SoccerWise - Let The Quarterfinals Begin, Morocco vs. France Showdown | World Cup Daily Show

Episode Date: July 9, 2026

Morocco and France kick off the World Cup quarterfinals as David Gass, Matt Doyle and Michele Giannone preview one of the tournament's biggest matchups. Can the Atlas Lions continue their dream run against France's star-studded attack of Kylian Mbappé, Ousmane Dembélé and Michael Olise? The crew breaks down the key tactical battles, what each team needs to do to advance and who they're picking to reach the semifinals. 0:00 Intro5:48 World Cup News Updates13:50 Mbappe & Olise Take on Morocco27:40 How the U.S. fell apart against Belgium31:01 Ranking France vs. Morocco Kits

Can you feel it in the air? World Cup games are back. What a day. Yesterday was painful, I know. Thank you all for being here with us, though. We tried to help you work through it, but we are back as France takes on Morocco at 4 p.m. Eastern time in a World Cup quarterfinals, and the stakes are back. Everyone had a little bit of a rest, and now you can return to the show. This, of course, is First Touch 26, our daily World Cup show. I am David Goss. here in New York City, and I'm alongside McKellie Giannone and Matt Doyle for this one. Listen, we were all together yesterday, so that felt good. We talked big World Cup, but we need games, baby. Yeah, we need games. I was actually happy yesterday that we got a break. I wasn't like 99.9% of the population that were like dying, like you, dying because there was the first game in 20.

Having to set my own schedule and not just look at the World Cup. schedule is unfair. Did you go out drinking at a Mexican bar anyway just to like continue the momentum? Yes. Okay. I was taking the day off and it didn't work out. 27 days without a... With a World Cup game in a row.

Yeah. And now we had that break. Yeah. It was 27 days, I think. We got the break. I enjoyed the break yesterday, but I got to say that I woke up this morning and I saw France Morocco and I'm pumped. Yeah.

I'm excited. I'm most excited about in this round. and I'm glad we start with it because I think the drama will come from the other games as well. I think they'll be tight but this game I think will be the best soccer game. All right. Walk me through it. Walk you through it.

I think it's the game where both teams have ideas of how to go and win. I think Switzerland will try and hang in the game. We know who Norway is at this point and I don't really see a world in which Belgium wins but either way it's going to be sit in and hold. I think there's a chance Morocco takes large stretches of this game away from France.

France can both beat them in transition. if they do so, but then France also has players who want to be in possession and want to play higher up the field and Olise, who wants to pull the strings. So I think this is the game where it's more clash of the Titans versus the other games, which is a bit more, can we find our moments and be tactical? All right. You walk me through it. I sold you. All right, we got, we're going to talk about that game. I've got this live spruce shirt that I'm wearing.

I got it from soccer.com. So if you're looking for more gear, go to soccer.com. It's not just jerseys. They've got T-shirts. They've got different commemorative things. They've got the Trianda ball, which you can go and get as well, or you can go get this lead blue. Number 10 shirt. Boom.

You're welcome. I had a Michael Alise jersey before it was cool. I was about to say you're the Zedan of this panel right now. The Golden Dome right here. Did you pick Morocco yesterday? Just asking. Me? Yeah.

Listen, I'm out of the world, McKelley. I'm friends with everyone. I can hang out and eat fish literally and bread in any country in the world. So as long as you have those two things, I'm on your side when I need to be. even the British have fish. So I could be one when I have to be if it's necessary. Although I will say,

I had salmon fish and chips at the Norwegian place watching the game. And it hit. Salmon fish and chips is the best fish and chips by far. Also,

it probably helps that it was from Norway so they were probably like real salmon. See, what happens is salmon is a fattier fish. So you get the oils comes out of the fish

as it's deep fried and it just gives you but there was an gist. The oil from the salmon is actually lighter than the oil that's typically used in when you're deep frying and making fish and chips. It's just a better. No other show.

It's a better dish. No other show could do this. Let's go through some news before we dig into the game. Let's start with the fact that Belgium has gotten very good at complaining. So they are just going to continue to use their formal complaint system. With FIFA, this time, they complained that their designated training pitch at Loyola Marymount University in L.A., where their game will be played at SoFi Stadium against Spain tomorrow, fail to meet minimum safety and quality standards.

