Real Salt Lake
Real Salt Lake Head Coach Jeff Cassar
On tonight's game:
“I don't think we were really exceptional in anything tonight. We just weren't good enough. Obviously, defending the set play, giving up a goal from a dead ball situation, can really change the tide of the game. We felt we were in a good position, had a mental lapse on a set play then from there we were chasing the game. And FC Dallas did a good job of staying compact and disciplined and we didn't do a great job moving the ball quick enough and being dangerous and penetrating their two blocks of four. It just wasn't good enough the whole night.”
On the play that resulted in a Blas Perez’s red card:
“Both of his cards came from contact off the ball, basically, so I don't know. That's up to the referees to decide, but it seemed like he [Perez] didn't have to do any of that, but I thought he did fall down for no reason.”
On being tied at half, then losing playing up a man:
“We talked about the two ways Dallas scores on you: set plays and counter attacks. We went over it and couldn't deal with a corner kick, and they got us on a counter attack. It's a little bit naive of us, and hopefully we'll learn from it and move on.”
Real Salt Lake GK Nick Rimando
On tonight's game:
“It's a weird game, for sure. Sometimes it's even harder to break down a team when they go down a man because they're all behind the ball instead of two forwards hanging high and trying to play when they win the ball. We weren't sharp enough. We weren't patient enough. It was almost like we panicked when they scored the first goal and we're trying to push really hard to get the goal. It just wasn't a mature effort in the second half. If it's 11v11 out there, maybe we get a result here. They're playing, we're playing. It was difficult. They were organized in the back. They had everybody behind the ball and that makes it difficult for us. We go to three in the back and I don't think it's our bread and butter, and we're not as dynamic as we should be. All-in-all, we weren't sharp enough.”
Real Salt Lake MF Kyle Beckerman
On the momentum change after FCD's first goal:
“Dallas is a team that going a man down might have helped them. They just have so much speed up top, and they really play the counter. We felt like, even though we went up a man, we still had to be wary of their danger, and it's just unfortunate we gave them a set-piece goal. I think that gave them a lot of confidence, and really got them to defend as a unit and put [Fabian] Castillo up top and let them just counter and counter. That's what happened and it worked to a 'T' for them. Something we'll hopefully learn from.”
On the rematch in two weeks as Rio Tinto Stadium:
“It's pretty neat. We get a rematch at our place so hopefully we can respond well next week and stay with the pack that seems to be getting out up front, and get another crack at Dallas in Salt Lake and see if we can do better.”
FC Dallas
FC Dallas Head Coach Oscar Pareja
On tonight’s game:
“This club has a new heart and they showed it tonight. This is the heart of this club and this is the heart of this organization. In regards to the game, it was a very intense game. I thought we played very well with 11. I thought we were controlling the game. We knew that Salt Lake has the tendency to have the ball in possession. We understood that sometimes it's fine that they have it against teams that have a lot of automatism and set sequences. Sometimes you have to pick your battles, and we know why we do that. We countered them in the first half three times to lead the game and I didn't see much of them during the first half in terms of the options. I'd say we played better than them in the first half. In the second half we were very smart - the team understands that tactically you can win these battles, even with 10 players. I have to give all the credit to the guys who were on the field. I don't know if you noticed, but the heart of the fans and the people who were in the building was laid down on the field. The guys took it and performed that way. I'm very proud.”
Was this the most impressive win of the season?
“Yes. So far we're good. We have 42 points, we're fighting for a spot on top. There are still a lot of games to come and this season is hard. We look on to the next one - to Chicago. Tonight we're happy. We're enjoying these points against a good rival with a lot of adversities, which reflect what has happened during the year.”
On appealing the red card:
“Understand that referees are human beings who participate in this game, who make mistakes like coaches and like players do. That's the beauty of the game. We'll see what the reaction is from the club.”
On playing with 10 men:
“Playing with one man down is harder. The field becomes bigger and what you have set up on 75 yards is not easy. The plan stayed the same; we wanted to have some space with Fabian (Castillo) and Tesho (Akindele) and Andres (Escobar), and get them organized in the middle the way Victor (Ulloa) and Michel did today.”
