Halford & Brough in the Morning - Welcome To The Couve, Thomas Müller

Episode Date: August 7, 2025

In hour two, guest hosts Josh Elliott-Wolfe and Randip Janda (1:22) talk the latest baseball news with MLB Network's Adnan Virk, plus they discuss the Thomas Müller signing with Whitecaps analyst Manuel Veth (25:11).  This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

It's time to chat with Adenan. It's Adnan Furkees on the show. We're going to talk some baseball and take a trip to the silver screen. That's right, it's time for Atenham. Yes, Adnan Furkey joins us now. We'll head out to the ball game and talk about all the films he's seen. Welcome back to Halford and Brough. No, Halford, no Brough. It's Josh L.A. Wolf and Randeep Janda here with you. Howford & Brough is brought to you by Sands and Associates. Learn how a consumer proposal can get you on the road to being debt-free in just two weeks.

Visit sands-dustee.com, and this hour of Halford & Brough is for Jason. Mortgage, if you love giving the banks more of your money, then don't let Jason shop around to find the perfect mortgage for you. That's jason.mortgage. We're broadcasting live from the Kintech studio, Kintech footwear and orthotics, working together with you in step. And we go to the hotline now, powered by Power West Industries. It is a regular on this show, Adnan, Verk from the MLB Network. Appreciate taking the time, Adnan. How are you? Of course, Josh, Randy, for pleasure, man. Good to shout with you guys, as always. Yeah, definitely. And we are, we haven't gotten a lot. of time to talk into it or get into it

because we've been talking a lot about Vicki and Boko and Thomas Mueller coming to the white caps, but the Toronto Blue Jays had just an outstanding series against a very poor team in the Colorado Rockies. What did you make of the Jays

demolishing the Rockies outscoring them 45 to 6 over the last few games? I mean, it was an incredible bludgeoning. There's no question about that. For anybody who says, well, it's the Rockies and they're really a major league team, you know, To the year, they're on pace to set the record for the most losses by a team and eclipsing the White Sox record of 1-21 a year ago.

But the Rockies are actually playing their best baseball since the All-Star break. Going into this series, they actually had an above 500 record. So what Toronto did is incredible, and you can see what you want about Corseville, blah, blah, blah. The Blue Jays have an above average record against teams above 500. So they do this to bad teams. They do this to good teams. To outscore them 45 to 6 and a three-game series is pretty insane,

They hit 13 home runs in the series. They set a record, major league record. Going back to 1900, 63 hits in a three-game series, and the 45 runs is a franchise record. So I can lift off every statistic, but bottom line is they smoked him, they crushed him. And Vlad Jr., who I know he's been criticized by some for a lack of power this year, well, on Bay Street of 23 games, longest current in the American League.

He does go deep, which is nice to see. You know, Boba Shek goes deep. He's in over 300. He's leading the league in hits. Ernie Clements hit in 290. he went deep as well, had a five-fit game. Forget about the pitching staff. Kevin Gosman is a Colorado guy.

He goes back and deals only one run over seven. And a quick thought on Dalton Varsho, they have taken off, fellas, without Varsman Santander. That's been one of the great stories of this team is how good that they have been without those two guys for thoughts to be Kikogs, that offense. Well, Varsho's back. We all know he's a spectacular defender,

but 11 home runs in 28 games. That's a pace of 64 home runs over the regular season. Amazing to have Varsho back, and at least he's banging as well. All good news for the Jays, and now a massive series against L.A. Dodgers. If you want litmus test, if you want to start saying, the Blue Jays, a real World Series contender, how are they going to do against the Dodgers? And how about Friday night? Scherzer versus Kershaw, two members of the 3,000 strikeout club.

It's going to be awesome. Yeah, that's going to be an unbelievable matchup. We'll get into that in a second here, but I wanted to go back. You mentioned bludgeoning, and you're a Sopranos guy. This was like Tony Soprano v. Ralph Sifredo in that final scene for Ralph. Like, this was not good. It was bad. are the Rockies one of the worst teams we've seen?

Like, are they the real bad news bears? More Sopranos, Randy. So every time that they have a cutaway, the Blue Jays, putting on the jacket, I always yell out, it's the jacket, which is a course of reference to Richie Appreel in season two, which people never get,

unless you're big Sopranos guy. I got it. I got it. I appreciate it. Anyways, you know, I honestly, I was kind of drinking the Kui because they had been better recently, and I was like, you know what? For a team that could still set the record

for the most loss of the regular season, And after this bludging, they're now going to be on pace to do so. Again, they've played a little bit better baseball. I try to look at the positives. Jordan Beck's actually had a good season. Goodman's had a good season. Tovar's not a bad player. Like their top three is actually decent.

After that, it gets very lean. Michael Tollia is a guy who had a bunch of home runs a couple years ago. He's awful. He's kind of a triple A. And really, their pitching is dreadful. Like, nothing new there. Their pitching is just awful year after year. The one guy that I really like is Chase Dolander.

He's like, well, he was basically their top pitching prospect. I think even he has an earer over six. So they just can't pitch. That's a familiar story in Colorado. Are they going to be the worst team ever? They're going to be this year's bad news. Probably, I mean, that three-game series pretty much hurt them. Like I said, they were 8 and 6 since the deadline,

and they're on pace for 118 losses. Again, the White So, the White Sox set the record of 121. It looks like the Rockies are going to struggle to get to 40 wins. So I'll say, yes, they will set the record as the worst baseball team ever. You mentioned the Dodgers and yeah, the Jays play them for three games coming up in L.A. How have the Dodgers been this season? I know they've had some injury. issues. Shoah is kind of working his way back into the starting

rotation as well. Where are the Dodgers at right now? Well, it's interesting. You know, everyone thought, hey, this is going to be a team that could challenge the Mariners in 116 wins in 01. I'm like, that's not going to happen. And they've certainly struggled with inconsistency and injuries. You know, they've had 17 different guys in the IL. And specifically what happens with their pitching staff is they attract guys who are high risk but then a high reward. So it's not unexpected that these guys will get hurt because it's kind of the M.O. The players that they covet, i.e. Tyler Glass now.

