SPORTING DIRECTOR AND HEAD COACH GREGG BERHALTER
On why tonight’s result did not fall in favor of Columbus Crew SC
I don’t know if I said this at halftime, but soccer is a game of moments, and that’s what defined this game. There’s a missed penalty, there’s a corner kick and as soon as we had the momentum for a chance it turned the other way and they get a goal. Give them a lot of credit, give them a lot of credit. That was the best defensive performance we’ve seen all year. It really was. And we didn’t have enough answers for it. We tried, we kept trying, but we didn’t have the answers.
On if Crew SC’s effort was lacking
No, I mean you guys saw the game. Effort was certainly not lacking. I mean, 94th minute, these guys are still going 100 percent to get a goal. I told them in there, I said I applaud them for that. The effort was outstanding, and it wasn’t our day today, it was not our day.
On the performance from Crew SC’s starters
I thought it was decent. Like I said, I think that against a very compact defense the movements have to be precise. They have to be fast, they have to be precise and we lacked a little bit of that today. They were there, the movements were certainly there. But some of the precision was off, but the guys that came in did a good job. If you look at [Chris] Klute, what he was doing, up and down, never stopping – that’s impressive for a guy who hasn’t played that much in a while.
On the status of Gaston Sauro
It wasn’t our day. Second minute in the game, a guy making his debut gets knocked out of the game. He went to get evaluated and we should know more this evening.
On how Sauro’s absence affected the game
I don’t know. It was so short in terms of the timing of it; it’s hard to tell. What I would say is that it’s unfortunate for him, making his debut, and we’re anxiously waiting the news of how he is. But it’s tough – you burn a substitute two minutes into the game on a head injury.
On how Crew SC regroups and comes together after tonight’s result
It’s easy. It’s easy to come together because the guys didn’t give up, and that’s the thing – they kept going. Like I said, I’m extremely disappointed with the result but I’m not disappointed in the effort and it’s a good lesson for us, it really is. There was a moment that we didn’t handle well, that first corner kick, and that’s the game right there and it’s unfortunate.
On defending corner kicks and set pieces
Yeah we talked about it. That was one thing I said, we have to get that stuff right. If we have any intentions of making the playoffs and going far in the playoffs you have to get set pieces right, and that was an example of not getting it right.
On what the focus is this week as Crew SC looks to bounce back
We regroup and we get the guys ready to play on Saturday. I think it’s going to be a good game. We know [Philadelphia] is riding high after that win [over San Jose]. I think they’re a good team, so it’s going to be a tough game, no question.
On what is to attribute to Crew SC’s lack of shots on goal
No, I think it’s just the definition of a shot on goal, right? The penalty kick misses the goal so that wasn’t a shot on goal. Other opportunities that were really close don’t count as a shot on goal. We were certainly threatening them.
On Wil Trapp coming back from international duty and playing a full game
That says a lot about Wil [Trapp] and his character, that he can come back after flying across the ocean on [Friday] and perform at that level on Sunday. So it says a lot about him and his character and he’s another one that just kept going. He has probably heavy legs and he didn’t stop.
On if having Wil Trapp available was according to plan
Yes.
On the performance and rationale behind Crew SC’s substitutions
So the intention was to draw them out a little, and so we had two central midfielders in front of three in build-up to kind of bring them towards us and make space in the middle of the field. They went with five in the back in the second half and we wanted to try to find the pockets of space centrally and then get it wide. We were going to let Chris [Klute] handle the whole left side of the field and let Federico [Higuain] operate in those pockets and try to get the ball turned and make some good plays. I thought it was alright. Like I said, it was unfortunate of the timing of the goals and not being able to really make a push to get back in it.
On the timing of Dallas’ second goal
It hurt, it hurt.
On FC Dallas’ second goal
I don’t want to make excuses for our group we don’t make excuses and we have to get better, and we will.
On Ethan Finlay not being called up for international duty
I’m a huge supporter of Ethan Finlay and you know I’m also the head coach of Columbus Crew SC, so I don’t make the decisions for the National Team. That’s not my job. Everyone knows how much I support him, how good of a player I think he is, and what a great season he’s been having so you know the rest has to fall into place.
On Jack McInerney replacing Kei Kamara tonight
You have to attack differently, and we had the plan of putting balls in front of the goal on the ground, that’s how we got the PK. And then looking for cutback spaces as well. We know Jack’s a very good runner inside the penalty box so we wanted to get him the ball early behind their line.
On the fan support tonight
Again, when you look at effort, you look at the guys and how they didn’t quit, the fans didn’t quit either, especially the Nordecke, they’re fantastic. They’re probably as frustrated as I am, but they didn’t show it, and they stayed behind us. The guys appreciate that. I appreciate that. I think it’s the spirit of what Columbus is about and that’s nice to see.
MIDFIELDER ETHAN FINLAY
On the post-game message to the team after a tough loss
Exactly what you just said, word for word. (Full question: “Disappointed in the result, but not disappointed in the effort, I wonder what the post-game message is to you guys after a tough result like this.”)
On what did not go right for Columbus Crew SC in tonight’s match
On the offensive side, we weren’t quite sharp enough. We struggled with the final pass. We missed some great opportunities tonight; not just the PK, not just Jack’s (McInerney), there were other opportunities that I had, that a couple other guys had. We just weren’t sharp. On the flip side, on the defensive side, just transition moments. They were happy with one-nothing and I think they were shocked to be up three-nothing. But, it is what it is.
On the difficulty of “shaking off” this loss after such great play as of late
Yeah. A loss is a loss. What I think [stinks] about this one is the fact that we felt like we played well, like we created enough opportunities. I felt like we did everything right except score. And then obviously we gave up too many tonight.
DEFENDER MICHAEL PARKHURST
On the overall result of the match
I thought we started the game well. We had the right mentality, we were doing things right, we had them under pressure and we were playing the game on their half of the field. We’re unfortunate enough not to take the lead with the penalty. I think if we’re able to make that then we go on to win the game. But, when we don’t make that we have to make sure we keep it zero in the back. A game like this with a team playing the way that they were playing, it’s imperative that we get to the first goal. Then they have to open up and that’s when we can take advantage. We talked about set pieces a lot and it’s disappointing we let up the first goal. That’s a blueprint for other teams right now; sit back, absorb it, make it hard for us, get a set piece and counter. Credit [FC] Dallas because they did it well tonight.
On the impact of the first goal
It gave them the confidence I think to sit back and absorb it and park the bus like they did. We still did a good job of keeping them under pressure, pinning them in. The rest of the first half we created a few half chances. But, overall we weren’t sharp enough.
On the change in the game after Gaston Sauro’s early exit
I don’t think it impacted the team. It’s disappointing for him, of course, and for the team. I think that he was doing well in training and everyone was excited for him and I know he was excited to play. It’s disappointing and unlucky for him. I haven’t spoken to him, but hopefully he’s doing okay and he’ll be able to recover from it.