So they put in their complaint. Loyola Merrimount denies such a complaint, and they have moved to the LA Galaxy's Training Center instead. So if, I don't know, if Uri Tillamins is looking for a new job and he likes the training grounds, maybe he comes over, he could partner Edwin Serio in midfield

and really learn how the game could be moved and controlled. The Galaxy did just open up a deep piece a lot, selling Gabriel Peck. I assume that's for another winger. Maybe they're about to hijack. You're telling me they turned down Yuri Tillman's? Maybe they're about to hijack the Leandro Trissard move because he's apparently on the move from Arsenal. That would be a great one. Speaking of World Cup vets coming to this side of the ocean, Angus Gunn, the Scottish goalkeeper who started all three games in the group stage. Sadly did not get out of the group stage by about what one goal. He is making the move to the San Jose earthquake. So he

He's going to get to play under Bruce Arena, who is the Steve Clark of American Soccer. So it's very similar for him. It's a little harsh on Bruce. I know. He also may be playing soon for Roberto Martinez, as reports have come out pretty heavily, that he has been linked to the Scotland job in lieu of losing his time at the Portugal national team. And Rafa Benitez has apparently also thrown his hat into the ring. So it's a Spanish competition.

Yeah. Everyone wants the job. Scotland have a golden generation happening now because if they do, then Roberto Martinez is the guy because we've seen what he's done with Belgium and Portugal over the past 15 years. I think Napoli would say they have one going on, Billy Gilmore and Scott McTominy. They won the Scudetto last year. On the back of the Scottish power. If you have the opportunity to choose between Roberto Martinez and Rafa Benitez and you choose Roberto Martinez, you deserve a hundred years of pain. good things.

I would argue if you're choosing between the two of those, you're already in a bad spot. No, Rafi's good. Come on. Okay. We've talked a lot at this World Cup about Johann Manzambi. It sounds like his transfer to Newcastle is complete. So if you'd like to watch Johann Manzambi in the future, pass, unfortunately, what it seems like will be the World Cup quarterfinals because it sounds like he won't be fit for that one

with the cast he has on his leg after the injury he picked up in training. you can do so in the English Premier League. That's a major boost for Newcastle. They lost Sandra Tonali to Tottenham and they're about to lose Bruno Gimarashe to Arsenal. They've made a lot of money telling players this summer, which I didn't think was going to be their MO once they got... They're a small club.

Yeah, well, they're acting like it now. They're owned by... I'm wondering if maybe some fluctuations in the oil market could have anything to do with that. I will say, Tonali to Manzambi, upgrade, Gimaris is a huge loss. So, Monzambi is a better player, but it's not a like for love. No, exactly.

Manzambi is not going to be an all-action eight in the Premier League. He is a guy who plays kind of in the half spaces, whereas Tonali was... Tonali's a box to box number eight that scores a lot. I think he was the best at his position in the Premier League, so... On the binder, it's Newcastle, so they sign nines and play them as eights. So if you're a, if you're a ten and a half, you're probably a six. or a foolback. Yeah, potentially a fullback.

But it will be exciting to see his career continue to progress Switzerland, surviving without him in the round of 16 against Colombia. And it seems like they'll have to do so again in the upcoming game against Argentina. And then big World Cup news. Actually, let me do this one first. Vosinia, who is a free agent, has been linked to Inter-M Miami. Now, I assume those links are made by people who have never spoken to either Inter-Miamy or Vosinia. Right. But he's 40 years old.

He's a goalkeeper. Dane St. Clair has had a bad year. And he's a free agent, which is normally what Into Miami looks for. So one of the things I've been thinking about is if Miami, I don't think Dane St. Clair has fit with Miami. He's not the type of goalkeeper who really does well to deal with the space in front of him between a high back line and- He's a high-volume saves guy.

Yeah. He's a better fit for a team that plays a lower block. So I do assume him to be on the market, but it's hard to imagine that Vosinia would be the right choice to replace him, especially because Rocco Rios Nova is still on that roster. He was very good down the stretch last year. And if you want to create marginal value in MLS, you have to develop players from within, and Rios Nova would kind of check that box. Dane going to Toronto could be interesting. Obviously, it's home for him, and Dave has to have. some struggles at the goalkeeper position as well. And then the last one here is that Zlako Dolic has stepped down as Croatia manager after nine years, leading Croatia to two World Cup semi-finals,

including a World Cup final in 2018. Remember, he took over as interim originally back in 2017. You know, the national team was in a bad spot attempting to qualify for the 2018 World Cup. But he was inserted with, I wouldn't think you'd call it like a ton of experience to get there. He was not an international player in his career. He had coached almost exclusively in the Middle East, in the UAE going into that. So it was not an appointment that people were very excited about. And he really found the right note with this group. And he was able to elevate them throughout tournaments.