He's incredibly effective, but he's never going to pick 200 innings. You just know he's going to get hurt. So what's half of the Dodgers is they haven't been the runaway train everyone thought. And I love what the PODgers are doing. They're pushing them right now. They're second in the West. And the only two games back of L.A. And by the way, the Dodgers are number one in attendance over 50,000.

Number two is the Poudreys. 44,000 fans go to that park every night just ahead of the New York Yankees at third. But having said that, L.A. getting healthy with that pitching staff. Blake Snell's back. He looked good in his return. Glass knows had a few good starts. He's been really good. New Amato, excellent all season long. Pursa, turn him back to clock. He's at a three and a quarter ERA. And he hadn't

lost a game until a week ago. That's your four. Sasaki, who was, you know, thought to be perhaps the rookie of the year, is going available later the end of this year. Basically, he hasn't pitched all year. That's like an afterthought. Okay, throw him in the mix. Tony Johnson will be back at some point as well. And it's Sheehan as well. So their pitching is turning around into form. They've still got

Otani, who last night was amazing. Four innings, one run. And he hits, you He was 1,000th hit for home runs. It's an incredible story with Shoi Otani is, and what he continues to be. Mookie Betts is a real disappointment. That's a concern for me right now. I mean, his OPS has down 200 points lower than his regular season average.

So they've got to get Mookie figured out. It's been baffling. It didn't make the All-Star team. Freddie Freeman, but a little bit up and down, it's still really good. But they have other guys who stepped up. Andy Pahas, Teoscar Hernandez, Max Muncie just came back. So ultimately, fellas, you know, they're not, like I said,

the runaway train they thought they would be, but the Dodgers are still the team to beat. the National League. Yeah, it'll be a great test for the Blue Jays as well because you can kind of measure yourself against them, right? The Blue Jays have the best, the highest win total in the American League, their run differential after a series against the Rockies is, is a lot better as well. Now, the question I have for you, though, is you know, wins and run differential aside, in terms of confidence, is this the clear cut number one team in the American League, or are you looking elsewhere for that title?

No, I think the American League's wide open, Randy, but you can really make a case for each team. So my concern for the day is the thing I love most of all is their offense. I mean, these guys can bang. And we mentioned the stars of Vlad and Bo. But Springer's having his best year since 2021. Alejandro Kirk is an all-star. And I think it's been well documented in Canada. It's just how

well the other guys have stepped up. Clement hit in 290. Lucas and big hits. Miles Strauss some big hits. Like Heineman had some good hits. The bullpen unheralded. But that's my concern. Their bullpen. I'm like they still don't feel great to me. I see Jeff Hoffman coming in the game. And I don't get misled by 26 saves.

I see 87 ERA plus. Like that's a below average relief pitcher right now. He has had some blow-up appearances where he's not look good. So I would have liked a better closer. Like I love what the Phillies did. They're going for it. They go get Yon, Duran. That guy throws 100 miles an hour and then throws an 85-mile-an-hour slider.

And they're loving one in in Philadelphia. He comes in. They call him the Durantula. They got this whole elaborate display. It's great. The J is what they do. They got Sir Anthony Dominguez. He's okay.

He wasn't good in his appearance there for the Jays of the day. And they're bullpen to me. They've had contributions. some guys in Little and Rodriguez who stepped up, but it doesn't feel great to me. So the reason I would dispel Toronto as a favorite is their bullpen. And ultimately, if you look at their numbers, Randy, they're like in the bottom third in baseball and pitching. I think they're 23rd in Team ERA.

So they are not a team that's going to pitch their way to the World Series. That's my concern of the Jays. What I like about their starters is they're all durable and consistent. Like, you know, Gossman, Burrios, and Bassett will take the ball. But none of those guys are sub-3 ERA. If I point out to you every single ace from every other AL contender, they're measurably better. Scobble with the Tigers, Gilbert with the Mariners, Bramber Valdez of the Astros,

freed with the Yankees, crochet with the Red Sox. Like, every other team, if you go three-game series, like, well, you'd favor the other team. And all of a sudden, in a three-game playoff series, Jays are down 1-0.

Like, okay, you better hope that one-of, Goss from Bassabrio steps up. Now, Bieber's intriguing. He won a Cy Young, that was five years ago. He's looked good in AAA. Again, it's AAA. Let's see what he can actually do in the majors when he returns to the Jays.

I'll get a handful of starts. But hopefully he can be a guy. Listen, if he looks right, he could start a game in the playoffs of them. That's how important he could be. So do I think Toronto's a contender? Absolutely. But they're the runaway favorite?

No way. Tigers are right there. I think the Mariners are playing great baseball. They're on the heels of the Astros right now. Houston is getting some of their rotation back end of this month. Whereas NL, I still feel like Dodgers team to beat AL, I think, is wide open. You mentioned the Mariners, and obviously there's a large contingent of Mariners fans here in the Pacific Northwest, north of the border as well.

