Soccer legend Ray Hudson to bring colorful commentary to Inter Miami, Figal shines
Ray Hudson, the colorful retired English soccer player and former Miami Fusion coach, known for his masterful turns of phrase and outlandish metaphors, will be joining the Inter Miami broadcast team, according to two sources with knowledge of the deal.
The club plans to announce its local broadcast deal next week, but it leaked out that Hudson will be involved as a color commentator.
That will come as welcome news to Inter Miami fans, and soccer fans nationwide, many of whom have been following Hudson’s career since he was a fiery midfielder with Newcastle United and the Fort Lauderdale Strikers in the 1970s and 1980s.
Hudson went on to coach the Fusion, South Florida’s first Major League Soccer team, and the team played at Lockhart Stadium, on the same grounds where Inter Miami’s new stadium is being built. He led the club to the league’s best regular-season record in 2001 with 16 wins, 5 ties, and 5 losses, earning the Supporters’ Shield. The Fusion reached the semifinals of the MLS Cup playoffs before losing to the San Jose Earthquakes.
After leaving coaching, Hudson, 64, entered the broadcast booth. He works for BeIN Sports and Sirius XM and has developed a cult following. There is even a Twitter account @liverayhudson dedicated to his outrageous remarks.
Earlier this week, when Brazilian teen Vinicius scored for Real Madrid against Barcelona, Hudson said: “Vinicius onto it like Dracula onto a plate of liver.” Last week he said during an Atletico Madrid match: “Joao Felix!!! Hotter than a Naga Ghost Pepper with that catapult of a goal!”
Hudson is known for his admiration for Argentine superstar Lionel Messi, calling him “magisteeeeeerial!”.
Other Ray-isms about Messi: “Centipedes fantasize about having one left leg as good as his” and “Defenders try to follow him on Facebook and he comes out on Twitter, that’s how evasive he is” and “In America, we give hurricanes a name. If they ever call one Lionel Messi, you’d better evacuate.”
Nico Figal stood out
One game is not enough to declare a player a potential star, but Inter Miami center back Nico Figal certainly raised his profile with his performance in the expansion club’s 1-0 road loss to Los Angeles FC last Sunday.
The 25-year-old Argentine signed with the club Feb. 5 via a transfer from Independiente, where he played in over 100 games. Although his signing did not generate the same buzz as Designated Players Matias Pellegrini and Rodolfo Pizarro, Figal could wind up being one of the club’s best finds.
He is an experienced player in his prime who got called up to Argentina’s national team camp last summer. In addition to being a physical, tenacious defender, he can carry the ball out from the back and is not afraid to join the attack. Reports from Argentina said he has a tendency to step out of the back line and roam forward when the time is right.
“Nico’s a very talented center back and I feel very fortunate to have him in front of me,” said Inter Miami goalkeeper and captain Luis Robles. “His game is only going to continue to develop and grow in this league. What we saw in the first game may be a precursor or even preview of what we can expect from the season, but I don’t want to jump too quickly to conclusions that he’s this or that. Let’s give him a run of games and then we can properly evaluate what can be expected.”
Asked what he liked about Figal’s play, Robles said: “From what I’ve seen, he’s very good on the ball and gives us something special. As we look to lock down some of the more talented forwards, we want a guy that we can be confident not only that we can put their best player against him, and he’ll lock them down, but when he goes forward, he’ll be an asset. I think that’s him, but we need to pump the brakes on the expectations.”
Figal said he feels good about the team after the first game and is looking forward to Saturday’s game at D.C. United. The way he played is what fans should expect. “I like to anticipate, make a move forward and be another attacker,” he said. “That is one of my characteristics.”
When the club signed him, sporting director Paul McDonough said: “Nico is just entering his prime as a player and has already shown impressive skill in defense. He showed his quality playing in Argentina, winning important international competitions and being selected as one of the best defenders in his country.”
Through one game, the scouting report proved accurate.
This story was originally published March 5, 2020 at 1:45 PM.