Q&A with CBS Sports/Paramount+ analyst Mike Grella

By Clemente Lisi – NEW YORK, NY (Apr 17, 2023) US Soccer Players – Mike Grella is a familiar name to those who watch Major League Soccer. He once starred for the New York Red Bulls and the Columbus Crew before retiring from the game in 2018. These days, many fans welcome him and his analysis into their living rooms as a member of the CBS Sports Network and Paramount+ team.

Like many MLS players, Grella also played abroad for teams such as Leeds United, then a League One club that earned promotion to England’s Championship, and in Denmark with Viborg FF. In MLS, he helped the Red Bulls, under coach Jesse Marsch, win the Supporters’ Shield in 2015.

A native of Long Island just outside New York City, Grella, now 36, had a very successful youth career and played college soccer at Duke. Grella was drafted by Toronto FC in 2009, but chose to instead to play at Leeds. He also played for the US National Team at the Under-18 and Under-20 level.

CBS Sports has increased its soccer offerings over the last two years with the UEFA Champions League, Europa League, and Serie A, among other soccer properties that also includes Concacaf’s Nations League. The network last week unveiled the CBS Sports Golazo Network, a 24-hour digital offering available on Paramount+.

We recently caught up with Grella, where he discussed his time in MLS, his work as a TV analyst and what we can expect from the Champions League quarterfinals and beyond.

How have you adjusted from being a player to being a TV commentator? Many former athletes have told me it’s difficult to get on TV and critique other players.

You’ve worked your entire life to be a professional footballer. You put literally everything into it in terms of the physical capabilities and the mental capabilities and what you’ve read, what you’ve studied, what you’ve watched. And then one day all of a sudden you’re just not a footballer anymore. It is a weird place to be. It’s a moment where you often have to re-find yourself and your identity. In terms of being an analyst or a commentator and critiquing guys, for me personally, it’s difficult because I’ve always been that guy that’s wanted to lead by example in the locker room and field and never wanted to use my words or mouth to critique or put people down. That is a very interesting – and difficult – thing. That is for me something that has been difficult, but also I make sure there’s a lot of basis, there’s a lot of authenticity and proof and evidence and not just saying things for the sake of saying a hot take.

You played on some very good Red Bulls teams, like in 2015, when they were coached by Jesse Marsch. Why did that team come up short and never win an MLS Cup? Is winning an MLS Cup harder than people think it is. As someone from the New York area, I’m sure you were attached to that team more than the others you played for.

Yes, there was certainly an attachment. For the first time in my career, my parents, brother, wife, kids could come watch me play. That’s something you dream about when you set out to be a footballer. That was nice. I was attached to the team and, obviously, being from New York born and raised, I wanted to win everything. We won the Supporters’ Shield in ’15, which was fantastic. It was such a good group and had some talented players. We had Jesse Marsch who is a guy that’s now pretty well known for his ability to get guys on the same page and get the best out of them. We won the Supporters’ Shield, which in a lot of ways is more difficult to win than the MLS Cup and then we fell short against Columbus in ’15 (in the Eastern Conference Finals), where they scored a goal like 10 or 15 seconds into the game and it was freezing cold out. In the playoff structure, anything could happen.

CBS has invested a lot of time and money in Serie A coverage. Do you think Serie A is a place where American players can do well and why aren’t more of them playing there?

I think Serie A is certainly a place where Americans can do well. I think you have to look a little bit away from Serie A and more at the American soccer player. There is no question about it that the American soccer player has grown so much, not just for the ability to play as a goalkeeper. Then it moved up to midfielders and quick wingers like (Christian) Pulisic. Now, in America, I think you’re getting Americans at a very young age watching the Premier League, watching the Serie A. it’s very available.

The first legs of the Champions League quarterfinals are done. What teams impressed you most and what are you looking forward to most in the second legs?

I think Milan impressed me most. I think a lot of people going into the quarterfinals were saying, look, Milan is the easiest draw and most people had a Man City-Napoli final. To see Milan play the football they are playing, aggressive up the field and really a lot of personality in that matchup. Real Madrid, obviously, doing what they do. Then there’s Manchester City with (Erling) Haaland who’s not from this planet right now. They are certainly the favorites after what they did to Bayern Munich.

Three of the eight remaining teams are Italian. Do you think one of them, between AC Milan, Napoli and Inter Milan, can win the whole thing?

It’s definitely going to be difficult for them I think because on the other side of the bracket you’re going to get a Man City or even a Real Madrid, teams that pound-for-pound have better players. They have players who have been in these situations more and I think good luck to the team that has to mark Haaland or (Karim) Benzema in the midfield. It will be difficult, but in a one-off final, anything is possible.

Clemente Lisi is a regular contributor to US Soccer Players. He is also the author of the new book “The FIFA World Cup: A History of the Planet’s Biggest Sporting Event.”

More from Clemente Lisi:

Photo by Mike Lawrence – ISIPhotos.com

UNITED STATES NATIONAL SOCCER TEAM PLAYERS ASSOCIATION