What do you think of where they're at post-deadline here? And is this the year they can actually do some damage in the postseason? I really hope so. Somebody asked you a week ago, who's the most dangerous team in the American League? And I said, well, if they get in, it's the Mariners, but it's no guarantee that they get in. That's how much for the dog, but it's going to be right now. I hope they catch the Asher's and then they could feel a little bit better about themselves

being a division champion. But here's the reason I like them. The starting pitching is always strong. A year ago they had the best starting pitching ERA in baseball. This year's more middle of the pack. But part of that was because the injury is any inconsistency. Now Logan Gilbert's back. George Kirby is back.

Kirby looked great last night, six innings, a couple runs. Wu was an all-star. Luis Castillo has obviously been a great pitcher for a long time. And then you throw in Miller as well. So there's a good starting five. Andres Munoz is a good closer. And their offense, which for years the story has been what? There's a possibility of offense in Seattle.

Nobody can score. Well, look up now. Julio Rodriguez is an all-star having another great second half, a Rosarena all-star. What do they do with the deadline? They got the two best bats. A. O. Henry Oswars was the best bat available. He was leaving the nationally at the FBI.

Seattle gets him. Now, he didn't hit previously in Seattle, and he's off to a slow start right now, concerning. But Josh Naler, the pride of Mississauga, Ontario. Home run last night, great pickup, also acquired from Arizona. Now you're throwing a little J.P. Crawford as well. Jorge Polanka, I go, dude, this is pretty good offense. They're top ten and slugging percentage right now.

You're not used to seeing that when you come to the Seattle Mariners. So I really hope that they can push these last seven weeks because I like the aggressiveness of Jerry DePoto. You know, both those guys are rentals, Suarez and Naylor. They're not going to resign both of them. They can't afford to. So he's really pushing to say, let's try to win a division. Seattle hasn't won a division since 2001.

They made the playoffs a couple of years ago. They've been closed the last couple of years. But I love the team on paper. I just hope they can play up to expectations. It's going to be rare when the Mariners fans are cheering for the Yankees starting tomorrow as the Yankees play the Astros. But the Astros, we'll see what they can do against the Yankees. but the Yankees have been struggling, right?

We talk about a win yesterday against the Rangers, but beyond that, it's been, you know, five straight losses prior to that win. There was a lot of turmoil on New York airwaves. We talked to Don Legreca yesterday, and he's talking about how Yankee fans are losing their minds out there. How concerning is their player right now? Love Don La Recka, soon to be the voice of the Devils. Great news for Don, Lyfer and Radio, which is great.

He's right. I mean, I live in North Jersey here, surrounded by Yankees fans. They're losing their minds every day. We had a segue with the Moby network the other day. Concern, panic, or doom? And similarly, the Yankees are doomed. I think it's panicking right now for good reason, but hopefully they can write the ship.

Part of the issue has been ran deep how they've lost games. You know, they can score 12 runs and lose 13 to 12. They can lose the next game by getting two hits and being shut out. They can lose a game by all three relievers who require the deadline, all stink in the, you know what? Bird, Deval, and Bedna were all brutal last fight in their debuts. They can lose a game in which Jose Caballero, who they acquired. fire for speed and defense makes an inexplicable error and ends up the game losing. So, like, they're losing every which way that you can.

Last night's game, my buddy Aaron Boone, you could tell he was putting a pedal to the medal. David Bednar had a five-out save. Like, that's Joe Torre, Mariano Rivera-style. Bednar had not thrown over 40 pitches in a game as a closer in years. At a great moment when Boone went out to the dog, I went out to the bail. By the way, brutal call by the hump. He should have struck out Seeger three-two count. That pitch was too close for comfort.

Should I rung him up. instead he walks him. Simeon's now on base after base, so he's facing Adoli's Garcia. And Boone's looking at his eyes, and he said afterwards, he goes, I was going to take him out. I said, this is it.

But Baddor gave me a look like you're not taking me out of this game. He ends up striking out Garcia. That was a massive win. And I'll give you more context why it was so important. The Yankees have never had three six-game losing streaks in the season since 1992, which is the last year they had a losing season. They've also never made the playoffs, ever in a season, which they've had three, six-game losing streak.

So they could not lose that six game yesterday. They had the win. They go one in five on the road trip. They got swept by the Marlins, but they salvage it against Texas. Goldschmidt, huge pinch hit home run. Rodon was decent over five. I hope they can take a deep breath,

get back home against Houston. Judges at least back as a DH. He's going to start throwing, hopefully get back at the field, and then Stanton can DH. But it's a dog fight right now for the Yankees. I don't think they catch the Blue Jays. The Red Sox are formidable,

just how good their young players are playing. I think the Yankees make the playoffs, but it's too familiar. every day. You mentioned the Red Sox and I wanted to ask about them because it feels like obviously we talk a lot about the Blue Jays here. The Yankees are an interesting story just because of how they're losing and how much they're losing too. But the Red Sox they've been on this run. They've been really hot, especially since the Devers trade. Like what do you think of where the Red Sox are at right now? It has been the biggest surprise of the season to

me Josh. If you said to me after that trade, I said, well, Boston's basically punting on the season. They're going to be around five. Hunter, because they have good young players, and they're going to get valuable experience. But they don't have the horses. Their pitching isn't good enough, blah, blah, blah. They just traded their best offensive player. And I would have said for San Francisco, what a home run. Man, Devers is a legit, great hitter.

