Head Coach Adrian Heath
On the initial reactions to the game against Toronto FC on Saturday night…
“I always say that you never turn a point down, at home or away. You’ve taken something from the game. In hindsight, looking back at the game and seeing the amount of chances that we created, it was another game where we had 20 shots at goal- 21 shots away in Austin. So, we’re doing something right. Now, we’ve got to start taking a fair proportion of those opportunities that are coming our way and if we do, we give ourselves a good opportunity to win games, especially at home.”
On the defensive performance containing the Toronto FC strikers…
“I think we’re fourth in the league in terms of our defensive- there’s only two teams, I think, who’ve conceded less goals than us all season in Major League Soccer so that bodes well. I’m sure the back four will say it’s not just them, it’s the four in front of them and then it starts from the front. The game’s changed now, it’s not a case of us and them. It’s [that] 10 are defending, 10 are attacking, and we’ll all do it together. At the moment, we’ve got one side of the equation working really, really well. We’ve got to get the attacking part going now.”
On having an entire week to prepare for the game at the weekend…
“We haven’t had a full week because I’ve given two or three days off. We had Sunday, Monday, Tuesday off. Today is the first day, you could see there was an extra zip in the players. I think mentally, as much as physically, it was good for them to get away and have a few days. It’s never easy; nine games in 31 days with the travel involved as well. We gave them some time off, but it was nice to get a really nice, hard session in the midweek of a full week.”
On Emanuel Reynoso’s 2023 debut at home on Saturday…
“Not only did the crowd react to him, his teammates reacted to him as well. We know he’s a quality player. Listening to their [Toronto FC] staff when Rey [Emanuel Reynoso] got his top off, it was like ‘oh my god here he comes,’ and he did, he delivered. His quality from set pieces was amazing. He got some great balls in the box, did a little bit out wide to create the goal. We know Rey’s a quality player. Now, we’ve got to get him fit physically and mentally. We’ve got another game this weekend, and then we’ve got a two-week gap [where] we can get a lot more work into him. By the time we get to [Real] Salt Lake, he should be fully fit.”
On the match at CF Montreal on Saturday…
“Hernan’s [Losada] team is normally very, very fit and they get after the opposition. They get after you at home. It’s always been a difficult place to go. We’ve had some good results there in the past, let’s hope that continues. I think the other one for us is that we know what’s coming: they’ve got some good, young players. They’ve got plenty of athleticism. They’ve got plenty of pace. We’ll have to defend well but that’s been a good part for us, and then take our opportunities if and when they come on the counterattack.”
On Hassani Dotson returning to his old form…
“Yeah, when you’ve had the amount of time that he’s had out with his ACL, you might be fit to play and to train, but you don’t get that match sharpness and that doesn’t come very quickly. Normally, it’s three, four or five months, some cases longer. I just feel as though, the last couple of games, we’re starting to see the old Hassani [Dotson]; getting him out [on]the pitch, breaking plays up, driving with the ball. And when he’s doing his best stuff, he’s very difficult to play against.”
On the possibility of a similar formation with Sang Bin Jeong up top as striker…
“We’ll see. We’ll have a good look at them today and tomorrow, we’ve been through one or two things. We’ll see which shape we feel as though will be the best for us. We’ve got options. Mender’s [Garcia] come in and did well when we were in Austin. Sang Bin’s [Jeong] come and I thought [over] the weekend, we’d seen little bits more of him. Whichever way we go, we ought to be really competitive.”
On a week of rest factoring in to choosing the roster for the weekend…
“In terms of getting everybody on the pitch, we know we’ve got a little break after this. Let’s get this game over with. Let’s do what we’ve been doing on the road, play like we have been, take some opportunities if and when we get them, see if we can keep this away form going. If we do, we’ve got a break to- hopefully the likes of [Bakaye] Dibassy, the likes of Rey [Emanuel Reynoso] will be fully fit come [Real] Salt Lake.”
Midfielder Hassani Dotson
On the match against Toronto FC last Saturday…
“We were pretty disappointed to get a tie as a result. I think we built out of the back a lot better. In the first half, we played a little bit too slow, I don’t know if it was from tired legs. Overall, we’re disappointed with a point, especially the last two matches that we feel like we should’ve come away with a win.”
On getting a result at CF Montreal this weekend…
“The last couple of seasons, they’ve had a good recipe for success. To do what we’ve been doing on the road of being pretty compact and playing a more disciplined style of soccer and trying to catch them [opponents] on the counter. We’ll be going over more video to see the spaces that we can exploit, but they’re [CF Montreal] a pretty good balanced side.”
On his midfield partnership with Wil Trapp…
“Since he’s gotten here, we have a pretty good, open dialogue in how we view the game and our strengths and weaknesses. We try to make sure, most importantly, to be on the same page, it helps us get out of many problems. When you can have that good relationship and talk through things, it makes the partnership that much easier.”
On his injury recovery and feeling close to full strength…
“Soccer wise I think I’m improving a little bit. The game has slowed down a bit since coming back from injury. Fitness levels aren’t fully back to where I was before, but I’ve been talking with the doctor and all the staff; they said it’s pretty normal. [I’m] excited for a full week to get some good lifts in and recover a little bit from the madness of May. I’m slowly progressing in the right direction.”
On when to expect to see his next goal…
“I know I’m definitely overdue. I think I’ve gotten unlucky a couple of times. I’m just as hopeful as you guys are.”
