Head Coach Eric Ramsay
On what he felt broke down in the defense…
“Unfortunately we didn't get the level that we had up until 60, 65 minutes post making the changes, and I can give you the message I just gave to the players, it’s really disappointing in the sense that I really trust the squad, I really do trust the squad and I think you’ve seen that. I’ve experienced that, ever since I’ve been here, I wanted to be someone that makes use of as many players as possible. I want a lot of players really connected to what we’re doing, I want that feeling of depth, but It’s very difficult to look past the before and after point today, around the point at which we change. Of course I have to look at myself and the decision that we make at that point, but there’s not a part of me that was expecting the level of drop off from a concentration perspective, from a decision making perspective that we got, post the hour mark, post 65 minutes. It’s obviously a sickening result, one that will live long in the memory for us, I’m sure. We’ve got to make sure that we respond well and that we take it as an objective look as possible as to why that was the case over the course of the last half an hour, because of course that falls miles below the standards that we’ve set for ourselves in terms of the difficulty at which teams have in beating us, in creating chances and the reality is tonight that they [Sporting Kansas City] scored three goals in quick succession from very. It comes down to concentration, decision-making, execution around the box, and we have really let ourselves down tonight. Of course, there’s two sides of the coin. We felt like up until 60 minutes we were really, really good, really efficient with how we used the ball and obviously found ourselves in the position that we found ourselves in, but from that point onwards we really let ourselves down for sure.”
On if it’s frustrating having the same squad going into next week with the international break…
“I would probably look at it the other way and say it’s a really good opportunity for us to put right what went wrong tonight and sort of re-establish that depth, re-establish that sense of the squad that I know we have. I mean it when I say it, I do trust the squad that we’ve got and of course we’ve made multiple changes in each of the games so far, and each of the first three it has stood us in good stead, tonight it hasn’t. Again, there’s not one part of me that puts that entirely on the players, nor individually on the players that came on. It was a combination of my decision making, our decision making, the way in which the players on the pitch absorbed the subs, and of course, the way in which they performed as they came on. So, we as a collective have to look at ourselves in a really harsh way there because it’s almost an inexplicable drop off and we’re obviously really disappointed with that. But, next week poses a really interesting challenge for use because, we lose five or six players and we’ve got to make sure we come out fighting and come out with a point to prove that, the way in which tonight is finished suggests we will have, so, I’m interested to see how we all respond to it.”
On how he expresses his frustrations towards the players…
“They’re very clear on the where we’ve fallen down tonight, but I will always take the stance in these situations that there is always an explanation and it does need a degree of level-headedness because we have got in there, a very willing group, a very hungry group, a group that works really hard, there’s no ounce of a lack of willingness, a lack of commitment, a lack of discipline, all the things that are sometimes hard to come by in a group. We’ve got that in buckets, but tonight what’s let us down is being really clinical in how we make decisions, how we defend the box, how we use the ball. I felt like on 60, 65 minutes there was a point where I felt like we really had our foot on their [Sporting Kansas City] neck. We had really good control of the game in the middle third on the ball and then, we’ve obviously given it away really cheaply around the top of our box on a number of occasions which has led to them building pressure. We as a group have to take a really harsh look at ourselves because that is unacceptable if we want to be a team that wants to compete at the level that we’ve shown for 60 minutes that we can. As I say, it will be a really interesting couple of weeks now to see how we respond, how we’re able to compensate for the absence of the internationals, and how we come through this two week period, and what we feel about the strength of the group at the end.”
On what he thought went wrong in the last 20 minutes…
“We just made some really poor decisions in the defending box in some of the basic things. I think if you look at each of the three goals—so, first goal, we don't deal with the ball over the top. For 65 minutes, we dealt with it very comfortably. I think if you look up to the point at which the player that plays over the top strikes the ball, we're really well set. The backline is really well positioned, really well set to defend the space in behind. And then, we don't. So, the combination of Jeff [Jefferson Diaz] on that side with Carlos [Harvey] doesn't deal with a runner. And then we give away a space that we don't normally need to give away, and they get a clean-cut chance. The second goal—their right-hand side—we're actually really well positioned. We get everybody really well set to deal with [Magomed] Suleymanov, who's obviously very left-footed. We don't let him come back on the inside. He does find some space on the outside, which occasionally happens. And then, as he does, we're not quite as well set to defend the box as we should be. And then Morris gets his feet in a bit of a tangle and doesn't play the ball well. But I'll say in Morris's defense, he's been outstanding over the course of the large part of this game and the three games that led into this. And in those moments, generally, he's been great. So that was really out of character in that moment, and he found himself in a tricky spot. Obviously, the third goal is possibly the toughest to swallow—probably a really poor decision where we turn the ball over on the top of the box, needlessly take an unnecessary touch, a real risk on the ball on our eighteen-yard line, where they've got really good pressure on the ball. And then suddenly, it's a chance where, nine times out of 10, we wouldn't find ourselves in that position. So I think, again, it's very easy in hindsight for me to break the goals down and correct. But I would say that the characteristics, the mistakes, and characteristic situations for us to find ourselves in—particularly if you take that in the context of what's happened over the first three games and 60 minutes tonight— as I say, almost inexplicable how we find ourselves in that position. So if I was to put my finger on it, it's concentration, it's execution, it's a real discipline. And I'm sure there's an element of us being complacent once we get three up. For those messages will and have gotten to the place. And the important thing is that we respond well, we react, and we look back at a point in the future, and we're thankful for this experience to an extent because, hopefully, it will inform the way we make decisions. It'll be at the forefront of players' minds when we find ourselves in this situation again. So yeah, I always will look at it in that way. I'll try and explain it. I'll try and make sure that we learn from it.”