They could not sign a guy for the life of them. They got spurned by Judge, by Correa, by Otani. Nobody wants to sign with the Giants as an offensive player. Why? Because you can't hit in that park. So screw it. We'll trade for him. We'll get Devers, which at $240 million over eight years,

that's a decent contract for a guy who's one of the best hitters in baseball. And what happens? Devers has been. average, the giants have completely fallen apart. They were sellers of the trade deadline. They're a 500 team. They're not going to playoffs. And the Red Sox have absolutely taken off. So it's a great

middle-finger salute to anybody who says, chemistry doesn't matter. Clearly, Devers was not well-liked in that clubhouse and clothing things were bothering the team. Because once he's gone, you have to make that correlation that to have been a breath of fresh air when the team is taken off. And that Roman Anthony contract yesterday signed eight years,

$130 million. That's a good signing for a young player. You've seen that before, Acuna, eight years, $100 million. They fleeced Ozzy Albi, seven years, $35 million. Julio, $10 years, $200 million. Like, if you think a guy's a dude, then go ahead and sign him. And Anthony was the number one prospect in baseball when he got called up. He started slow.

Has been great since then. As an 825 OPS. He could be in the face of Red Sox here in a few years, and maybe they have their offensive stars. So crochet is an absolute stud. I think he'll be runner up for Sall Young behind Scoobel. They made a, I would have liked a little more from their pitching. They traded for Stephen Matt's and May from the Dodgers.

You saw him made a pitch yesterday. But their offense is clicking, man. They're definitely going to be a playoff team, and they've been fun to watch in Boston. Yeah, it's amazing to see, you know, they look like a clubhouse in turmoil, and now all of a sudden all the vibes are great. And, you know, we'll see what happens. The AL is wide open, as you mentioned earlier on. All right, before we let you go, though, last week I heard you mention that you're going to watch the naked gun.

Of course, the remake with Liam Neeson. How was it? We need the review right now. I haven't watched it yet. Shout up to Ryan Walsh in Sportsnet, texting me the day on the TV side. Hey, can you come on with your buddy? McCallop at 9 o'clock. I said, I'd love to. I'll never say no to you. It's a paid hit, and I love McAulth, but I'm going to see the naked gun at 7 o'clock Eastern. Can we do it later? Thank God they pushed it to 930, and thank God the naked gun ran deep. It's a nice, quick

comedy. So many reasons to be happy to have this movie. First of all, it's just nice to be comedy in theaters in the summer. We used to have that. Remember back that you'd say to your friends, oh my God, what's the comedy of the summer? There's something about Mary, the hangover. Now they don't release comedies. There's just streaming. There's just like this happy Gilmore crap being released on Netflix. So it was so. It was so. good to be in a theater, 85 minutes. If you take out of the credits, I think it was 78 minutes. That's amazing. God, what a great time at the movies. You can get in and get out. Still don't care about 27 minutes of commercials and trailers. But the bottom line is this. People

forget Leslie Nielsen was a dramatic actor. When he did the naked gun, that's what was so jarring was because he'd never done comedy. Liam Neeson similarly has shown his gravitas and Schindler's list. He's become an action star with Taken. But you haven't seen him in a comedy, and he's brilliant. It's great casting. He's such a good actor and he's got the deadpan down perfectly wonderful chemistry with fellow BC gal, Pam Anderson. Of course, they've been canoodling together on the red carpet. So no surprise, if chemistry on screen and off screen, not every gag works. But I like, it's like basketball.

It's a high-volume shooter. Okay, you're going to get lots of shots here. Not only last to the hit, but there's some big laughs in this movie. I took my 14-year-old son. We had a blast laughing together. It's a really good movie and a great time. I hope people go check up the naked gun. And I was courage to see, even with this crap, like the fantastic four still number

one at the box office. Naked Gunn a solid number three, $17 million domestic and a $42 million budget. Hopefully it'll be a decent hit and we'll get some more comedies and theaters and hopefully a sequel. Liam Neeson deserves it. Hopefully. Adnan, appreciate you taking the time. Have a good one. Thanks so much, boys. We'll talk soon. There is Adnan Verk from the MLBU Network and also a very big former host of Cinephile podcast has a book coming out as well. And are you, have you seen the older Naked Gun movies? Oh, yeah. It's one of my favorite like just anytime it's on, I cannot like Leslie Nielsen was

was a G. Like it was it's so outrageous that it was hilarious. It's like laugh out loud funny. So I'm all in on that movie. I haven't watched this one yet though. I have not watched any of them. Did I hear him take a shot at the Happy Gilmore? Yeah, he said it was crap. Yeah, I watched it

while I was away. It was so bad. It was so bad. I really wanted it to be good. It was so bad. It was just like, fine. It was exactly what it was going to be. Yeah, that's why was so bad because it's exactly what I thought it was going to be and expecting it is what it is you'll have fun with it I love the first I would have been mad if I paid to see it yeah but I mean as a free stream well I guess you'd pay for streaming but you know what I mean as if sit down on your couch streaming movie it was perfectly acceptable but Andy doesn't that mean our standards are

lower when it's streaming though yes yeah yeah for sure inherently like like coming to America too like ruined it didn't ruin the original for me but it was so bad and it was like such a they tried to you know just try to have a quick laugh and it was like that's why i don't want to watch happy gilmore too because i know it's going to be the exact same thing the made for streaming movies of today are what the made for tv movies of the 80s and the 90s are right they're like lower budget they're not you go and knowing chances are they're not going to be great but they're just there so why not those disney vhs is where they have like yeah those are brave little toaster four i think as long as we had to go in with lower the cartoons that weren't

Good enough for the theater. There were some genuine moments in Happy Gilmore 2 that did make me laugh. Like, it wasn't completely devoid of comedy. But as long as you know, you're not getting anything near the original, which obviously you expect, then it's fine. I don't share Lattie's Dyer viewpoint. It's fine. Yeah, fine is how I would.

No, I don't think it's fine because it angered me. I was watching it and I got legitimately angry. A five out of ten, maybe, a six out of ten of how I'm generous, you know? My time is more valuable than that. That's what I'm fair to say, I don't want to waste. time on a five out of ten movie. Yeah, I guess. I guess.

