoe was on the other foot, if Belgium had a player who received
04:53a red card, but they made an exception for him, let him play.
04:56We'd be going crazy.
04:57Crying bloody murder.
04:58Now, I think, I think Belgium's coach is going a little far here.
05:01You still got to rally your troops.
05:02You can't wallow in it.
05:03Oh, I like what he said.
05:04I didn't know today was April Fool's Day.
05:07Right.
05:08I think fans would be irate.
05:10Yes.
05:12If we had a government in another country posturing, angling, pressuring to get someone in, you wouldn't be okay with
05:21it.
05:21So big picture.
05:22No, we don't want.
05:23So I think you put it best.
05:24We don't want the intervention.
05:27Correct.
05:27From the government in the World Cup.
05:28If there's going to be intervention in the World Cup.
05:30But if it's going to be open corruption.
05:32And justifies the means.
05:33So you're a little spiel there with the lock and all that.
05:36Yeah.
05:37The words that you said that really troubled me was, they're not very good.
05:41Like, that is overly confident Costa dripping out.
05:45Like, they're ninth in the World Rankings and we're 16th.
05:49Yeah.
05:49And they're not very good.
05:50We got Balogun.
05:51They don't.
05:54I'm just saying, I looked at the roster.
05:55Not a single flow Balogun.
05:57U.S. won its first game against a European soccer team in 13 games their last game.
06:02Yeah.
06:02It'll actually be two countries.
06:03We're looking.
06:04Well, we beat Bosnia and Herzegovina.
06:05And we're looking to be that type of team now.
06:08Doesn't it feel like we've graduated into this type of team?
06:10This World Cup is better coming out.
06:12I will say this with your confidence aside and everything.
06:14This is the all everything game of this tournament.
06:16If they win this game, they have exceeded anybody's expectations.
06:21And I do think a quick backdrop with today is Portugal and Spain play before USA do.
06:28And if Portugal wins, they're the perceived easier opponent, according to those rankings.
06:34At least.
06:34I don't know.
06:35You might not think they're a very good team either.
06:36Yeah.
06:37They only have Ronaldo.
06:38Well, old, washed Ronaldo.
06:41Jesus.
06:41That's true.
06:42He is.
06:43Soccer people are saying it.
06:44A lot of Portuguese fans don't even want them to play.
06:47If Portugal wins, there's going to it's going to add some juice to this tonight because
06:52you're talking about maybe open a door to the semis.
06:57Costa lock were cooked.
06:59The king of jinxes has spoken.
07:01Eric.
07:02Damn it.
07:03Costa.
07:03I was confident about tonight, but Costa jinxed us.
07:07Jinxed us.
07:07That's Christoph and Fenton.
07:09Costa lock means cost a loss.
07:13Thanks, Jim.
07:14Costa lock is scary.
07:15At least he didn't do the double digit disco.
07:17Yeah, I don't think we're going to buy 10 goals tonight.
07:2097-1.
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