MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER QUOTE SHEET
FRIDAY, JULY 2, 2010
RIO
TINTO STADIUM – SANDY, UTAH
REAL
SALT LAKE 5 : 0 NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION
REAL
SALT LAKE HEAD COACH JASON KREIS
On
the win:
“We
talked about it all week about a reaction, a response to last weekend, and I
don’t think we could have asked for much more.”
On
the key to the game:
“I
think a lot has to do with first goal, it really changes things when we can
score that first goal. It kind of came out of nothing, a great ball over the
top from Robbie Russell. Fabian looked like he misplayed it a little bit but
ends up getting a good strike on it.
“From
there on I think a lot of things are unlocked and New England has to change
what they’re doing, has to try to chase the game. As we’ve seen in the past,
we’re a little bit of a difficult team to play against when we unlock things
and have ourselves the lead.”
On
Nick Rimando and his historic 100th win:
“He’s a
fantastic goalkeeper. I feel for him a lot of times because I know how he
feels. He’s a smaller guy; maybe it’s that Napoleonic complex that we both
have, but he feels like he hasn’t gotten any accolades in this league that he’s
deserved. For me he’s such an important part of how we built this team and he’s
been fantastic every single year. He was our MVP and last year he was the MLS
Cup MVP and now I think that he’s playing the best soccer that I’ve seen him
play in three years, and that’s saying a lot.”
On
the return of Robbie Findley:
“He looked
okay. He gave us exactly what we needed in that match. When have a lead and New
England pressed it gave us space to play behind. He was very, very dangerous
all night. If you talk to him he’s probably a little upset that he didn’t score
more. I am very pleased that he did get that one, and I am very pleased with
the work he put in. Hopefully he’ll be fresh and ready for Thursday night.”
REAL
SALT LAKE FORWARD ROBBIE FINDLEY
On
getting on the scoreboard late after coming close with some earlier chances:
“I’ve
been in a little slump, so it’s good to get the goal. I just had to stay
mentally tough, so if I got another chance I could put it away.
On
RSL’s offensive onslaught:
“Things
didn’t go so well last week for the guys, so we knew what we needed to do out
here tonight. We needed to show improvement, and I think we did a great job of
that.”
On
getting back to action with RSL and the reception he received at Rio Tinto
Stadium:
“My
legs were still a little heavy, but it felt good. It was good to get a run in.
And it was great when the fans held up the signs in the 10th minute,
it was a great feeling. They’ve been supportive of me and the whole team since
I’ve been here, so it was very nice of them and very appreciated.”
REAL
SALT LAKE GOALKEEPER NICK RIMANDO
On
getting his 100th win in regular season play:
“It
feels really good. Apparently there’s only a few guys that have 100 (wins), and
I don’t get it if I’m not at a club like this – the guys in front of me have
made it so much easier to reach this mark. We’re an offensive team – we’ve
scored a lot of goals this season – but at the same time we’re not letting
anything in. Our whole team goes forward and our whole team comes back, and
that’s what makes it so easy for me.”
On
bouncing back from last week’s draw at home against San Jose:
“We all
knew that we played poorly last week so we had to prove something to ourselves.
We knew we could play better and tonight we did that, and not because [New
England] is a bad team but because we came out and we were explosive
offensively and organized defensively.”
On
whether he got to see the goals from his teammates:
“They
were good! And a lot of them came on counterattacks and from us playing good
defense, getting the ball on their side and playing forward quickly. That was
the key tonight, getting the ball in good offensive positions.”
REAL
SALT LAKE FORWARD ÁLVARO SABORÍO
On
his back-heel goal in the 52nd minute:
“It was
a great pass from Javier [Morales], and I only had to flick it on goal. It was
no fluke.”
NEW
ENGLAND REVOLUTION HEAD COACH STEVE NICOL
On
the team’s performance:
“The
biggest thing is a lack of professionalism. We had a set way that we were going
to do things and it worked for about 25 minutes and then we just gave them
three goals. The first goal starts it off, the second goal was terrible, third
goal was terrible. When you are giving teams three goals, it is unprofessional.
That’s really what it is.”
On
whether RSL’s second goal before halftime was the backbreaker:
“No,
the third goal is the one that finishes it. If we can get some chances and
maybe get a goal then we are right back in it. Again, the third one is the one
that does it. It was just poor defending on the play.”
On
the altitude factor at Rio Tinto Stadium:
“We
didn’t lose tonight because of altitude. We lost tonight because we didn’t do
basic stuff properly, and that’s why we lost. The fundamentals and basics of
the game are things we didn’t do, and that’s why we lost.”
NEW
ENGLAND REVOLUTION MIDFIELDER SAINEY NYASSI
On
the opening minutes compared to the rest of the game:
“I
think in the first 25 minutes we were doing really well. We were playing as a team
and staying together and did a good job at creating chances, but after that we
started falling apart. The climate here is different, it was hard to breathe.
We just have to forget about this game and move on to our upcoming games.”
On
the mentality of the team after the second goal:
“I
think it was hard to come back in the second half already down by two goals. If
it was one, it would have been different. We didn’t mark well tonight. Most of
our guys did not stay with their guys.”
On
their recent performances at Rio Tinto Stadium:
“It’s
just bad. Last year we came up here and lost 6-0 and this year we come here and
we lose 5-0. It’s just disheartening. We just have to forget about this one and
move on to the next one.”
NEW
ENGLAND REVOLUTION MIDFIELDER JASON GRIFFITHS
Overall
thoughts on his first start:
“It was
tough. The conditions are hard. [Real Salt Lake] got off to a good start with
an early goal and then they ran all over us to be honest. It was tough out
there.”
On
the second RSL goal in first half stoppage time:
“It’s
always hard conceding goals before halftime. The team talk at halftime was just
to get a goal and try to get back into the game and just go from there, but
that didn’t happen. Then we got further behind and it was just downhill from
there.”
On
the conditions at Rio Tinto Stadium:
“The
altitude makes it hard. My mouth is so dry that I can’t even spit, really.
They’re kind of used to it I guess, but it was hard for our team. There are no
excuses. We have been training and we should be fit, we should be used to
playing in these climates, but it just wasn’t our day today.”