Meanwhile, I'm sitting on reels watching a crappy reel for a half. I think it's largely... Two out of ten reels. I think it largely comes down to how much you love the original, because, like, I love the original. I grew up on it. And had I not have loved the original, I obviously wouldn't have watched the second one. So it's really meant for people that like the first one.

Every two seconds was a flashback. Yeah, as you'd expect. Do we really need the flashback? You've got a given context. No, we don't. It's all callbacks, man. The member varies. I'm going to quote the, uh, the, the,

great Tony Soprano here. Remember when is the lowest form of conversation. And if a movie is full of that, I don't know. There was a lot of remember one. Going back to your original comment, though, you haven't watched the original naked gun. No, it's, so they're on streaming. I've been meaning to watch them because I want to watch the new one. The first two are very funny. The third one, not as much, but the first two are classics. Okay. And obviously you have to remember, it was a different time. So the comedy is a little different. It's all in for It is of its time, and you watch a lot of slapstick humor from O.J. Simpson, which is a little shit. It's like watching, yes, that's a character.

And just so you know, there is a very different time. It's watching, it's like watching Eddie Murphy's raw and delirious. Like those stand-ups now, I remember watching it with somebody and they didn't know about it. It's like watching any form of art. Like, art is of its time. And the fact that they have to clarify this for people so they don't get offended is. almost insulting because like your average movie goer television watchers probably smart enough to realize that they are they are of their era some of them are but i guess people

are stupid because they still have to have the disclaimers like anytime i watch like an old like disney movie for example even like i remember watching like a laden a year ago with my wife i hadn't seen it in years and they have the this is could be racially insensitive it's of its time but but i was like well yeah it's it was made in 1993 man like we know yeah you don't have to tell us We are aware of how history has progressed. So it is a very weird. Sorry, that's a bit of a tag. I always find it to be a very weird thing.

Fair. So I just keep that in mind when you're watching the original, right? It's a little different. It was a different time. I do appreciate the point and I agree with the point that Adnan made that there used to be more comedies in theaters and like you would get excited about a comedy. Mid-budget comedies are not a thing anymore. I miss them so much.

I know. Well, hopefully naked gun is, I think it's still at 89% on Rod Theater, which for a movie of his type is very high. So hopefully it's, and it's doing well at the box office, so hopefully this will encourage them to do more comedies. Hopefully. Before we go, the BC Lions Saturday, August 16th, Your Lions face the alouettes for the show and shine game

featuring over 200 classic and exotic cars. Get tickets at BCLions.com. It is Halford and Brough with Josh Elliott Wolf and Randy Janna. I'm going to talk to Manuel Beth from Transfer Market and Forbes on the other side about everything going on with Thomas Mueller and potentially elsewhere in the world of soccer. It is Halford & Brough on SportsNet 650. Wolf Randy Janda, Sportsnet 650, coming to you live from the Kintech Studio.

And Halpernobraff is brought to you by Sands and Associates, B.C.'s first and trusted choice for debt help. With over 3,000 5-star reviews, visit sands dash trustee.com. This hour of Halpernabruff is for Jason. Mortgage. If you love paying too much for your mortgage, then don't let Jason shop around to find the perfect mortgage for you. that's jason dot mortgage we go to the hotline now powered by power west industry to industries it is manuel beth of transfer market and forbes appreciate you taking the time manuel how are you good all you guys uh we're doing very well we are very excited for the

uh impending arrival of thomas muller in vancouver uh what do you make of how this all went down is it a is it a surprise to you uh just your thoughts on the situation as a whole. Yeah, I guess in hindsight it is probably a surprise. You know, when Thomas Mueller announced he would continue his career and then go to MLS. I didn't necessarily think the White Cubs would be his destination. There was a few clubs that were linked to him, right?

Cincinnati obviously held his rights and that's what the Vancouver Weikers had to do, get the rights first. You know, L-AFC was very heavily rumored in the German media, even though I understand now in hindsight that that was never really a thing. Cincinnati, of course, having the rights really tried really hard. I understand at some point a couple of other teams checked in, one out east in Canada as well. So, you know, I thought, okay, well, where is he going to go?

And when Vancouver White Cups became a possibility, I first thought, like many others, like this is a long shot at best. And then, you know, a long shot became his preferred destination. And then, you know, it actually got done pretty quickly, I would say. So was I surprised at the time? Yes. But now, like, looking kind of back, it kind of fits his character that he doesn't choose one of the big flashy destinations,

but he comes to a place where he just wants to play football. And Munich and Vancouver aren't that different of places. So that kind of makes sense to me, too. Yeah, you've been on the story really since day one covering it. Now, we start looking at some of the comments that actual Schuster made yesterday on this station. He said, hey, more money was out there if Thomas Mueller wanted it. Obviously, Vancouver fit what he wants in his career. Why do you think he chose Vancouver?

Is it simply he wants to win, or is there, you spoke about the similarities between Munich and Vancouver? Is that a part of it as well, where lifestyle matters to him? Well, I'm a Munich boy myself. So, you know, born and raised there and grew up partly over here, and then, you know, I went back and forward. So I understand maybe where he's coming from very well, right? These are two places that are very pretty, very, very wonderful to live in,

high living standards. When you go from Munich to Vancouver or vice versa, you feel like it's a similar kind of culture and background. So I get that, but I think also, you know, on the field, the Vancouver White Cups are really good. They're a very good team this year. They are, you know, first in the Western Conference, one points per average.

and their team that because of that are in the conversation for the MLS Cup. I think Thomas Miller wanted to get into a situation where he could win something, right? This is a player who has collected trophies everywhere he went. Everywhere, he went throughout his entire career, right? The World Cup, two championship titles, 13 Bundesliga titles, 33 titles overall. So, you know, I think this is also his ambition is to win more and more and more titles. winning titles is addictive for people like that and I think he saw a place where

even in the twilight of his career he could win more titles but then also enjoyed the kind of off-field experience too being a beautiful city being a world-class city like Vancouver being a destination that isn't too dissimilar to back home

and I think those are really big factors for him and that's how the White Cups were essentially able to convince him because it's definitely not the money having said that you know Thomas Miller, he was on over 20 million euros a year at Bayern Munich for the last five seasons. I think he can afford making a little bit less money playing for the Vancouver White Caps. At this stage of his career, 35 years old, coming to the MLS, what does he have left to give to the White Caps on the pitch?