And this tournament always kind of felt like the possibility of falling flat. And they did. but that second half against Portugal showed once again that he did have the pulse of the team. He's done really well over the course of his time. It'll be interesting to see what Croatia do next. You missed the funniest one. It looks like Jorge Jesus is going to be the manager of Portugal.

And of course, his most recent job was Al Nasser in Saudi Arabia. And their most famous player is Cristiano Ronaldo. So this has got people all a flutter about the chance that maybe Ronaldo reneges on his international retirement, and we get at least two more years of him leading the line for Portugal. Portuguese media and discourse right now is that Ronaldo picked this guy to be the manager of the team, which, God, I wish Eric was here today. So, I throw himself out the window.

So Jorge Jesus is amazing in that he has the blind. Portuguese coach resume. Every Portuguese coach in the world will coach most likely in Greece at some point. They will coach in Turkey guaranteed. They'll coach a little bit in the Middle East. Probably they'll coach a third level national team at some point. The high point being like a South Korea or a Poland, but most likely something below that, there's a really good chance they'll coach in Brazil.

And he has done nine of the ten things that I just said. also like two of the three giant clubs in Portugal and like a smattering of the second level clubs, the Bragas, the Bellinenses, you know, that family like, you know, those. And like, oh, they're all on his resume. Yeah. The one big thing though is Flamengo, he really did. He won Copa Libert Stores. He turned them into the power that they have been over the last five, six years. I mean, the checkbook turned them into it. 100%. But I do think that would be Eric's one other side because he loves a Copa Libertadores.

All right, let's dig into the game. For today, we've got France versus Morocco presented by soccer.com. Make sure you visit soccer.com for the widest selection of World Cup gear, plus get free shipping on orders of $49 or more. As I told you, you can get your t-shirt there too, your Le Bleu number 10, as France faces off against Morocco in Boston. So the final game out in Boston for a chance in the semifinals against the winner of Spain versus Belgium.

There is obviously massive crossover between these teams. They faced off in the 2022 World Cup semifinal, which France won 2-0. France is unbeaten in the six matchups all time between their two teams. Here's a fascinating one that I had not realized. Half of France's World Cup defeats this century have been inflicted by teams from Africa. Three of the six, not in shootouts. So technically, a shootout counts as a tie. If you go back, of course, they lost to Senegal in 2002,

and I believe they lost to South Africa in 2010 in the group stage. as the host country and then the potential to lose to Morocco would overturn it and make it four of seven, which would make it more than half. That is more than they have lost to European or South American opponents combined in the World Cup. Of course, for France, they're looking to become a historic group. If they win this game, it would be three straight World Cup semifinals. Only two countries have ever done that, Germany and Brazil. Germany did it twice, and Brazil did it from 1994 to 2002, in which, they won two of the three and lost, of course, to France in the semifinal. And this was the ballgame for Dechop. He came back for one more to try and push them back into winning.

And for a France team that up to 1998 had been a failure to win three World Cups in 30 years, and now to go to three straight semifinals and potentially finals would be an incredible step up for this country. And I think put them on a platform that no one else can match. And it feels like every cycle they're just adding strength on top. of strength. Michael Alise was not a part of this group four years ago. Now he's arguably the best player in the world. The assembly line of talent that they have coming out of that country, the way that they've been able to meld it, the alignment that we see between national team program and domestic league. Nobody does better than League in terms of developing local talent,

and part that's just because of the market. Everybody wants French players, and it becomes this virtuous cycle, and that's why France is here again. Yeah, and it's remarkable what you mentioned, because we always think of PSG as this checkbook club, and it's not the case. Yeah, they have the high-end talent, and they've bought some of that. But if you see, even their starting lineup with players like Doe, they're French-born players developed at the club, and they start playing when they're pretty young. But obviously with Embappe, he came through the Monaco, Carole.

me, but he went to PSC, he was like 17, 18 or something, and he became what he is there. And it's when you see that right now, for example, there are no Real Madrid players in the Spain. Mark Rookerrell. Well, I mean, he was just signed, but that was something unheard of. And also he's La Pacea. Yeah, right. And you see, for example, with Germany, there, I think this is the least bioremuni. players that they've had in their last.

