Hey, Freedom Kicks fam, I’m back! Not like someone who went out of town for vacation, or a situation where it’s good news. No, I’m back like Kurt Russell’s RJ MacReady, bursting back into Outpost 31 after being left for dead as paranoia spreads throughout the Antarctic.
Just kidding, the B&RU staff did not leave me for dead outside due to suspicion that I had been cloned by an infectious alien organism. We don’t all live together, so they’re not in a position to leave me for dead as the cold winds howl and the temperatures drop to an unseemly 30 or so like it’ll be when this post comes into the world.
Confused yet? Let’s talk about soccer instead.
D.C. United looking at Costa Rican forward Jose Ortiz in loan deal? | Black and Red United
For those of you who weren’t on your internet machine at nearly 10pm last night, here’s the first of what will likely be many offseason D.C. United rumors.
D.C. United is eyeing a Costa Rican forward for possible acquisition | Soccer Insider
Steve Goff, hearing from his own sources, has United considering Ortiz. Sounds like this one’s far from done, though.
Stejskal: Expansion Draft changes | Burrito out at RSL | Hedges' new deal | MLSsoccer.com
Sam Stejskal covers a lot of expansion draft ground here. This is worth a full read, but one thing we should discuss is a line relating back to the issue of whether United needs to protect Julian Buescher:
The other non-US-citizens on RSL’s roster either have green cards and don’t count as international players or, like Generation adidas player Omar Holness, are exempt from the Expansion Draft.
What this means for Buescher and United is that the Black-and-Red will have to protect someone they aren’t going to keep, like Kennedy Igboananike or Miguel Aguilar. We made our mock protected list with that in mind, but very reasonable folks in our comments (and even on B&RU’s staff) interpreted the rules differently than what we used in writing that piece. The lesson here? MLS needs to do a better job of writing their rules. This one should have been spelled out there, rather than requiring further clarification in a side note in a story that only came about due to an odd circumstance.
We Need a Rival, but Who? | E Pluribus Loonum
Get familiar with the Minnesota United version of B&RU. Right now, they’re trying to figure out who to make fun of. My suggestion would be Columbus, but I find it funnier that after two-plus decades, the Crew still can’t find anyone to care about them enough to hate them back.
Mercedes-Benz Stadium will start the stadium culinary revolution | Dirty South Soccer
Dirty South Soccer has been active for a little while now, and they’ve had tons to talk about due to Atlanta United’s constant transfer activity. Yesterday, though, they were talking about stadium food. No pupusa stand, though, so obviously they are the inferior United.
Reign Re-Sign Defender Rachel Corsie | Ride of the Valkyries
Read this and wonder what it’s like to follow an NWSL team whose 2016 offseason has not seen many disasters. P.S. Please don’t leave us Crystal Dunn.
Episode 165 – 16/12/8 #salmonWithABowlCut | Vocal Minority
MLS Cup is this weekend! This is kind of a big deal. As such, you should listen to some podcasts from people that know their team. If you combine everyone from Vocal Minority, no podcast has shown up more as guests on Filibuster than them, so you know they’re our friends and fellow weirdos.
Nos Audietis, Episode 238: Previewing MLS Cup with Adrian Hanauer | Sounder at Heart
And just behind them is most likely the collective Sounder at Heart staff. Nos Audietis has even addressed a couple of my pointedly nonsensical “who would win in a fight?” questions. Oh, and they got the Sounders GM to come on the show ahead of MLS Cup, which is less important than “who would win in a fight?” but still important.
Prince’s Closest Friends Share Their Best Prince Stories | GQ
Prince would leave gigantic tips at coffee shops because he didn’t wear clothing with pockets and would just pay with a $100 bill. Of course.
And that’ll do it for me. Please, tell us in the comments whether you think Snake Plissken would have handled The Thing better, or if Jack Burton’s tendency to stumble into good fortune would have done the trick, or if you are a MacReady loyalist.