It's a very good question. I mean, his productivity definitely slipped last year, right? In previous years, he's always been a very productive member of the Bayern Munich squad last year. He just couldn't really produce the same way he had in past years. So I think it's a really interesting question, how his game will translate to MLS. I understand the White Caps, Axel Schozstan, your Esternerens, spoke to him in great length on how he's going to contribute to this team on and off the field that they had like a role for him to help this team, to play with Brian White, to play with Ryan Gold, to get his productivity. up to get the other players productivity up. He's very intelligent.

He doesn't necessarily rely on speed, although, you know, I know some MLS teams were concerned about his lack of speed and because of that looked somewhere else. But I'm not sure that's necessarily what he needs to do for this Whitecaps team anyways because Brian White has it, Ryan Gold has it. You know, he's then going to maybe play more

of a transition player. So, yeah, I think despite the slip of productivity already last year for Bayern Munich, I think there's still a lot he can offer to this white caps team. And, you know, it's not only just the on-field stuff, it's the off-field stuff, too. There's a lot of young players in this white-caps team that I think with his experience, he can really help make the next step. Well, I wanted to talk about that a little bit, because you mentioned the young players on the white caps. There's quite a few of them. And going back to Mueller's experience with Bayern Munich, there was, you know, Alfonso Davies, but a long

list of, you know, academy players that eventually graduated to the main team. Well, what was that relationship like? Because on social media, on the video content, we see a lot of interaction. He's a quirky character. He's got a big personality. How does that translate to his teammates? No, you know, the best example is, you know, the way he talks to Alfonso Davies, when Alfonso Davies first burst onto the scene.

He was the one who coined the nickname the Roadrunner, right? also, you know, Jamal Musiala is another one when Jamal Musiala burst into the scene. And Musiala, you know, it wasn't in some ways his competitor because they play a similar role on the field. And despite all that, he took Musiala under his wings, called him Bambi on ice, right, because of the way he plays. And so that is a great example. The latest one is Alexander Pavlovich. I know Miller played a big role helping him and getting integrated into the team. So Radio Miller talks a lot, but he does help young people.

players to sort of have the confidence, to build the confidence, to do, to get the best out of themselves on the field. And we see it with the White Cups now, someone like Ali Ahmed, for example, I think can benefit from him enormously, right? Ali Ahmed is one. Tate Johnson is another. There's several young players in that squad that I think when Thomas Mueller shows up, he can help them and guide them to become better players.

Yeah, the overall culture of the club is going to improve, too, because you've got a winner that's won everything in club football and global football at the national stage. Now, the question I have, and you referenced this a little bit earlier on, was the speed. There are questions about the speed. Is there anything we can take from previous players that transition from Europe to MLS, whether it was an honoree, whether it's another player where maybe, sure, they're not the fastest player anymore, but, you know, the way they see the game is really their key. And are there examples that might show us that, you know, with Mueller?

and slowing down a little bit, the technical skill is going to be so high that it could really translate. Yeah, I mean, Kaka is a great example for Orlando City, right, who came over and maybe

wasn't as high speed anymore, but then transitioned into a little bit deeper role. Bastian Schweinsteiger moved from playing midfield to almost playing centerback, right, because of his speed issues and still gave to Chicago fire

a lot on the field. You see it even with Leonardo Messi, his speed isn't the same as it once was, but because he's so intelligent and, you know, they just think the game on a higher different level. And, you know, those are all

examples where it did make a difference. Marco Royce is another player last year. He came to the LA Galaxy, right? Maybe not his fittest anymore. But when the Galaxy were hard-pressed in the playoffs, he came on the field and made a difference. And, you know, in that final two,

when Ricky Polk was injured with his ACL, Royce was there to be available and slip into that role and they won the trophy that season. right? So those are the things that an experienced player like Thomas Miller can bring just because of the way they think this game on a very high level. And yeah, I think despite the concerns about this beat, there's so many other things that you can offer that I wouldn't really be too concerned about it.

How much does this move, you know, raise the reputation of the white caps for players around the world? Like, could this do more for the organization when it comes to them trying to get players and bring in more talent in the future? Yeah, 100%. I mean, it's such a small business. Everyone knows everyone, right? And players talk to one another. Thomas Miller, when he goes to the White Caps

and if he has a good experience there, which I'm sure he will, he will tell his buddies, right? And so then that becomes all of a sudden a location that other players might say, oh, Thomas Miller went there and had a great time and maybe he won something and enjoy. the experience of living on the Canadian West Coast, and maybe that's something

for me as well. I was already joking on another show, like maybe that's Robert Lewandowski is someone that made ours a look at the White Caps now and say my buddy Thomas is there. Maybe I want to team up with him again and play a little bit, you know, maybe win a couple more trophies. And the White Cups

too, I think, you know, they never did that great of a job in the past of selling the location that they're in. Vancouver is a top tourist destination for especially for Central Europeans, Germans in particular. And I always felt that they could do better and bringing big-name players from there.

