QUOTE SHEET
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION 4-0 REAL SALT LAKE
MAY 13, 2017; GILLETTE STADIUM
Real Salt Lake
Head Coach Mike Petke
On missing several players for today’s game:
“I mean it’s obvious that we’re missing a lot of players. Everybody knows that. It’s not something that has to be pointed out. But having said that, I’ve said it all along: we’re a team comprised of 20-something professional players, you know? They’re all professional athletes. So in somebody’s absence, other people have to step up. I was very happy with the work rate tonight, a lot of good combination play centrally going forward but couldn’t find the last, you know, the last pass or the effort to get the lone goal. On the other side it seems that, you know, every time they came down they either scored or almost scored so that’s a problem.”
On what he learned about his own players tonight:
“I learned they have quality, a lot of quality, perhaps the pace of the game at times was a little too fast for them and you could see that they're young players. They're young players that hopefully have a future. But right now, it was tough on them.”
On the team’s chances to score during the game:
“Yeah, I mean listen, you said it perfectly right there. I thought that even from the first five minutes we were down in their penalty spot, the combination play was good, the transition was good, and then they get one opportunity and it goes in, and then they get another opportunity and it goes in, and it’s things that we’ve worked on all week. And this is not pointing fingers to my players. The point is, is that we knew, we prepared for what happened tonight and whether it's they had more quality on the night, which they did, or we just let our guard down a little bit. But, we worked on these exact scenarios all week.”
On Savarino’s debut with Real Salt Lake tonight:
“Well, I mean we wanted to get him in. I mean his last game he played was about seven days ago, so he’s in shape. So I thought it was important to get him in and I didn’t see an opportunity, no matter how the game was going that we wouldn’t get him in. If we were up, we would get him in because you know we’re winning and he‘s going to bring quality. If we’re down, we really have nothing to lose. So it was important to get him in there and I thought he showed a bit of his quality, you know? And I think for any player coming over from a different country, it’s a big adjustment period and I thought this was a very positive step just in the 30 minutes he was in there.”
On putting tonight's match behind them before a two-match week:
“There was a conversation in the locker room, you know we bobbed around exactly that, is that you know we have to put this behind us. You know it’s painful, drown your sorrows tonight in a beer or whatever you’re going to do, and come tomorrow we have to look for Wednesday. That’s it. Look for Wednesday and not hang our heads, you know? Don’t throw the towel in, this is, we have a heck of a lot more of the season to go."
Defender Aaron Maund
On the answer to performing better:
“It’s going to be us coming together and really putting it all out there on Wednesday. Taking it a game at a time. We’ve got to get back to the basics and do the little things right.”
On the team’s energy:
“Of course, I mean, we still have the energy. No one in this locker room quit tonight and I think that kind of goes to show the group we have because we could have. The energy is still there, the desire is still there, it’s just us getting those little things right.”
On how to regroup moving forward:
“We’re going to have a short week of training obviously, but in this league, it’s all about putting either a win or a loss behind you and moving on to the next one. This is no different and we’re going to put it behind us and we’re going to keep moving.”
On playing shorthanded and against an in-form Revolution team:
“All credit to them. They played really well. Injuries aren’t really an excuse anymore because we have plenty of capable guys in there, so hats off to the Revs. They came and played really well tonight."
On the Revolution playing well from the start:
“I think that score line was harsh. I thought that we had some good moments in there and we had some good run of play at times and we’ve just got to find a way to put it all together.”
Defender Chris Wingert
On the Revolution scoring the first goal early in the game:
“Try to stay positive and try to keep pushing. I thought the offense did some good things, they were combining, the guys up top, and we just weren’t tight enough in the back. We weren’t sharp enough in the back to start the game. We gave up a couple early ones and then we’re chasing it again. It’s not a recipe for success.”
On falling behind by multiple goals early:
“It’s clearly not the game plan. It’s not what we’re trying to do, but unfortunately, it’s been a recipe for disaster for the last few weeks, but there are no secrets, at least not that I know of. The only way to pull ourselves out of this hole is by working hard. We’ve got to take care of our bodies now, quick turnaround, no time to put our heads down and sulk. Another tough one Wednesday at home against New York. Hopefully, everybody that played tonight has got to do their best to take care of their body and get ready for a quick turnaround. We’ll come back out and give it our all on Wednesday.”
On the absence of the team's injured players:
“It’s not ideal, but as an individual, that stuff is out of our control and as a player you shouldn’t be concerned with the lineup. You’re not making the lineup, you just have to get yourself ready as best you possibly can when your number is called on and to be ready for that next game. It’s not an easy job for this staff, but they’ll do the juggling of the guys. We have confidence in all our guys. Again, as a player you can’t get caught up in, 'Oh, we have all these injuries. Who’s going to start. We have a quick turnaround.' That’s all stuff that is out of our control. Right now, we just need to control what we can and that’s as a player taking care of your body and getting ready for the next game and hopefully, we’ll get some guys healthy as we get into this stretch. I think we have six games in like three weeks, but it’s a chance [for] us to pick up some really important points. We didn’t do that tonight, which is a bummer, so yeah, be frustrated for an hour or two and then get back after it in terms of taking care of your body. Get home and we’ll be getting ready for Wednesday.”