And I think that's not a coincidence. Right. And when, again, and I'm going back to Italy, A.C. Milan, Juventus, Roma, Inter Milan were not giving players to the national team. All the players were coming from Calgary, Sasuolo, Verona, even Lattern. That's where they can get playing time. Exactly. And that's where you say that France is the best nation that have done that.

right, and alongside with the league. And because when you think, I promise you that nine out of ten people that think PSG, oh no, it's because they have so much money. Yeah. No, they do an incredible job development players. The assumption is Ismail Siberi won't be available. They say he was training and doing some running. Media only gets to see 10 to 15 minutes of training.

It is normally purposely a little bit of fake runaround so that no one really knows what's going on. So the assumption is that the offensive load will fall to, Brahim Diaz, who's been directly involved in more goals than any other Morocco player over the last 12 months, including the African Nations Cup, six goals, four assists across the two. So he is not Michael Olise. He doesn't control the pace of game the way Olise does for France. That's more on Unahi and Budabi, but Diaz has been the last piece breakout for this Morocco team. There's been a really good sort of amplification of each other's skill sets between Brahim Diaz and Unahi because Diaz is more of a one-v-one artist, and Unahy isn't that.

He's a really complete central midfielder, but he's not doing the O'Lise stuff of beating guys off the dribble, but he understands the geometry of the game, so to speak, and his movement opens up opportunities for Diaz to go in isolation, and then Diaz is a phenomenal passer out of those moments. So if you're making a good run,

suddenly you're getting the ball at pace, and then you become an absolutely lethal team in these transition moments. It's, they don't have as much talent, but the pieces they have work together at an extremely high level and every piece makes the piece next to it better. And then you get these partnerships that make each other better. I would just be so much more confident in or optimistic about Morocco's chances if Siberia was. Yeah, Rahimi has stepped in, um, in place. He's been good.

He scored a goal in the last game. He scored against Haiti. He should have scored against Netherlands. But he has missed big chances. That's why I say that. He missed big chances against Canada. He missed big chances against the Netherlands. He is not as mobile.

He cannot create his own chances. So he is really like more fox in the box. And then the question becomes if he can put them away. Now, warning for everyone, this is the game with the most players coming in on yellow cards. So the way the yellow cards were set up, we talked about a lot of this at the end of the group stage was if you picked up two yellow cards across the three group stage games, you were suspended for the next game. They reset after that.

Now, if you pick up three yellow cards across the three games of the round of 32, 16 and quarterfinals, you're suspended for the semifinals. This was set up this way because everyone gets really tired and upset if people are suspended for a final on yellow card accumulation, so it resets. But you still have to have some level of jeopardy. So now it falls into a semifinal. So there are four players for Morocco sitting on yellow cards coming into this game, and two for France.

So for Morocco, Hakemi, Issa Diop, and El Canoos, who have all been massively important to this team. they are all sitting on yellow cards and then Radun Halal who's come off the bench is on a yellow card for France Michael Alise is sitting on a yellow card that's the big one

Manukone is as well who me and Connor agree should be starting for France but he's not so they're not going to worry about that one as much if any of these players pick up a yellow card in this game and their team wins they would be suspended for the semifinals potential against Spain

and that list right there Matt it's the perfect example of the talent disparity. Even though Morocco is such a good team, just the individual talent of France still playing as a great team. Because, yeah, Olise potentially the golden ball

right now of the tournament, if he missed a semi-final, they have so many options on the bench. And Cherokee's been terrible this tournament, but nobody in the world thinks that Cherokee would be out of his depth starting that game. Exactly. And if they lose Coné, who doesn't

even start, you have Ravio So many. You haven't goal of Canté. He's older, but he has all the experience, and I think he's good for 90 minutes, 120 minutes. Marcos Turam, goal scorer in Syria, with Lautaro Martinez, the best goal scoring duo in Italy, hasn't seen the field.

He hasn't played a minute. On the other side, if Morocco loses one of those players, then their chances drop massively. I love Morocco. I think they're the best story. The best story in the world, in the soccer world, when you see potentially what this can be at home in 2030.