On Fabian Castillo’s form:
“He's committed. He understands what it takes to get to the next level. Now he's in a place where he has not been before and he is experiencing that. Now he's feeling it, and he understands that he will be the one to raise his own bar and keep going up. He's young. We forget that he's young - he's just 22. But Fabian has embraced this program and this project and that's great. It's a long way to go, it's a long journey. He knows.”
On Blas Perez’s reputation working against him:
“I think he has been stigmatized in the league and that's unfair. Blas - that's his heart and that's the way he plays. Sometimes that's not what’s seen because the defenders don't like to have someone that's working as hard as he works. They normally just have people making diagonals and runs but Blas is working and fighting for the ball and using his body. Sometimes defenders don't like that and everyone starts talking about the things that are not beneficial to the game.”
On team taking a top spot in the league:
“We feel like we have a lot of responsibility now that we've started on this path. There are still many games, but simply put, we have a heavy responsibility.”
FC Dallas MF Fabian Castillo
On playing for the Colombian National Team in the future:
“There are a lot of forwards in Colombia who are playing well right now. I’m only concentrating on FC Dallas right now. I’m focused on helping my team here by scoring goals. I’m just trying to do things right and everything should work itself out on its own. I’m not working to leave. I’m working for FC Dallas and for this team to become a champion.”
Is there one thing that you can attribute to the success you and the team has had this season?
“Things are just falling right for me and for the team right now. Hopefully, I’ll be able to keep playing at a high level. All the players on this team have contributed to our success equally.”
FC Dallas MF Victor Ulloa
On the game:
“Just a great result for us – obviously we’re happy about the three points. The guys showed a lot of character. Getting that red card and playing a man down for a half is tough, but we knew we could still go forward. We threw our whole effort forward, and we got the first goal on that set piece. Then Fabian [Castillo] finished them off. Fabian is doing great. He’s hot right now, and we get the three points.”
On playing compact with Michel in the defensive midfield:
“We’ve played a lot of games together now. We know what the coach wants and tactically, we’re on the same page. Things are going right for us. [Salt Lake] had a lot of possession tonight but they weren’t dangerous. We tried, when possible, to keep the ball in their half… We’ll take it.”
On playing against U.S. National Team midfielder Kyle Beckerman:
“For me, it was a big deal. I watched a lot of video on him. Obviously, he went to the World Cup… He is a player that I look up to… He plays the same position as me. It was a test for me, today, to see how I matched up with him. I thought I did well.”
Have you finally arrived as a professional?
“I feel like I have seized my opportunity. I feel like I am a starter now. I feel like a professional and I am just really happy that I was able to take the opportunity when it came my way.”
FC Dallas DF Je-Vaughn Watson
On playing against Real Salt Lake with 10 men in the second half:
“We just sat back and let them play and tried to beat them on the counter. It takes a lot of hard work to defend with 10 men and they were moving the ball pretty well from side to side. They’re a fit team too. They’re no pushovers, but we knew from the beginning that this was going to be a hard game.”
What was the mood like at halftime?
“We were still upbeat. We were still coming off that 5-0 win. We were still on that high. In the first half, we were just going, going, going for the kill – the red card came, but we were just frustrated that we didn’t score. When we came in coach talked about how we still had another half to play and that we needed to calm down. We weren’t even thinking about being a man down in the second half. We were still banging at the door, banging at the door. When we scored the first goal we were saying ‘all right, now we’re going to keep that clean sheet.’ Then we got the second goal and that turned out to be very important. The halftime talk was a good talk because everyone looked at themselves and came out thinking ‘we have to win.’”
On his goal:
“We worked on that same play yesterday in practice. Matt [Hedges] ran across first and drew some attention. I just arrived at the right place at the right time. It was low and the only thing I could score with was my chest. I just directed it towards the goal. I was just in the right spot to score. Anything can happen, it doesn’t matter what it hits off as long as it goes in… You could get a redirect, who knows. I’m just always hunting for a goal when I’m in the area.”
On Fabian Castillo:
“He is one of our best attacking options right now. He has been working hard on the training field. He comes to practice early. He does his work in the gym. It’s his hard work paying off. With a good coach like Oscar [Pareja], who gives him the freedom to do whatever. That’s why the team is doing so well. Everyone is happy. Everyone is comfortable. We’re more than just a soccer team here. We’re more like a family.”