And maybe Thomas Miller will open the floodgates in that regard. And we'll see. I'm pretty optimistic that he will. Yeah, it doesn't hurt that he's got a great following on social media. But seeing him in that White Caps kit, as somebody who's followed global football for a long time, he is synonymous with the Bayern Munich kit. So imagine if the Sedeans,

switch teams in the hockey world. That would, like, times 10, I think, is what Byron Munich fans are probably saying, wait, that looks weird. Like, how jarring is that for German and Byron Munich fans to see him in a different kit? Yeah, especially because it's blue and white, right? Yeah.

It's just the colors of 1860 Munich, the other team. You know, the feedback that I've gotten has been extremely positive. You know, Thomas Miller is such an icon in Munich and in Bavaria that they just want

the best for him and if this is a decision that he that he fully wanted then I think people will just support it I have to admit too when I saw the press release

and him sitting in his garden with the full Vancouver Whitecaps kid I think we all will take some time to get used to that after 25 years in red and white it is definitely an odd image

but I think he has 100% full support back home in Munich and a Bavaria. He has been such an icon and such an important person for that part of Germany that I think they all just want the best for him. So in terms of this season

and the white caps obviously have had a pretty good one so far, does this make them a legitimate threat in the MLS? Well, I think they already were. You know, if you are a top team in one of the conferences, which they

automatically a candidate for the MLS Cup we saw their run to the Concordshire Champions Cup final obviously the final didn't turn out the way we all wanted it to but this is a team that has done well in the playoff format already this season and you know in the past has won the Canadian Championship what is it now three times in a row going maybe four fourth being in these situations where you won in playoffs does help you to win in the playoffs in the future

having said that you know we never know what can happen it's the home and away games and then single elimination that is that is risky things can go wrong you know one thought wrong decision can spell the end that's just the reality of that kind of format but I thought they were among the favorites already and they're just adding more depth I think they will maybe have to do something else as well, maybe add something to the defense too.

But I think they're definitely one of the teams that can win the MLS Cup this year. Well, it's not every day we have you on the air here, Manuel. So I wanted to get some information off you. Sky Germany is reporting that Benjamin Chesko is in an agreement and principle to join Manchester United from Red Bull Leipzig. So another global football story, what would he bring to Manchester United? Obviously, there are a club that you could say there's some turmoil going on there, but he's a highly-touted player in Europe. What's he bringing in Manchester United if this move goes through?

So I can confirm that that deal is done. It's funny that you say that. Just before I was to jump on with you guys, I was talking to my colleagues at Transfarmac because we were preparing the story, and I was talking to my sources at Arby, Leipzig. And I was told earlier this week that they expected the deal to go through by the end of the week. Um, this is where we add now, I guess, you know, medical tomorrow, then signed 85 million euros all in.

Um, he is an interesting, interesting player. Uh, I think he's not quite the finished product yet, very athletic, a little bit like Slaterny Braimovich in his younger years. Um, but he hasn't really put it all together yet in terms of being a consistent scorer. Um, and I, I wonder if, you know, United have signed a lot of. projects, Hoylon, Syriksa, now they're adding him. Is that, are they going to give him the time that he probably still needs? I would have said he probably would have needed another year or two at Arby, Leipzig, let alone Man United, which is like, you know, a club where the pressure is so extremely high,

especially after all these years of struggles. So, yeah, it's an interesting move. It's a big money move. It's a move for a player, and I interviewed Benjamin Chesk, a couple of times. He's a really, really nice kid. You know, has his head in the right place.

Thinks the game really well. He plays basketball and his off time to improve his motor skills, that sort of thing. But I just curious whether this move is maybe not necessarily too early, but the right one for him. But, you know, if he puts all of his talents together,

he's going to be a superstar. Hey, Manuel. Really appreciate you. at the time. Thanks for this. Yeah, thank you for having you on. I appreciate it. No problem. There is Manuel Veth from the transfer market and Forbes joining us on the Halford & Brough Show. And breaking some news from us as well because that's a

we're talking about Thomas Mueller today but Europe will be talking about the move we just discussed which is Benjamin Chesco who is going to Manchester United. Big Money Club and a lot of turmoil picked up one of the developing talents in Europe and Manuel is locked in the Bundesliga in Germany so he can

report that and he just did. On the show breaking news hopefully all of manchester was listening to this show we know batch bick we got two dom maybe dom maybe three manchester united fans he's awake yeah we we got it uh but yeah a lot of good stuff there on thomas muller again if you missed it uh he is landing in mancouver next thursday so one week from now and his debut is expected to be will be on sunday august 17th against the Houston Dynamo at BC Place, get tickets. It's going to be a fun game. And you're going to be there.

I'm going to be there. There's going to be buzz because this is, you know, when we talk about debuts of players in any market, we always talk about, remember that first game. Yeah. The Pavel Burray. I was there for it. The Pavlebury, first game.

You were a twinkle in your father's eye at that point. Yes, you were. Yes. I was not there. You were not there. But everybody says they were. So I feel like I have to get humbled. Yeah, like, apparently Pacific Coliseum had a 90,000 person attendance record that day, which is fantastic.

