The Soccer Journal Podcast

The biggest game of the season – so far – approaches for New York City FC on the other side of the international break. That international break meant there's no NYCFC match for us to recap, but the important games just keep coming from now through the end of the season, beginning with the weekend trip to the Windy City. Matchday 28 will see NYCFC travel to face the team one spot and two points be...

New York City FC can't break the habit of losing to the lesser teams of Major League Soccer. The pattern held true when the Eastern Conference's last-place team, DC United, came into Yankee Stadium and won, and it's a pattern that has us starting Episode 54 once again wondering how to make sense of this team that can beat some of the top teams in MLS, but one that struggles against the league's st...

New York City FC went to Cincinnati and beat the team that was at the top of the MLS Eastern Conference table, a statement win if there ever was one. Episode 53 starts with a review of that huge 1-0 victory for New York City at TQL Stadium, a relatively dominant 1-0 win at that. Your hosts Mark Radigan and John Baney and producer Andrew Leigh give you a rundown of all that worked well for New York...

There was a lengthy wait between matches for New York City FC thanks to that recent Columbus Crew postponement, and playing their first MLS match of August against Nashville SC required waiting out a long weather delay in the Bronx. All that waiting still culminated in a victory for New York City FC, giving hosts Mark Radigan and John Baney and producer Andrew Leigh lots of points of discussion to...

No new New York City FC match to discuss on this episode, but that unexpected reality gave us a lot to discuss. Hosts Mark Radigan and John Baney plus producer Andrew Leigh kick Episode 51 off with much to say about the (dead) grass situation at Citi Field and the scheduling headache it forced New York City FC into. We've got thoughts on the schedule change being confirmed at what felt like the la...

A special two-host episode this week as host Mark Radigan is without John Baney but with producer Andrew Leigh to talk you through the entirety of the brief New York City FC run in the 2025 Leagues Cup . Yes, another midseason cup tournament has unsuccessfully come and gone, with three matches played and two losses sending New York City out meekly in Phase One of the overhauled tournament between...

New York City FC started a four-match road trip with another away loss, while also making some major roster moves, meaning there's lots to cover in Episode 47. We start with a wrap-up of the FIFA Club World Cup , with our co-host Mark Radigan discussing covering the final and Chelsea FC's triumph over Paris Saint-Germain at MetLife Stadium. All of Mark, fellow co-host John Baney, and producer Andr...

The matches just keep coming for New York City FC and we've got a few from the past and a few from the future under discussion on this episode. The dramatic late win in Orlando and the slightly disappointing draw in Kansas City improved our outlooks on NYCFC and their ability to perform on the road. Hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan and producer Andrew Leigh discuss what stood out most from those...

The long New York City FC road trip ended with a most dramatic win in Dallas, which means the team and this podcast head into the Leagues Cup tournament on high notes. Episode 49 begins with a review of that wild 4-3 New York City FC win over FC Dallas, a match almost overflowing with notable storylines and developments. Hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan and producer Andrew Leigh tackle a few of t...

Where were you the day a 700-pound, five-story-tall inflatable New York City FC-branded pigeon floated all around New York City ? The club's floating pigeon publicity stunt got even some of the most soccer-disinterested people in New York City's attention, so we had to open the latest Hudson River Blue Podcast by weighing in on the latest Big Bird in the land of NYCFC. The big old pigeon was excit...

Matt Freese had his breakout moment with the United States men's national team so we had to start Episode 45 of the Hudson River Blue Podcast by reflecting on his incredible performance in the USMNT's penalty shootout win to advance past Costa Rica and into the Semifinals of the Concacaf Gold Cup. The New York City FC narratives were multiple in that USMNT-Costa Rica match, since Alonso Martínez w...

Time spent without New York City FC matches means the focus of the latest Hudson River Blue Podcast wanders to some other competitions, namely the Concacaf Gold Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup . Episode 44 starts with talk of the Gold Cup and the United States men's national team, specifically the USMNT's starting goalkeeper Matt Freese. Freese made his first big mistake since becoming the Gold Cu...

Things look to be trending in the right direction for New York City FC after that emphatic 4-0 win over Atlanta United, a result Pascal Jansen's team earned with four regular members of the Starting XI still missing due to ongoing national team duty. Episode 43 begins with a breakdown of that dominant display by NYCFC in the Ronny Deila Derby , one made more impressive due to it occurring without...

