On The Counter Soccer Podcast With Drew Pells

#165! MLS finds themselves in a conundrum when it comes to politcal signange and the fan code of conduct; TalkSport's Adrian Durham came under fire for his comments about pronouncing players' names; and finally a preview of this weekend's Premier League actionThanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Reviewwww.drewpells.com/emailwww.twitter.com/DrewPells

#164! Another great weeked in the Premier League saw City dominate Spurs but draw 2-2; Pep and Aguero got into it along the touchline, but it's blowing up for no reason; Lampard was outmanaged in his return to Stamford Bridge as Chelsea finished even with Leicester 1-1; Norwich striker Teemu Pukki is off to a rip roaring start, but he won't sustain it; Arsenal look like a force to be reckoned with, but their defense will continue to hamper them; Coutinho is off to Bayern, but he doesn't look likely to be a starter in Munich; USWNT and USSF have a court date set for next May, much sooner than expectedThanks for listeningwww.drewpells.com/emailSubscribe. Share. Rate. Review

#163! Christian Pulisic got an assist and scored his first 'goal' for Chelsea at the UEFA Super Cup only for it to be disallowed for offside, but it's a great start for the American and should lead to a place in the starting XI; IFAB wil reconsider VAR's protocal when it comes to offside and it shows how popular and strong the Premier League is; USWNT and US Soccer mediation talks over the 'gender discrimination' lawsuit brokedown and will most likely head to trial; UEFA Player of the Year finalists were announced; Bein renews with La Liga in a hampering move for the Spanish leagueThanks for listeningwww.drewpells.com/emailwww.twitter.com/DrewPellsSubscribe. Share. Rate. Review

#162! Manchester United spanked Chelsea in Frank Lampard's nightmarish return to the Premier League. What does it mean for Lampard's chances this year to suceed? Meanwhile it was the perfect start to the season for Man U and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer; NBC had to be fuming when Christian Pulisic was named to the bench after they've pushed him relentlessly as the face of the Premier League now. How will they continue to use him if he continues to sit?; VAR reared it's ugly head in the West Ham v City game and I have a solution for VAR and how it's applied to the offside rule; Liverpool's defense has regressed to the mean; Watford disappointed severly at home; and Arsenal need to score more than one goal against clubs in the bottom half. Edison Cavani is rumored to head to Inter Miami in a brilliant move for the MLS club. www.drewpells.comThanks for listeningSubscribe. Share. Rate. Review

#161! Premier League transfer deadline day is finished and there were some major moves. Everton came out big winners with the biggest upside potential, Spurs significantly improved their squad, but it's not getting them any closer to the Premier League trophy, Newcastle the clear losers after losing Rafa, Rondon, and Ayoze; I give my top 4 for the season; USSF has hiring two lobbying first to help with the lawsuit and mediation over the pay dispute between the men's and women's team and it looks to be a PR nightmare so far. All that and more on today's showThanks for listeningSubscribe. Share. Rate. Review. 

#160! Alejandro Bedoya made a call to action to Congress during the Philadelphia Union game against DC United after two mass shootings this weekend and his comments come from a good place, but it doesn't mean he's necessarily right; Manchester City and Liverpool renewed their ever-increasing rivalry this weekend playing the Community Shield in what looked to be a reflection of what we'll see in the Premier League this year; Manchester United have ended their interest in Paolo Dybala and it seems best for all parties as it wasn't a great fit or deal in the first place; all that and more on today's show

#159! Christian Pulisic wowed Chelsea fans with two goals and drawn penalty against RB Salzburg. Will he have a good year at Chelsea?; Harry Maguire is off to Manchester United for 80 million pounds, but why did the Red Devils shell out so much?; Pepe has joined Arsenal even though he doesn't help them where they need improvements the most; the MLS skills competition ended on an exciting note and should come back next year with some improvements; USWNT victoy tour begins today without any hype or buzz. What happened, wasn't this team so popular and amazing and american heroes?; All that and more on today's showThanks for listeningSubscribe. Share. Rate. Reviewwww.twitter.com/drewpellswww.drewpells.com/email

#158! I'm back after an unanticipated 2 week hiatus to discuss USSF's fact sheet of the men's v women's pay; transfer roundup regarding Moise Kean, Gareth Bale, Romelu Lukaku, and Paolo Dybala; Chelsea and Lampard's statement of intent by giving Tammy Abraham the #9 jersey; and more on today's show.Thanks for listening. Susbscribe. Share. Rate. Review. Follow me on Twitter, twitter.com/drewpells

#157! I'm back in the US and here to bring you all the major stories of the day. Player holdouts have jumped the shark if Laurent Koscielny at Arsenal is the latest player to do so; Leicester and Man U are still at a standstill over Harry Maguire and the Foxes are playing a dangerous game here and risk losing out on making the deal happen; Christian Pulisic joined up with Chelsea for preseason and I tell you what he needs for a succesful first year at Stamford Bridge; Neymar to Barcelona is still floating around but hasn't happened yet. Will it? Who knows. Thanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review. 

156! The last show broadcasted from the motherland. Concacaf unveiled its new qualifying process for the next World Cup and have received nothing but backlash. There is some silver lining in it for the smaller nations though; Megan Rapinoe and the USWNT had their victory parade and the captain continued her politcal rhetoric both in her speech and interviews; as I move back to the US, I give you some insight into how the US is the best country in the world and how Megan Rapinoe and her supporters don't realize how good they have it.Thanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review.