But there's going to be a special buzz. And more than anything, like the team is good. This is not Mustafa Jarju signing with the white caps when they were not good. This is a world-class talent with a top two team in the Western Conference. So I think that's on its own, it creates buzz. But hearing what Manuel had to say about the concerns about the speed, there are other players. that have come over to North America and played, and they're so technically brilliant

that even if there is a drop-off in speed, it doesn't matter. You have to respect their talent, and this is a dual-threat player. 250 goals for Byron Munich in his career, but he's a excellent playmaker. That's a problem for the opposition. If you give him space,

he can bury the ball in the back of the net, but also at the same time, if you're playing on the wing with him, get ready to get that pass. He's going to say, you in. So I think that style of play is going to be really conducive to, you know, MLS and even if he does slow down a little bit. Yeah. And the other part of this that I'm interested in seeing is what's impacted has on the white caps moving forward. And we can talk

about it from multiple perspectives, right? Like there's the perspective that we kind of touched on earlier where it's like, hey, who knows what the future holds for the white caps in Vancouver? They're trying to figure out the stadium situation, all of that. And hopefully that end result is them staying in Vancouver, but the other part of it is like, okay, what does it mean for the White Caps and their chances of getting, you know, bigger name players

moving forward? And one thing Manuel mentioned there was you know, we joked about it, but like someone like Levendowski where it's like, hey, that's another big name or he might talk to Mueller and Mueller might be like, hey, I loved it in Vancouver. You want to come over and Byron West. Yeah, exactly.

Levenowski is right now in Barcelona, but you know, Thomas Mueller is the third high-scoring player in Byron history. Number two is Robert Lewandowski on that way. So why not, you know, try to bring them all over? If you want to just have a Byron to White Caps connection and vice versa, whenever the White Caps have an Alfonso Davies level player, good, sounds good to me.

That is a great deal to set up. It's a pretty wild conversation to be having because there was a time where, and listen, this could have been like six months ago, four months ago, whatever. That Vancouver was not a very good. good option when it came for European talent. Now, one signing, all of a sudden, changes that. Yes. And it's not only just a player who is, it's a certain type of player, a player that is so well liked, like a cross-world football. He does not have any haters. That goes a long way in recruitment where people are saying, oh, if that guy's having a good time there, he's got to work

on the pitch. He's got to make sure that this team thrives around him. So there's still work to be done. They still have to be good. Yes. So like, We don't want to say, hey, you know, like, you can't crown them as a, this is a destination for European players. You have to make something of it because the Bastion Steinsteiger mentioned it was dropped there by Manuel. Chicago was all right. Like, Shakiri followed in, who's a Swiss international. Like, there was other players that went in, but I wouldn't say it was a resounding success. So there is still work to be done.

You have to make sure that you're a relevant team on the pitch. But it helps when you're second place. It helps when you're in first place and you bring in a player life. If you got no haters, you ain't popping. So hate away. Yeah. You have no haters, you ain't popping. Except the White Calfs.

Except Thomas Mueller, he's popping. Mueller is popping and somehow has no haters. Good for him. Or is there a rival? What's the, what's the Bayern Munich rival to you? Okay, so here's the thing. He doesn't have haters when it comes to players. Yeah.

But everybody in Germany hates Bayern Munich. Okay. When you dominate the league like that, like everybody hates them. So people hate... That means they're popping, then. The team is popping. The team is popping. And he, for a lot of people, is the face of that team.

So, yes, he does have haters. By extension. But as far as other players, I don't think other players hate him. Fair enough. Okay. So he is not only not hated, but he is also popping. Good for Thomas Mueller. Good for the Vancouver Whitecaps.

And yeah, you mentioned it. They are near the top of the table. Top of the table. If you go by points per game, the Thomas Strands metric of Major League Soccer. And, yeah, it's going really well for them. We'll see if this can give them a bit, bit of a bit of, a boost because I do think there was what a freaking boost

there's been a level of a slight I don't want to say drop off but they've been dealing with injuries it's kind of cooled off I guess for the Vancouver White Cap so if this can give them another I don't want to say the word a boost what a freaking boost if they can

give the if this can give them that they'll be rejuvenated there we go if this can do that I think that would go a long way for the rest of the season and also trying to regain the kind of faith and confidence in the market as well. It's hilarious when you're trying to watch you know, you watch Josh trying to fight

trying to say boost. Like there's a stress and like there's a vein in his vein in his head right now. What's another word for boost? What's another word for boost? That's why it's a great drop because it's used so often. Can this give the two most overused words? Boost would be one of them and then can they give the white caps more juice?

Yes. Like juice. I should have said juice. That's a drance is. Yeah, I should have said juice. I think everybody in the station uses the word juice way too much. Uh, yeah, the one thing we said way too often over the last two months was keep their powder dry in regards to the Vancouver Canucks. That one? Yeah.

Or stave off come playoff time. Yes. Can they stave off elimination? Yeah, we do stoved on the show. They've stoved off or can they stove off? Yeah, I wouldn't mind retiring. Uh, very serious show. And you know what?

We speak good words good here. Yeah. The term that's about to blast off to is the cove. So if we get that going, I think we're in a really good spot. Apparently, they're going to be, I've seen on my Twitter profile, people are always already doing mock drawings of it. Apparently, you know how they get the Hollywood sign? They're going to do a coove signed, right by Linescape Bridge. People are going to be like, could they not afford the other four letters?

It's just going to cover up the entire mountain side. A bunch of homes are going to have to be lost. It's cooler and cost savings. Yeah. Win-Lynn. I mean, a bunch of people are going to get displaced because this sign is going to be so large, but I think it's worth it. It's definitely worth it. If I'm a land developer right now, you know what I'm doing?

I'm building an apartment called the Cove. Why wouldn't you do that? I think there is a place, like a store down the street from us, called the Cove. I could be wrong. They are going to get record sales today. Free publicity, you are welcome. They're going to get record sales today. It is the Alfred & Brough Show, Josh L.A. Wolf, Randeep Janda.

On the other side, it's the Moge. We're going to talk BC Lions next on SportsNet 650. What a freaking boost.