I just think I've never gotten into a World Cup thinking that one team is so above the rest and now watching that team checking every mark, I just think it's France to lose. They're so overwhelming. One note in all of this. this is that there is an all-Argentine crew that has been assigned as referees for this game. Refereeing has been a huge conversation.

Tidio Dachamp was asked about this multiple times. Apparently, he spent the last 90 seconds of the press conference talking about why he didn't have time to answer another question, which is about the time it takes to answer a question. And then he answered another question. But in it, he basically said, we're playing Morocco. We're not playing the ref. That's not on us. We don't know.

He did make a little quit because at the end, the referee for the Argentina, Egypt game was French. And he just said, let's hope ours is as good as Monsieur Letterscher was. And then he walked out in Moroccan journalists were like yelling about it. Also, I don't know if you saw the clip. Two journalists got in a fight during Brian Diaz's press conference. And Warren just started yelling, don't hit me. And Brian Diaz answered a question. Then he like gets sucked in. And then it ends and he goes, I don't know what the question before. So there's vibes up in Foxborough as expected. Everything all field always around the Patriots. If you're Argentinian.

Don't you won the rematch? I think so, but I think maybe that's Morocco. Maybe that's in Morocco's fans' heads. I don't know. Yeah. We are due for a good one, this one, 4 p.m. Eastern Time. So we'll be back tomorrow to talk through all of what we see in this game. We went through quickly yesterday predictions.

I picked Morocco. I think both of you picked France, right? Do you still feel the same? I do. I naturally kind of inclined towards. rooting for the underdog. But like McKelley was saying, the talent disparity is real. And the way that Francis talent, their overwhelming talent,

has been working together in this tournament in a way that hasn't always happened for them. Yeah. And like in 2022, I don't think they were this good and this cohesive. They made the final anyway and they damn near won the thing, you know? It just feels like they keep getting stronger and stronger and stronger. And it's just impossible to pick against that right now. Yeah, I think my one piece is I think Morocco will put France under pressure in a way that no other team has so far.

Obviously, Paraguay did not in any way. Sweden was incapable of it. So there's both the question of if France can hold up to that and then also just the change, which is if you're playing on this France back line, you just haven't been, you haven't had to work that way. and you haven't had to be engaged that way. And sometimes things break because they haven't been used in a little while. And so I think, I mean, El Canoos is a huge piece of this. His aggression, his ability 1v1 coming in from that left side.

I think that's something that France hasn't had to face yet. And so I think he's a huge outlet for this team, as is Diaz. But I would feel a lot better if Siberia is in this game. So let me ask you a question. If you have Morocco's coach, how many players are you? committing up front how much freedom you give hakemy to go because at soon as france gets the ball back and their space yeah you're done yeah yeah i think i i trust my deep-lying midfielders to cover ground because you know two young players who have shown it really well and i think at

some point the only defense is offense with some of this stuff one of the things we've seen at the world cup is when you pin guys back now all of a sudden it changes the game states yeah but they're not going to be able to pin France back? No, but can you get a half step? Right. Can you get Dembele and Olise to start a half step deeper and be a little bit more questioning and the risk they take, knowing like we saw for Argentina against Egypt,

every time I make a mistake, we're going to give up a chance. You're right, but the caveat to that is Olise is actually a little bit more dangerous when he starts a half step deeper because you have to come up to him and he's so good at, it's like La Miniamol, so good at eliminating that first and second defender, then suddenly you're chasing, and the last thing you want to be is chasing against France.

The other thing I was going to point out, we saw Morocco really struggle against Canada, against their press, and their adjustment in the second half was to push Hakemi up farther, basically playing as a winger, while dropping Unahe, out of the midfield shape and into that sort of right, centerback ball progression role. I don't think you can do that against France.

I don't think you can empty the midfield against France, If you do, like we think of France as a transition team. They're a really smart and really precise possession team when you force them into that. It's terrifying to think about how I have no idea how it approached this game if I was a Marago manager. One note as well, Chadi Riyadh injured for the last game, so did not start at the center rack position alongside Issa Diop. Questions if he'll be able to return in that spot, but it is going to be absolutely delicious. We will be back tomorrow. We'll recap this game.

