The Blue Testament: For Sporting Kc Fans

Fresh off of a legendary performance from one Sporting Kansas City keeper, another legendary shot-stopper joined the show this week. Jimmy Nieslen and the regular SOB crew play a new game, talk about the MLS Playoffs, and predict what is to come for SKC! Thad came up with some SKC trivia for everyone in the aptly named Who's That Player?. The White Puma, unsurprisingly, was the winner. By far. It's been such a wild season and it was great to hear about it from Jimmy's perspective has a player and coach. He's got some high praise for the players as well as the coaching staff for grinding through it. Everyone is feeling good about SKC chances this playoff run. The only question is who they'll host December 12th for the MLS Cup. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cody, Robert, and Thad were back at it again on Wednesday night to talk about Sporting Kansas City finishing on top of the Western Conference in what was the most strange season in league history. Call it "by default" if you want, we're happy about first place. Am I supposed to feel sorry for Seattle Sounders fans? As Thad points out, even if not for points-per-game, SKC would have come out on top. Noted rumor site, MLSSoccer.com, is just now reporting that Gadi Kinda's loan has been made permanent. The Blue Testament reported about this back in August. Is he permanent..... again? Or is MLSSoccer.com just slow? The nominees for the end of the season awards in MLS are out. Peter Vermes is a notable absence from the Coach of the Year list. The 11th place to 1st place turnaround is the biggest in league history, but that isn't enough apparently. Alan Pulido was the lone Sporting KC player on Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2020 is really kicking into high gear as we close it out. The election & political unrest loom. Alan Pulido is (rumored to be) injured again. And another Sporting Kansas City player has tested positive for COVID-19 just as an already confusing season is coming to a nail baiting close. Cody, Robert, & Thad gather around their computers to try and make sense of everything. We don't, but we try. Just when SKC was starting to look like an MLS Cup contender, Pulido is apparently injured again. Can they stay alive in the playoff race without him? Is Erik Hurtado still the preferred backup? Thad has some conspiracy theories for you on this one. The team announced on Thursday that another first team Sporting KC player has tested positive for COVID-19. What does this mean, exactly? If SKC don't play another game, then they cannot be passed on PPG and would claim the Western Conference as their own. Did someone take one for the team? And congrats to Wilson Harris on being named USL Young Player of the Year! Learn more

Major League Soccer has officially made points-per-game the determining factor for the playoffs this season. Peter Vermes wasn't happy in Friday's press conference, but what other option do they have? Things have changed a bit now, especially the playoff math. Cody & Thad look at what it will take for Sporting Kansas City to secure a home playoff game (and a buy) and set themselves up for a run at MLS Cup in this absurd, ridiculous, & unprecedented season. Minnesota United FC is coming to town on Sunday fresh off two straight wins, but SKC have a chance to lock down the spot that'll bring that sweet playoff atmosphere back to Children's Mercy Park. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For far too long, matches like Sporting Kansas City's win over the Rapids would have ended differently. They would dominate opponents while the breakthrough goal would either take too long, or never come at all. But then the club spent $10 million on a lethal striker named Alan Pulido. And all of a sudden the team got way better. It's almost like they are TEN MILLION DOLLARS better! We saw goals from four different players in an all-around great performance last night vs the Colorado Rapids. Andreu Fontas came in clutch as a late replacement and not only helped secure the shutout, but got rewarded with a goal of his own. Gerso Fernandes reminded everyone what the #GerShow really is with an absolutely top class goal - and celebration to follow. With the season ending surgery for Graham Zusi, there is really only one option left at right back. Jaylin Lindsey has been somewhat inconsistent this season, but looked very strong last night. If he continues to play like that with the rest of the back line, Sporting

Daniel Sperry joins Cody & Thad to be very mature and professional about Sporting Kansas City's last two incredibly frustrating matches. Now is not the time to focus on poor referring, bad luck, and Graham Zusi's season ending surgery. Nor how it felt like getting punched in the face. Nor where SKC could be in the Western Conference standings right now. We would never. In stead, we look ahead to the Colorado Rapids match at 7:30pm on Saturday night at Children's Mercy Park. Alan Pulido is back which means someone has to be the odd man out. Can you keep Gianluca Busio out of the lineup? Where does he play? Is Roger Espinoza best used off the bench.. or perhaps as an outside back? Gerso Fernandes has been creating chances like crazy. And don't forget about Khiry Shelton! Who do you sit? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sporting Kansas City got robbed of a goal, and a point, against FC Dallas on Wednesday night. The babying of keepers is a big pet peeve in the sport of soccer and Cody, Robert, & Thad dive into all the other annoyances in soccer. What bothers you? Is it keepers screaming "AWAY"? Is it the arbitrary addition of stoppage time? There is also plenty of time to hate on Dallas, who may now be the focal point of hatred from SKC Nation this year. As always we have a comprehensive and analytical preview of the upcoming match. What to do with the lineup after that heavy squad rotation midweek? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The games are coming quickly but we're cranking out new episodes as fast as we can! Cody, Robert, & Thad were back at it again on Monday night talking all things Sporting Kansas City and MLS. A break is coming however, as the Colorado Rapids match on October 21st has been postponed with no rescheduled date in sight. How exactly will MLS handle this? Nine points from the last three matches with a depleted lineup is nothing to scoff at. More importantly, we are starting to see some consistency on the backline as Winston Reid & Roberto Puncec seemed to have locked down the centerback positions, and Amadou Dia looks sharp at left back. Erik Hurtado was in top form in the 2-1 win over Nashville SC. But it was again off the bench. Has he done enough to earn a spot in the Starting XI with Alan Pulido on national team duty with Mexico? We also take a look at any lineup questions heading into (another) the match with FC Dallas on Wednesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is a centerback finally grabbing hold of the reigns on the backline? Winston Reid has turned in a couple strong performances in a row, including heading home a match winner. We give ourselves a pat on the back for supporting him, of course. Daniel Salloi is still really struggling. Is it possible the situation is worse than we thought? Peter Vermes spoke to the media ahead of Sunday's match against Nashville SC and gave an update on Graham Zusi's injury. Gianluca Bio also joined in as he's now one of the team's star players. Thad asked him his thoughts on his EA Sports FIFA rating. Also the club has announced a trade has been made, but has not shared many details. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The win over the Houston Dynamo was reminiscent of pre-pandemic Sporting Kansas City. When it looked like this team were going to be unstoppable and win all the trophies. Alan Pulido made his glorious return with two fantastic goals and SKC is back on track, right?! Wrong. Just when you think something good is coming, the universe reminds you it is the year 2020. But it is a great thing for Pulido to be back representing Mexico with El Tri. It's a good look for Major League Soccer, and Sporting KC in particular. There's no time to daydream about his quality as the Chicago Fire are coming to Children's Mercy Park for a showdown on Wednesday night, and the striker won't be there. Gadi Kinda is available after a yellow card suspension which means there will be an odd man out in the midfield. Is Roger Espinoza 100%? You have to keep Gianluca Busio's hot hand in the Starting XI, right? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ask and you shall receive! Aly Trost (now) from 810 Sports Radio joins us for an episode to reunite the original Shades of Blue crew! It strangely doesn't seem like much has changed as the conversations were quite similar to a couple years ago. Who should play winger? Why do they keep dominating games without getting the win? What is Khiry Shelton's best position? Sporting Kansas City has VERY rough stretch coming up with NINE games over a 30 day period. Squad rotation seems like a must, but Peter Vermes. We try to figure out how many games Graham Zusi will play. Nine. It'll be nine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The show was joined by long-time SKC player and current TV Color Analyst, Jake Peterson, to talk about the current state of Sporting Kansas City and hear some fun stories from his playing days. Being such a recent former player, it was really great to get Peterson's perspective on the struggles the team is having, as well as the impact that this pandemic has had on the MLS season. What centerback pairing would he go with? Who has underperformed this year? We ask the questions and Jake always has - wait for it - THE ANSWER. But the real fun starts when he talks about his exploits as a player. One of the best almost-fighter's the club has seen in years was known to get into tussles on the training ground. But did he really fight a trialist in front of Victory Project kids? There are plenty of stories including how he only ever saw one red card in his career, and it came while he was chilling on the bench. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's a darker shade of blue this week with Sporting Kansas City reeling after a 2-1 loss to Orlando City on Wednesday. But we try to find some lighter shades to brighten things up for you. It doesn't feel right to ask the question. Several months ago this would have been blasphemy. How dare we? But after seeing Ilie Sanchez's return to the field in Gianluca Busio's absence, would you prefer to have the youngster starting for you at #6? Peter Vermes hinted that Matt Besler might have picked up an injury, but there was more shuffling in the back line on Wednesday. We try to definitively come up with Sporting KC's best center back pairing. ... I said, "try". We also discuss Alan Pulido's return and his willingness to track back and help facilitate play. Is too much of a good thing, a bad thing? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We've got a new podcast fresh off a Peter Vermes press conference ahead of SKC's Saturday matinee against FC Dallas! Jimmy Mack joins Cody & Thad to get you ready for another important match. It took a few questions on the subject, but Vermes divulged more information on Alan Pulido's absence the last three matches. The striker is back to training with the team and is potentially available for selection on Saturday. Vermes continued to explain that Roger Espinoza is probably the only player he would list as "questionable". Might we see the return of Ilie? Or did Busio swoop his spot? Sporting Kansas City have played this team before, you might remember. It was yesterday, I think. Anyway we discuss the previous meetings with Dallas and what to expect this time around. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After getting a big 1-0 win over Minnesota, Sporting Kansas City are back on top of the Western Conference. But were they really good or was Minnesota United really bad? Several players like Graham Zusi and Johnny Russell redeemed themselves with good performances, youngsters Gianluca Busio & Felipe Hernandez looked sharp, and the Gadi-Gerso combination is going to be fun to watch. The long-awaited, mythical DP Striker Alan Pulido has missed three games in a row. But the only thing we've heard is he suffered a knock and has been day-to-day all of September. COVID has change a few league protocols and if Peter Vermes isn't forced to give away intel on his players, why in the world would he? MLS transfer rumors are flying and SKC have been linked with a couple different players. Will they make a move before the window closes on October 29? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We've got a new podcast for you this week, with some upgraded audio, in which we cover Sporting Kansas City's loss to the Houston Dynamo, have a debate about Ilie and Busio that will make you squirm, give an explanation about Alan Pulido, and preview this weekend's match against Minnesota United FC. The entire SKC defense has been beaten several times this year by one pass. What is different this year and why do there seem to be so many holes? Thad Bell, attack him on Twitter @TheBackpost, says he's starting Gianluca Busio over the beloved Ilie Sanchez. How could this be? Help us prove him wrong, please. Alan Pulido and his wife jetted off to Chicago and, to the surprise of nobody, the internet panicked. But we've got a reasonable explanation for everything to calm you down a bit. A touchy subject for many fans is Ike Opara. It's common to joke about the egregious mistake in letting him go among Sporting faithful. But Ike is once again hurt and not on the field. Also... a puppy made it ALMOST the entire podca

BACK AT IT AGAIN! MLS regular season is back, Sporting Kansas City is back, and your favorite SOB is back. However, Tuesday's 5-2 loss against the Houston Dynamo in the anticipated return to Children's Mercy Park was a big disappointment. Peter Vermes has been throwing anyone and everyone out there on the back line, and nothing seems to be clicking just yet. Who has been the best centerback? The worst? Is there a best pairing yet? Is Matt Besler going to struggle to find the field this year? There are just so many questions right now, and that is just about centerbacks. We discuss Graham Zusi at length and get an update on Luis Martins. Is there even a backup right back at the moment? Jaylin Lindsey looked pretty bad, but nobody is too worried about him. It's not all bad, though. SKC still sit on top of the Western Conference, I'll have you know. We also look at the other positives the team has going right now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The trio talks about Sporting Kansas City's first win of 2020 including great showings from Luis Martins, Gadi Kinda, & Alan Pulido. Peter Vermes deployed Khiry Shelton on the right wing, pushing Johnny Russell to the left. While Russell may have been hard to notice at times, it sounds like this was a tactical choice for the specific matchup with the Houston Dynamo. You may see Johnny on the right very soon. Graham Zusi looked horrendous on the goal, but is he really that bad? There were also some interesting tidbits from the training ground ahead of Media Day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I may not have been able to get my fellow podcasters excited, but Matchday 1 for Sporting Kansas City is almost here! The regular crew was joined by Daniel Sperry of MLSSoccer.com & The Last Word to preview the season in the last show before real life soccer is back. The starting lineup, just as Peter Vermes would like, is not exactly known yet. Could Khiry Shelton really be starting on the right wing? Who is the odd man out in the midfield whenever Felipe Gutierrez returns? And who is the starting right back? Plus there are even more questions when it comes to the depth chart and squad rotation. We love a good meaningless prediction, and this show is full of them! We set the Over/Under for goals scored this season, as well as goals conceded, at 50.5. There are some important questions -as well as wildly unimportant ones - that must be asked. This show does that for you. We can't answer them, but hey we ask them. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 2020 preseason has wrapped for Sporting Kansas City and although they didn't light the world on fire, there were some positives to takeaway. Cody, Thad, and Robert got together to discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly. It is an important time to avoid overreacting to these 'scrimmages'. Especially if you are holding out hope for a Daniel Salloi recovery and Alan Pulido becoming the top striker in Major League Soccer. The two of them had some moments to make you wonder, but how much stock can you really put into preseason performance? Nobody looked particularly sharp but this is precisely the time to get those things worked out. Roberto Puncec appears to have secured his spot as the starting CB over Botond Barath, and will pair with Matt Besler. Luis Martins also looked primed and ready for the season. Khiry "Kirby" Shelton started on the wing the entire preseason and played pretty well, but will he really be the starter over Gerso Fernandes and push Johnny Russell to the left flank? Learn more about you