Blue Links: St. Louis MLS Expansion, Busio Called Up, Sporting KC Podcasts, Lindsey, Nemeth and more.

All the best, most important stories for Sporting Kansas City and the rest of the soccer world.

Kansas City

• Gianluca Busio gets the international call-up for the United States U-17 team. They’ll play three games starting Friday against England, Sunday against Brazil and Tuesday against Russia. That makes it extremely unlikely he’d be available for the Vancouver game on Wednesday. (SKC)
• Krisztian Nemeth joins Nate Bukaty for Drive Time. (SKC YouTube)

• Erik Dick, Ike Opara and Graham Zusi (among others) try their hands at celebrity bar tending. (SKC YouTube)

• Jaylin Lindsey comes in at #11 on the 20 under 20 United Soccer League rankings right after being #20 on the 22 under 22 list for MLS. (SKC)
• Matt Besler drops by the Border Patrol and Sam McDowell joins The Program. (810 WHB)
• Podcast: The Sporting KC Show has Bukaty & Augustine have Sam on as well, just for a lot longer. (810 WHB)
• Podcast: No Other Pod discuss VAR, Marrufo and the Galaxy. (NOP)
• Podcast: Talkin’ Touches “lament another home draw.” (TT)
• Bobby Warshaw gives a comment on all 23 MLS teams. His thoughts on Sporting KC are below (MLS).

On Friday, I told Matt this:

“I think SKC is the best team in the West, and the 3rd-best in the league. The way they move the ball, the way they create chances, their ability to lock down defensively (when they’re focused) – they are one of a few teams in the league that consistently control games. But they’ve been dropping points, specifically against playoff teams. They play well, they look like the better team, then they end up tying or losing. And I don’t know how to explain it, or whether they will stop doing it.”

Saturday’s game against the Galaxy didn’t do anything to change that opinion. SKC are a very good team, but they have a penchant for dropping results. Come playoff time, I’m not sure the second point isn’t more important than the first.

• Daniel Salloi and Matt Besler as well as former SKC players Benny Feilhaber and Kevin Ellis made Golf Digest’s Top 100 pro athlete golfers. (Golf Digest)
• This is one of the shortest Behind the Shields I’ve ever seen. Still good, but I’d love to see more content and therefore length. (SKC YouTube)

• Peter Vermes lands at #1 on the most transformative coaches in MLS history. Not bad. (MLS)
• Hadji Barry of the Swope Park Rangers is making a difference both on and off the field. (SPR)

Around the World

• St. Louis is back in the running for MLS Expansion with a new bid being announced that includes no public money. (FOX)
• Giovani and Jonathan Dos Santos are being linked to potential moves to Club America of Liga MX and away from the Los Angeles Galaxy. (MLS)
• The USMNT play Columbia in a friendly today. Here is one of many available previews. (MLS)
• Minnesota United’s Miguel Ibarra is being linked to potential trade partners the Portland Timbers and the San Jose Earthquakes after a breakout 2018. (MLS)
• Real Salt Lake sign 16th Homegrown player, Julian Vazquez who is a forward. (MLS)