A very special guest on the show this week: Atlanta United FC's head coach Ronny Deila. The man who guided New York City FC to its first MLS Cup in 2021 joined us before making his first trip back to Yankee Stadium as an opponent. We covered a lot of ground, like how Ronny feels about coming back to face NYCFC for the first time since leaving the club in 2022, what went into his departure from New...

New York City FC hit the exact halfway point of their 2025 Major League Soccer season when they came back from down by two goals to earn a 2-2 draw with Nashville SC at GEODIS Park on Matchday 17. Episode 41 starts with a review of the big moments from that exciting draw in Tennessee, as well as a look back at the miserable midweek home loss to Houston Dynamo FC that preceded the Nashville game. R...

The eight-match month of May is coming to an end and New York City FC has a chance to close out their springtime run through the gauntlet on a high note. Chicago Fire FC proved no match for New York City on Matchday 15 at Yankee Stadium, and there's now one home and one road match left, against Houston Dynamo FC and at Nashville SC, before a much-deserved break in MLS action. We begin Episode 40 b...

The first Hudson River Derby of 2025 belonged to New York City FC. Their big 2-0 rivalry win over the Red Bulls provided plenty of narratives for our latest episode, which includes plenty of talk about the rivalry game at Citi Field in front of a lively crowd of 30,804 fans. First, your hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan , plus their producer Andrew Leigh , discuss the importance of the Hudson Rive...

All is not well with New York City FC after losing back-to-back matches against teams they were expected to beat. The positivity is lacking among our usual trio of hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan and producer Andrew Leigh following two straight 1-0 losses, first away to Pittsburgh Riverhouds SC to crash out of the US Open Cup, then at home to the previously winless CF Montréal . Mark Radigan cal...

New York City FC picked up their best win of their season to kick off a congested three-match week that includes a return to the US Open Cup plus a potential MLS trap game against lowly CF Montréal at Yankee Stadium. Episode 37 starts with a deep dive into New York City's somewhat surprising yet undeniably impressive 1-0 win over a streaking FC Cincinnati team at Citi Field. We discuss some parts...

The wind was whipping in Toronto and it might have blown New York City FC in some new directions, as the team finally won a game on the road and finally made an exciting new signing for us to discuss. Episode 36 begins with hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan and producer Andrew Leigh breaking down NYCFC's gritty, slightly boring 1-0 win over Toronto FC that came thanks to another Alonso Martínez go...

This episode of the Hudson River Blue Podcast drops the same day the MLS Primary Transfer Window closes, so our conversation is dominated by talk of New York City FC and transfers . Before wading deep into transfer discussion, hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan and producer Andrew Leigh review New York City FC's depressing 2-0 defeat at Gillette Stadium against New England Revolution. Nothing went...

New York City FC's win over Philadelphia Union improved the vibes considerably following those two tough losses against Atlanta and Minnesota. While beating a hated rival at home is always fun, there were still plenty of questions to address about NYCFC coming out of the Philadelphia match. Episode 34 has your hosts  John Baney  and  Mark Radigan  and producer  Andrew Leigh wondering if we'll now...

It's now a two-match losing streak for New York City FC so Episode 33 begins with another post-loss autopsy, this one for Minnesota United's 2-1 win in a Sunday matinee at Yankee Stadium. Your hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan and producer Andrew Leigh lament the sluggish start to the game from NYCFC while also discussing the team's wasteful possession and inability to break through a bunkered Min...

It's gut-check time in the wake of New York City FC's ugly second-half collapse in their 4-3 loss to Atlanta United FC and ex-NYCFC coach Ronny Deila. Hosts John Baney  and  Mark Radigan  and producer  Andrew Leigh do their best to make sense of all that went wrong while NYCFC threw away a 3-1 lead at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which includes talking about the mistakes that led to the final three Atla...

Episode 31 starts with hosts John Baney and Mark Radigan and producer Andrew Leigh attempting to properly rate the vibes emerging from New York City FC's 0-0 draw with Columbus Crew last weekend in Ohio. Was it a positive result, a valuable point gained in a tough environment against a tough if shorthanded Columbus team? Or was it a concerning performance that showed just how badly NYCFC needs new...