Leicester's Fire Sale / FC Cincinnati's On Fire

Good morning all :)

Today we talk about:

• Leicester City’s fire sale following their drop from the Premier League. We’ll also talk about my hometown MLS team (I’ve been waiting for an excuse to write about them)

• FC Cincinnati, and how they (not dissimilar to Leicester) went from rock bottom of the league to seven points clear at the top.

But first, here’s your FRONT THREE.

Cue dramatic news music

The Front Three

Here are today’s biggest stories summarized into three quick bites:

Kovacic is official. Man City unveiled their new midfielder before the press today, filling a gaping hole left by the new Barcelona man Ilkay Gundogan. Will Kovacic be able to fit into Pep’s system despite his lack of goalscoring?

How did a NATIONAL TEAM just go broke? Today an exec for Canada Soccer stated that the federation will be exploring bankruptcy as a remedy for serious revenue issues. This lack of cash flow might affect the men’s and women’s team’s ability to compete in upcoming international fixtures. How big of an effect will these reports have on Canada’s players?

The Saudis keep signing. Per Fabrizio, Hakim Ziyech is on his way to join Ronaldo at Al Nassr, while Roberto Firmino is reportedly close to completing a move to Al Ahli. With their star-studded league growing, how will a more globally legitimized Saudi Pro League affect future transfer windows?

Reply to this email and let us know!

Checking in on Leicester’s Summer Clearout

Don’t be fooled by the above GIF - Leicester City fans are actually pretty scared right now. Recently relegated Leicester seem to be continuing their summer sale, with James Maddison looking to be the next one out the door via a move to Spurs. While Leicester’s situation is certainly not rare given the brutal nature of football at the highest level, there are a couple of key details that make their summer window especially interesting:

The first one is obvious: there’s so much talent in that squad. Usually, relegated teams will only make a couple of blockbuster sales because relegated teams usually only have a couple of blockbuster players. You get your usual “Emi Buendia to Villa” or “Gini Wijnaldum to Liverpool” transfer and then it’s over.

This Leicester side, on the other hand, has players with Champions League experience. Maddison, Barnes, Tielemans and Ndidi walk into the majority of Premier League elevens. Oh, and there’s also Jamie Vardy, who’s only the 15th highest scorer in EPL history. That’s five quality players that could be sold for pennies on the dollar. Well, kind of. This brings me to our next big hitch:

Expiring contracts. Relegated teams and expiring contracts are the worst combination on planet earth besides a Lukaku - Helen Keller strike partnership. Leicester are not only going to lose multiple quality players this summer, but they’ll also have to lose them for free. The aforementioned Tielemans is set to join Villa on a free a few days from now. Center back and Turkish international Çağlar Söyüncü is on his way to Atlético for $0.00. Even winger Ayoze Perez, who was sent out on loan to Betis earlier this year, looks likely to sign with them permanently after not re-upping with the Foxes (Mundo Deportivo). That’s a good chunk of change to be missing out on, and future teams Leceister sell to will know that. Right now, there’s a massive gap between where Leicester are and where they need to be in terms of financial recoupment. It’s due to that gap that Leicester will be jipped on prices for Maddison, Barnes, Ndidi and whomever else is sold. Hard to get a good price for something when your customer knows you have to sell it.

Who do you think will end up staying at Leicester this summer? If you owned Leicester, who would you buy for a retooled Championship squad? Reply to this email and let us know!

FC Cincinnati are finally an MLS team.

Yeah. I know they’ve been in the league since 2019, but something’s different. After spending their first three seasons in the MLS at the bottom of the totem pole, the Orange and Blue sit seven points clear at the top of the table. We’re four years removed from their initial expansion into the league, and now more than ever, it feels like Cincinnati have finally arrived.

When FCC first joined the MLS from the USL, the club had an undeniable charm. The move felt more like a promotion than an expansion, as the club had gained a spot in America’s top league with the help of three straight playoff appearances, a Cinderella run to the US Open Cup semi-final, along with its breaking of numerous attendance records. However, once in the MLS, the shine of being the new team very quickly faded. The club had to scrape together an MLS-level team, a feat that can’t easily be achieved with expansion draft picks and college prospects.

As a Cincinnati native, I feared that the team’s continual lack of success would push the club to the outskirts of the league. Since we’re all thinking it right now, yes, Chivas USA did pop into my head. And it was terrifying. While the reasons why Chivas folded go far beyond their on-field performance, they still served as a staunch reminder of a very simple rule: fans, coaches and potential designated players don’t flock to teams that have shown no capacity to build a winning culture. Now add on the fact that Cincinnati is nowhere near as attractive of a market as what Chivas had in LA, and suddenly the danger of FCC’s losses becomes even more apparent.

But something’s changed.

They have a distinct style of play that the rest of the league has been forced to adjust to. Pat Noonan has been a Godsend in the dugout and is getting the most out of an already immensely talented core. Speaking of which, three of FCC’s starting eleven (Luciano Acosta, Matt Miazga, and Álvaro Barreal) will play in this year’s MLS All-Star Game, the franchise’s most ever participants.

For the first time, they’re a part of the league-wide conversation, and are no longer an afterthought. Although they joined the league in 2019, 2023 feels like Cincinnati’s true arrival

Full Time. Thank you so much for giving us your time today. When you subscribe, you sign for Today FC, and we’re incredibly lucky to have you in the team. As always, have a great rest of your day and don’t forget to kiss the badge!