Happy Wednesday folks! This will be my final Freedom Kicks for about a month as I depart next week to India to see a whole lot of in-laws. I lament missing my favorite month of the year, especially as I travel to such a hot climate, but I nevertheless look forward to my first visit to India and the phenomenal food, clothing, history, and colors I’m going to be exposed to. Until then… to the kicks!
Marco Etcheverry: Legend Profile (D.C. United): Oh dang, I think this new academy coach D.C. acquired is actually a pretty good soccer player!
Team of the Matchday: Red Bulls, Sporting KC make stands in Matchday 34 (MLS): Benteke’s first half hat trick secures his spot on this list. A shame the rest of the team performed such that New York got more players on this list.
D.C. United is in the playoffs though! Regardless of how the team performs on the pitch, they find themselves in the round of 8 in the MLS Third Kit playoffs. The Cat in the Hat kit beat Atlanta’s latest graphic art in the round of 16 and now competes against another 2023 participant: NYCFC.
U.S. Open Cup final preview: Houston prep for Messi, Miami (ESPN): The U.S. Open Cup final is today! And this interview with a certain ex-D.C. United legend makes me miss a certain wry smile.
Miami may be without some certain stars for this match. I, for one, want to see Ben Olsen win against Messi more than I want to see him win against Miami.
Seattle Sounders unveil brand evolution before 50th anniversary in 2024 (MLS): Yeah, ok, the crest and colors are updated, big dea– is that an orca?
That’s all for today. Get kicking today, and every Wednesday in October, in the comments!
You’ll be missed. Enjoy India.
Shocking to see Marco without the mullet and curls.
And yes, Benteke’s hat trick was great. Unfortunately, he probably lost “GOTY” to Acosta who did a great Maradona slalom imitation and probably got the GOTY as a result.
When I evaluation our DPs, Benteke was everything we could have wanted and beyond. And Klich–he’s not a great A-mid in the MLS tradition (a slippery creator in the Argentine who does magic once or twice a game to create a goal you didn’t deserve). But he has turned out to be a damn terrific box-to-box midfielder. He’s a very good example to the rest of the squad (especially the young guns). I think he’s got at least 2 more years left in that role. Taxi–how sad. But if we can add another offensive threat as a second DP, then the other issue is the rest of the squad.
Seattle’s crest looks good. They didn’t go nutso and wreck it.
I lived in India for two years and loved it. It is a crazy place where you see all kinds of new things. Not sure where you are going, but this time of the year the weather in most of India is actually quite nice. Enjoy the different cultures, the foods, the various religions, the colors, the old architecture, and most of all the family of your in-laws.