We'll get you previewed for the Spain versus Belgium game that will be happening out in L.A. at SoFi Stadium to see who will match up in the semifinal on Tuesday against the winner of this France-Moraco game. But before we get out of here, we're going to talk a little bit about Belgium, sort of. Matt Doyle put together our first touch tactics board

presented by football manager 26, a one last look back at the U.S. versus Belgium. The scoreline suggests Belgium tactically dismantled the U.S. men's national team, and that's correct. But this loss wasn't about X as an O's. It was about F. Watch the duels. The U.S. lost three quarters of them to start the game. Second balls, loose balls, 50-50s. They're all Belgium. No game plan survives that. We can't out-scheme a lack of urgency. The setup didn't help, though. In possession, it was a single pivot. Tyler Adams isolated, sometimes dropping to split the center-vats. Hillman, though, never dropped to support the buildup, so the U.S. couldn't progress the ball or find rhythm in possession. Defensively, they sat passive in a 4-4-2, just absorbing pressure,

no disruption at all. They conceded easy switches of play. Both of Belgium's first two goals came that way. This sound familiar, same shape, same death via switch, as the March-friendly loss. The U.S. looked completely unprepared, even though they had played this game just three months ago. What makes this inexplicable is the contrast. This team played with energy and cohesion through the group stage. Against Belgium, both vanished. And when effort disappears, no tactical setup saves you. What we're left with is the most disappointing World Cup performance of the modern U.S. era, not because they were outclassed, but because they didn't even show up. Well, a nice look back there from Mr. Matt Doyle. That's information for every team, right?

the U.S. showed exactly what not to do in terms of meeting the moment, in terms of meeting the required intensity. I don't think Morocco is going to have an issue with that against France. And I would be surprised if Belgium had an issue with that against Spain tomorrow. The one team out of these next two games that I could see having an issue with it is Spain. Yeah. But also Spain's so good on the camp ball. Well, that's where you watch this. And I'm thinking about it in a Belgium concept of, okay, now Belgium moves to the next round.

and as you showed in the second half of that video, the way they move higher up the field, the pressure they put on you. And I'm watching them thinking, okay, this is something for Spain to take. If Spain plays poorly, it will still be in their attacking half because their DNA is to move the ball.

And your reaction to that is never, oh, we're going to press them everywhere. Because if you press them, you almost open up the game for them a little bit. So even when Belgium was at their best, it's just going to look very different against Spain. Yep. But they are Spain for a reason.

So it will be a fascinating. game, Belgium. They're trying to make a little bit of history. They've been to one World Cup semifinal in 2018. They would love to do so. Again, they may do so with Kevin DeBrena on the bench, but they've looked really, really good on the field over the last game and one ninth of a game that they have played. Okay, we're going to get out of here on one last segment. We've got soccer.com here, who are the sponsors of our show. And you can go, of course, there to get all the kits that we are seeing at this World Cup. And I think this Morocco versus France game is one of the best kit matchups.

So what I'm going to do is I'm going to show you all four kits, home and away for both these teams. And on that basis, you have to re-select who you think the winner. So Derek's going to bring us up here. We're going to start with the homes. This is France's home kit, which we have behind me. It's so good. The French with a little bit of texture, but the collar.

The collar makes it for France every single kit. Do you have the collar? You're going to pop the collar just for France. So you've got this one. And then we have for Morocco, this is the home kit. Now, it's a clean little button look. I like the center, the logo. Yeah, yeah, that is really nice.

So let me get a vote. Which one do you like better on the home side? Oh, for me, for me, France, no doubt. Just the color makes it everything better. I'd have to go with my Arab brothers in Morocco. There you go. I don't love a center shield. See, I like it a lot.

And I also like the trick. A little texture. Yeah. Now, on the away side of things, is where it gets tasty. This is France's away kit, which some people hate and some people love. It is Statue of Liberty colored,

modern statue of Liberty, not original. I would like that to be out there. You can see the little Statue of Liberty behind the collar, obviously the change in the color on the rooster. So this is France's away kit, which, by the way,

if they were to make the World Cup final, they'd play it in New Jersey. I don't know if they'd wear it. But I feel like if ever a team's going to wear their non-dominant color in a final. We're a statue of Liberty Kit. On the banks of East Rutherford, New Jersey. Like, that's where you do it. The banks of the Passaic, the mighty Pesiac River.

The smell of freedom. And then on the Morocco side, I think this is one of the most underrated kits. You like the texture on the sleeves. Yeah, the arabesque. You have it on the entire jersey for this one. It runs up and down the middle of it. They've moved the crest over to the side just for you, Miquela. Thank you.