On some of the players having their first appearances for the club tonight:
“I think true character comes out of adversity and we’re clearly going through a rough patch right now, so it’s not ideal. I feel for those guys a little bit, you want to be a part of a winning team and have good spirits about you when you’re getting your first game or two. It’s a shame, but at the same time, it’s exciting for them to get involved and we have a lot of really good young players in this organization, we’ve had for a few years now, and so it’s exciting for them and good experience. Unfortunately, it didn’t come out the desired result, but we’re going to need them all the way through and I think they’re learning that right away. We’re going to need to count on each and every guy on the roster and make sure they’re ready when called upon so we can turn this thing around.”
New England Revolution
Head Coach Jay Heaps
On the offensive production in the first half:
“It was a good first half offensively. I thought we did a really good job. We were a little bit exposed at times, so the half time talk was really about making sure that we still could be aggressive going forward. I wish we had put those two offside goals in, but we wanted to tighten things up and make sure that we weren’t so exposed, while continuing to have that forward ability. But really excited about the way we started the game, the way we continued to keep going. We didn’t just let one goal satisfy us. We wanted more.”
On keeping a clean sheet and the defensive adjustments at the half:
“That was the most important concern. Obviously, we wanted to make sure that we did not give anything up and I thought in the second half, there wasn’t much there. First half, they did some good things. They had some new players in there. I thought [Jose] Hernandez was good in there. I thought [Joao] Plata was dangerous and [Luis] Silva. So, they’re really kind of playing like a false nine. They were just able to find the ball. We corrected that in the second half and I thought we were able to stop them from doing what they were doing so well in the first half.”
On the key to balancing creating enough offense, while eliminating chances defensively:
“We always talk about an open game and we are good in an open game. Just like a heavyweight fight. You can see. We can go 3-3 with the Seattle [Sounders]. The problem is, we’re putting a lot of stress on the back line when we do that, so the key is making sure that when we play our diamond. Obviously, the key to a diamond is for them to overload the middle and then get it wide. If we can balance it with our two shuttlers, if that’s Scotty [Caldwell] and Diego [Fagundez], a little bit wider in the first half. In the second half, they tightened up and sat next to [Xavier] Kouassi a little bit more. That’s what shuts it down. Now, you’re layering your lines. You’re not just having five guys attack and five guys defend. You’re having good layers and that’s when we’re at our best.”
On the return and the performance of Chris Tierney:
“I actually give him a lot of credit. He played really well our last home game, when he started against San Jose [Earthquakes]. Then he came in late against D.C. [United] and created some good serves, but he took an injury. So, he didn’t travel with us to Seattle with a bit of a hamstring strain. I think in Columbus, we just wanted to be smart, make sure he was ready for the home games, where we have a little bit more of the ball and a little bit more areas where I think Chris is going to be dangerous. Tonight, it certainly showed. He was able to serve it. He was able to defend in the right areas. When Chris is playing well, we play well. I think that’s really important for us.”
Forward Kei Kamara
On being back on the field after missing the last two weeks:
“It was good. It was good, definitely. I’ve missed it. I’ve missed the couple games on the road and I wanted to be back in there, be part of the team, and really help the team to what we want to do to win. Today, to be back in there, that was the mindset and I’m just happy we came out with a great win like that. And not just a win with one goal, but a win with that many goals. It really, you know, cheered the fans up.”
On what the last few days have been like sleep-wise for him:
“I don’t know if you can see my eyes right now, but who sleeps these days? No one does. They told me that after a couple or after one, then two, forget sleep, but hey, I’m a vampire. That’s good.”
On how well the offense was operating:
“The offense on this team is good. It’s not one guy that can score goals. Obviously, it showed again tonight. A lot of guys can put balls in the back of the net, but it’s again, we got to work together to help the guys behind us and keep going back behind us – behind us from the midfield to the defenders and all that. So, offense is never a problem, you know? But you can see, everybody can score goals, but we got to work defensively.”
Midfielder Scott Caldwell
On what it was like to get on the end of a cross and score a goal:
“It felt good, especially early on in the game. You know, we wanted to get an early start, and we did that in the first half.”
On whether or not he thought it would be him putting the team ahead early in the match:
“No, actually, a couple guys had said—trying to get me to go forward a bit, score, get chances, so that helped I think. In the back of my mind, it pushed me forward a little bit more.”
On what it was like to get 3 points tonight:
“It’s huge, especially with so many games at home, to kind of get our confidence back at home and really ride it from there. We have another big one next week.”
On what he was seeing as far as the attacking chemistry in the first half:
“The guys up top were moving and making great runs and really connecting all their passes, and it was fun to watch as the half wore on. You know, the second half, I think we did a good job at times as well. A couple goals offsides, but I think the fluidity and the movement of the guys up top was really good tonight.”
