FC Dallas 1-1 Chivas USA
FC Dallas head coach Oscar Pareja
General thoughts on the match…
Obviously on a night where we were expecting to get three points, tonight was a disappointment for the team. We were hoping to get out of the struggle we’ve had during the last week and a half. The game became complicated after Chivas scored in the second half. During the first half we managed the game. We had some options, even if it was without the penetration that I would have liked to see from this team, but the game was controlled and we were waiting to get a real opportunity.
I knew since the first minute that Chivas was going to sit back and wait for any mistake in the back from us and that’s what happened in the second half. We still had the character to come back to score a goal and had a couple of options that could have given us the three points. I know my players and I know that the disappointment is there.
What did you see from the team tonight and do you see progress for the team going forwardI see a team that sat back and I can’t question that because that’s a fair strategy for any team. It’s a way to get points sometimes. You’re sitting back waiting for the other team to make a mistake and that’s valid. We always had the initiative to play and we tried to somehow make up for the absences that we had in key plays that made us different and more dangerous in the last third. Chivas was a good rival today and they had a good system and plan.
Formation change
We need some feet in the middle and we found those feet with Jair. He’s not going to be very consistent, for sure, because it’s not his natural position, but we wanted to have someone who could penetrate some balls in. We wanted to stretch this team. We knew that they were going to sit back and having Fabian up top with Blas and give him some pressure and some solutions for us.
We had a couple of sequences where we got what we wanted. It was not very fluid or very constant but we saw it. Obviously you saw the first half and the second half were the same.
Chivas USA Head Coach Wilmer Cabrerra
On Tonight’s game…
We’re happy because it was very good work on the field throughout 90 minutes. It was a very solid team, very organized, disciplined and there wasn’t any moment we felt Dallas was coming after us with too many opportunities. We’re sad because we spoke about set pieces and one of the strengths from them was set pieces, but it’s not easy to get a point on the road and we have gotten four points in the last two games on the road so it is important to continue believing in what we do, and for the players to continue working.
On Marky Delgado’s first MLS goal…
I know Marky since he was in the residency program and he is a good player. He’s getting more mature, he’s getting there, getting better, and that is important for him and for the whole team. Marky scored but the whole team was working to give the opportunity, to provide that opportunity.
Chivas USA Forward Marky Delgado
On his first MLS goal…
It feels great. I’ve worked hard all my life, ever since I was a youngin’ to get to this point, and to finally get my first MLS goal, I couldn’t really celebrate. I didn’t know what to do. I just wanted to go down in tears, but it’s during the game. It’s a dream come true to me. I’ve worked hard and my parents’ support got me here, and without them I couldn’t be here.
Chivas USA Goalkeeper Dan Kennedy
On getting a point tonight…
Fantastic result for us. Two-game road trip and we got four points in total, so it’s really a great step for our team and something to build off of. We don’t like conceding goals, but given the circumstances, we’ll take a tie in that game.
On defending FC Dallas set pieces…
We wanted to avoid it by not giving away silly fouls and not conceding corner kicks. I guess the play they scored on started on a set piece, we did clear our box, we just couldn’t quite get the line up because the clearance was wide. I thought, in general, we did a good job dealing with their set pieces and we’re going to move forward with this result.
