Nemanja Nikolic talks transfers, goals and Real Madrid + USMNT, MLS and Mike Petke banter
An electric weekend of MLS and international soccer demands an ExtraTime-sized cast. With Andrew out, David brings in Calen Carr to breakdown the US national team’s run to the Gold Cup Final (Wednesday vs. Jamaica at 9:30 pm ET; FS1, Univision). Is Clint Dempsey's U.S. Soccer future as a super sub? What is Bruce's best backline? How do they much up against the Reggae Boyz? In the second segment, Bobby Warshaw joins David and Ben to break down a wild weekend in MLS – from Portland's undermanned road win in Cascadia, to Cristian Roldan's offensive explosion, Dom Dwyer trade rumors and much more. Plus, David and Calen sit down with the leading goalscorer in MLS: the Chicago Fire’s Nemanja Nikolic. Nikolic tells them about growing up in Serbia, how he prepares each transfer to a new club, watching game tape to become the best and his experience playing Real Madrid. As a special interview, Trey Fitz-Gerald, Real Salt Lake’s VP of Broadcasting & PR made infamous by Mike Petke’s "hand them out, Trey" line, tells the behind-the-scenes story of what went down Saturday night at Rio Tinto. You won’t want to miss it. In the mailbag, the second-ever "Baer's Lair" begins with its namesake already gun shy about his Baerantee. Plus, transfer rumors abound and David Bingham's starting spot comes under pressure in San Jose.