Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes
On Sporting KC’s 4-1 loss to Manchester City…
It would be interesting if we got that kind of workout on a weekly basis. It’s a great team for us to play for a number of reasons. Obviously, for us, our focus is on the League. We are playing a big game on Saturday and that is where our concentration is and was. Our biggest thing is we want to make sure to get out of here unscathed, because as you know we have had quite a few injuries over the course of the season. So from that perspective, everyone got out of there with no injuries, which was great. It was a good environment, a good game for us, a good 45 minutes for both groups and now we can get ready for the game we have to get ready for and that is Toronto.
On the performance of Sporting KC’s new additions…
It was great to see [Jorge] Claros because he brought a dimension that we thought he would. He is going to fit into our team very well. Martin [Steuble] just got here this morning and Michael [Kafari] is a young player who is going to need some time. The biggest thing for him is his fitness. It was good for all three, but I think right now, Claros and Martin are guys that have a good chance of being impact players down the stretch.
On the performance of Erik Palmer-Brown…
We were just having a get-together with their coaching staff and we were talking about him. When we first started our Academy, he was in our U-10 / U-11 group when he was nine or 10 years old. So he is one of the first kids that has been through a full Academy with us. It’s great to see him get on the field and play at that level. I thought he was very good and he has been good since he came on in first game where we put him on in a very tough situation. He has been very good and just keeps getting more experience. He has a great future ahead of him.
On the announcement of the National Training Center next to Sporting Park…
It just continues to show that we have big plans and the organization continues to keep moving forward with the State and continues to grow our organization from a facilities perspective. It’s great with U.S. Soccer, with their interest in doing this and being a part of this. It’s really starting to demonstrate to everyone else that Kansas City truly is the soccer capital of the country in that fact that we are getting this training center, co-hosted with us as well. There are a lot of great things coming in the future here and they are coming pretty quickly. It’s an exciting time.
On the team’s road success…
I think we are a very disciplined team. We play very intelligently and we make it very difficult for teams to play against us. We do the same thing at home, but at times we get a little anxious when they are so bunkered in and we want to score. We want to make sure we reward the environment that we play in and I think at times we get a little undisciplined. We are very focused and disciplined on the road, which makes it very difficult to play against us.
Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini
On Manchester City’s win over Sporting KC…
People who came to the stadium saw a good game, especially the first 45 minutes when the two teams were with their best players. As Sporting Kansas City changed their eleven players for the second half, it was useful for us because it was a very physical game. I understand that Sporting Kansas City was thinking ahead to the weekend, having a very important game against Toronto. And for us, we have a lot of players that are not with our squad at this moment. That’s useful to the other players to demonstrate what they can do.
On the atmosphere at Sporting Park…
It’s different because in England the stadiums are still a bit bigger. This is a very beautiful stadium. The pitch was in good condition to play good football, and the atmosphere of the stadium was very good.