On what he wished he would have done with the substitutes…
“ They made two changes on the left-hand side. We wanted to make sure that we were really solid defensively. Ironically, that obviously transpired to have the complete opposite effect. We went with Jeff [Jefferson Diaz] at right wing-back, we defended the midfield or the middle third with a four, and we left Sang Bin up there on his own—probably with less durability to get good pressure on the ball, where we did in moments post the first 10 minutes or so once we made a subtle change. So certainly, that contributes, but again, there’s no part of me that would, even if I were presented with that situation again, expect to make those exact same changes and experience what we've experienced tonight. I do certainly hold myself accountable in those moments, but the reality of the situation is we were 3-0 up, we were comfortable, we made logical changes—changes that I would say, eight or nine times out of 10, would have a positive effect on the game and help us see the game out, as they have done in the past. But tonight wasn't the case. There would be a couple of things that spring to mind for sure.”
On Hassani Dotson’s goal…
“No, maybe not as familiar as he would like me to be. But he's taken that really well—really impressive bit of skill—and it's just a shame that we've ended the night on a sour note because I think it was a goal that deserved to be a part of a winning performance. The rest of the performance up until 60, 65 minutes was deserving of a really joyous night here because I felt like we put ourselves in a really good position and we'd shown some really high-level stuff that I think typifies us as a team.The remaining 30 minutes, of course, has left everyone with a sour taste. Unfortunately, it will shadow that moment a little bit, but I'm sure when we look back at it in the goals-of-the-season montage at the end of the year, with this feeling stripped away, we'll really enjoy that. ”
Midfielder WIl Trapp
On the message to the team…
“We are all disappointed. It’s unacceptable to be winning 3-0 and to end it the way we did. There’s obviously individual moments, there’s collective moments, it’s a disappointing result to leave here without three points. If we learned anything from last year it’s about picking ourselves up, it’s about learning from the mistakes that we made and shoring things up for the next game. It’s going to come quick, we have guys leaving. We are disappointed, the responsibility falls on all of us as players. It’s that cliche of looking in the mirror and having conversations about how we can improve because that’s where we have to go. ”
On feeling like the team took its foot off the gas in the second half…
“A little bite. The first goal that they score, excites them. It’s a play where we got fresh guys on the field. They are still acclimating to the speed of the game, but it feels a little soft. Then what I am disappointed in for all of us is just the collective mentality of trying to wake ourselves up and realize, ‘hey, this game is not done, there is still thirty, twenty-five minutes left,”. And it’s about bunkering down and understanding that we need to be better in the small moments, in the details, but also don’t just invite pressure. We have to try to win the game, not just hold on to not lose the game.”
On improving the winning mentality moving forward…
“If it’s just a one-off or if this was something deeper-seeded. I would like to say that it’s probably not systematic of who we are. When these things do occur it’s taking them and respecting what we saw and there’s a responsibility to change it and fill in these gaps.”
On MNUFC Head Coach Eric Ramsay having a different edge after the draw…
“He’s frustrated, he’s upset and he should be. As players, when you have a manager that expects high things from you, as a group and when you don’t meet those expectations, like we didn’t in this game for the last thirty minutes we should feel disappointed and we do.”
On bridging the gap between the first sixty-five minutes and the end of the game…
“You have to look at the context of the game. It’s 3-0, that seems like it’s under control, but these games are never under control. So when the guys come onto the field it’s about those that are on the field, bringing them up to the level and keeping our level high, but also for the ones coming onto the field the responsibility of adding too, not just holding water. It’s about how can I help us win this game? Those are an area of improvement for our group and ultimately it’s good that we trust our group with subs coming on and we want to lean into the durability and depth of this squad and these are moments where we just saw a gap and we are going to try and just fill it in. ”
On Morris Duggan and the own goal…
“Those are unlucky moments. It’s nothing more than a deflection, it hits off his heel. It’s not systematic of his [Morris Duggan] performances the first three and half, three quarters of the season. I don’t think he should take it any harder than that, it's just disappointing that they scored the second goal. He’s been great for us. He’s definitely been a surprise for the staff, for a lot of us as teammates, but he’s taken his opportunity really well. ”
On going into future games and avoid letting a lead slip away…
“It’s playing to win the game. Playing not to lose is something where what you resist persists and those things show up and eventually you are inviting more and more pressure and the chance of you losing or tying the game goes up when you are just holding on it the scarcity mindset. For us it’s just about coming in and playing to win always. That sounds very simple, but if the whole group is thinking about how can I win this game, how can in effect the game going forward then naturally things start to conspire for you going that direction versus the opposite.”
On Hassani Dotson’s goal…
“It was an amazing strike. We know he [Hassani Dotson] is capable of that, but it’s always good to see when it comes out. It’s a wondergoal, truly. He hit it about as good as you can hit it. He’s a guy who we know is capable of doing those things, but when it comes out in that moment it was pretty special.”
On transitioning forward at the end of games…
“You have to look at if our behaviors changed when we were up 3-0. Yes we took on a different shape in a 5-4-1. So that also alters how we can put pressure on an opponent. How we can cut off angles that were there in the first sixty minutes that now are different in the last thirty. We have rehearsed these things well enough to understand the compactness is a way for us to control the game. We win the games by being extremely tight, extremely hard to breakdown. You saw that for the first sixty minutes. Then Kansas City being the more expansive team, we were able to hit them on the break and score some good goals. That’s still playing to win the game. It doesn’t necessarily feel or look like the dominant in-possession to win team, but this is the style that we are all about this season. It’s more of a mentality perspective of winning individual duals. When we win the ball how do we activate and try to get the ball, move for your teammate. These are little things, that are super important. It seems simple, it seems small, but they are the little things that add up to win you the game or cause you to tie or potentially lose it”.