And if you take a look at the back, it has the full text. texture and the full collars. Where do you land on a vote for the away kits? I'm going to pick Morocco, and this is going to be a ridiculous decision. Yeah. But I just think that Nike botched so hard the shoulders. You don't like the shoulders. The go faster strikes.

Because if, I mean, it looks. The thing with that France kid, that it looks better in person. Yeah, yeah. But if I have to pick it. I'll definitely stay Morocco. See, I'm going to take France because the idea for me, for national team, for every team,

is you have one main kit that is supposed to be iconic. LeBlu. And then you iterate on that or you incorporate some level of your history into your second and third kits. And that's what they've done. And it's a perfect kit

for a World Cup in the United States of America celebrating American history but also French. because the Statue of Liberty is French. Yeah, Marquis de Lafayette. So you're split 50-50. I am. You're split 50-50.

And I would take the France home and I will take the Morocco away. A tie, baby. Greatest game in the world. We've got soccer, which means it is a tie. We are headed to the quarterfinals of the World Cup.

We'll be back tomorrow to recap everything to preview everything as well. Our NWSL show is live with Jordan and Jill breaking down everything they saw this weekend in the big news. around Gotham's stadium move. We will be back next week

with some specials around the U.S., around all the regions of the World Cup, as well as looking forward to Major League Soccer, which is a lot of what we do on the soccer-wise side of things, as we also prepare in first touch to look at the global game. There's breaking news from our friends, Paul Tenorio and Henry Bushnell at The Athletic. Christian Pulisic suffered a bone bruise

and micro fracture of his tibia and fibula in the U.S. loss to Belgium. sideline for several weeks. He gets to rest. He gets the rest now. He gets the rest now. Yeah, I'm guessing he quit on the team and took himself out. I mean, Jalen Brunton had a broken wrist and still won the NBA final.

So it always come back to the next. I mean, Jason Tatum had a dislocated shoulder led the Celtics to NBA final and won it two years later. I love how fans won a player that can't even run. Yeah. Well, Landon would have to get dragged off the feet. He would have punched him. medic in the face. Of course.

Yeah. That's hard-o stuff right there. By the way, by the way, when I was at Tudian and Univision, Pulisic always say hi when I was, when media wasn't training. And he never said no to an interview. And I sat down with him no less than four or five times. Okay. So maybe you're just going to do that out there.

People come over and talk to you. Maybe he's environment and his agent, they like me. I don't know. Well, everyone likes me. Who knows? If you want fireworks, though, tune in for France for. Morocco. Thank you to you guys for being here. Big shoutouts to Derek, of course. Huge no thank you to Connor for anything he did associate to the show. We have more, we have more recognize.

Oh my God. From Tom Boger, have you heard of this journalist? Steve Turundalo has been named the U.S. men's U-23 head coach. I didn't love Charondolo's game model with L-AFC. He won. Yeah. It's an obvious. It's an obvious hire for a role that. that's purely based off winning three games and getting to a metal game. Yep. I love it because... He never turned you down for an interview?

Exactly. Oh, Sherondolo. Oh, he's a great guy. He's a legend. He's a soccer legend. He is. You need people in there to work. Maybe, like you said,

it's not the best soccer fit. We'll see. It doesn't matter for the Olympics. You don't have enough time to work as a group, and they don't even have to qualify because they're hosts. You don't have enough time to work for group. It is literally, can you defend, can you counter?

Can you score on set pieces three, two to three times and get into a metal game? I just love this guy who refused to play anyone under the age of 28 is now forced to play a team. He's passionate about youth players. He's going to bring him the three overage guys up the spine and only rely on them. All three will be captain. He's a really good coach. Congratulations on being called up to the 2020. This is actually my dream.

Tim Ream, Christian Rold on as the overage players, leading the U.S. a gold medal. He made at least one final on every season at L.A.C. He is a knockout. He is a knockout competition coach. Yeah. And he has been hired. Anders is frothing at the mouth.

To push in one knockout competition. Well, maybe Schmetzer will get the senior team. Well, now they have time to do the other coach. Now they can get an head coach now that the U23 job is filled and died. Good job breaking that one, Tommy. Tom is back in New Jersey. I don't know. He's running on 110%.

He is the limitless guy. He's Bradley Cooper in the movie right before he crashes into the ground. All right. We will talk to all of you tomorrow.