#155! James Rose, host of Who Kicked The Corner Flag, joins me for a timeless discussion on the UEFA, the Champions League, clubs, fans, and the weaving together of all of them. This discussion stems from an article I wrote (link below) in May criticizing fans for their, in my opinion, misguided and uneducated complaints lodged at UEFA over the high costs of traveling to and attending the Champions League Final. James and I both came into it with an open mind and willingness to understand each other which is extremely rare in today's day and age, especially on social media. And in the end, we saw, especially me, that we're not that far away from each other, especially after hearing each other out. It was a great chat and I know you'll enjoy it. Follow James, @jamesjohnrose and his show @kickcornerflag Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review. https://www.drewpells.com/articles/selfish-fans-are-wrong-about-high-ucl-final-travel-costs/

#154! The US lost the Gold Cup Final to Mexico, but there were major positives from the tournament overall. Berhalter and the US will have to earn back some good will they built up, yet then lost in the Final; Messi made some pretty inflammatory comments about corruption in Conmebol and the confederation hit back in an appropriate and an opposite and equal reaction; the USWNT won the Women's World Cup, yet had a dissapointing TV audience and of course the excuses are out defending them; Antoine Griezmann and Atletico Madrid are going through a bad and ugly break up. Now, they're going into a game of chicken of who'll blink first. Thanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review.

#153! The US beat Jamaica in the Gold Cup semis and advanced to face Mexico in the final; Jozy Altidore started and was this part of Gregg Berhalter's scheme the whole time?; Messi and Argentina continue to sink further and further into the abyss and he's hurting his legacy one game at a time; transfer round up including Joao Felix to Atleti, Man City's suprisingly low record signing, Rabiot to Juve, and more. Plus, a special announcement at the end of the show, so make sure to stay tuned for thatThanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review.

#152! The US snuck by Curacao is the quarterfinals of the Gold Cup and #BerhalterOut is making the rounds again, but I disagree with calling for his firing and I explain why; Copa America is on the semis and a juicy matchup of Brazil v Argentina highlights the round. Can Argentina get by an above average but far from world class Brazil side?; MLS announced they will have a skills competition taking place during the All Star festivities and I think this is a fantastic move and will definitely tune in. Plus, I think other leagues should adopt this and have their own skills competition to showcase their players and talent. All that and more on today's showThanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review. 

#151! A video of Megan Rapinoe surfaced where she said she won't go to the White House if the US Women win the World Cup. Donald Trump hit back on Twitter inviting the team win or lose. And I got a great idea that would make this situation hilarious; the US Men's team won their group with a victory over Panama and everything is going well for the US and Gregg Berhalter; the New York Times came out with an article detailing the inside of USSF and it's not as much of bombshell as people are making it out to be. All that and more on today's showThanks for listeningSubscribe. Share. Rate. Review. 

#150! The US crushed Trinidad and Tobago- Gregg Berhalter and Gyasi Zardes are the major winners from this, plus Tyler Boyd is the forward the US need, and Christian Pulisic is arguably the best player in the region; Deadspin put out an absurd hitpiece on the USMNT leading up the Women's knockout game against Spain; Neymar was reportedly offered to Manchester United and if it were to happen would signal a major shift in transfers in the years to come; Rafa is out at Newcastle and finally walking away from the nightmare that is the ownership thereThanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review. 

#149! The US started the Gold Cup with a win over Guyana and it's important to look at this game as glass half full instead of critiquing it; Brazil have come under fire for underperforming at Copa America, but looking at their squad, they're actually performing at their level; the longer Messi plays with Argentina, the more he erodes his legacy as the GOAT; VAR is getting calls right at the Women's World Cup, yet people are upset with it; All that and more on today's show. Thanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review

The USMNT needs an optically good Gold Cup more than a triumph at the end; Jamaica and Costa Rica each hosted one set of games during the Gold Cup and did they pass the litmus test for hosting more in the future?; Copa America is off to a flying start, Uruguay looked good, Brazil, and Colombia looked alright, while Argentina and Ecuador disappointed; Chelsea look set to hire Frank Lampard to be the new manager but is it for the right reasons?Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review. Thanks for listening. Follow me on Twitter, www.twitter.com/drewpells

#147! Gene de Gourville, my colleague and a writer at The Runner Sports, joins me to discuss the Gold Cup, his favorite, his dark horse, and some changes Concacaf should make to improve the region. Follow Gene on twitter, www.twitter.com/genedegourvilleThanks for listening. Follow me on twitter, www.twitter.com/DrewPellsSubscribe. Share. Rate. Review.

146! The USWNT got off to a rip roaring start against Thailand and there's a huge controversy over their goal celebrations even after putting 10 past them. I explain what I think people are missing and why this is a big deal; Woke Soccer Twitter lost their minds over a clip from last episode when I said social media isn't real life and a lot of their responses proved my thesis; I go through a lot of rebuttals I heard from woke soccer twitter and give you some advice for how to handle vicious online attacks should it happen to you; all that and more on today's showThanks for listening. Subscribe. Share. Rate. Review. Follow me on twitter, www.twitter.com/drewpellsSign up for the free newsletter, www.drewpells.com/email