Seattle Sounders 1-1 New York
Postgame Quotes
Sigi Schmid – Sounders FC Head Coach
(On the game…) “I thought we were a little bit fortunate tonight. Obviously they hit the post a couple times, as well, in the second half. I thought we had some good looks, some good chances. Robles came up with a couple good saves, but I didn’t think it was our best soccer. I know we can play better than we played tonight. We still came out with a tie, so that’s something. We got a point, we still have some games in hand, but obviously when we play at home we’d like to win.”
(On the rainy conditions…) “Obviously the ball runs away from you a little bit. We got stretched a little bit in the second half. There were some passes that went past people and went out of bounds. If you’re dealing with a grass surface or a non-wet turf surface, those balls are going to stay and guys are going to be able to get on the end of them.”
(On how New York had success…) “I thought we got forward a little bit, but I thought we gave them way too much space in midfield to play. They started to control the ball a little bit in there and their forwards started dropping off and one of them would find that gap. Luyindula sometimes, sometimes Espindola. Cahill pushed a little bit higher and they would find that gap in behind our midfield and in front of our back line. They did a good job of that. Even then, we still had some pretty good looks in the second half on chances that I think we should have converted on.”
(On getting a home draw…) “Anytime we play at home and we don’t win we feel it’s two points lost, whether it’s this game or any other game. For us, you can look at it as a point game because they hit the post a couple times and we could have had zero. We got a point from that standpoint, but anytime you play at home you want to get a win.”
(On Seattle’s chances…) “In the first half, yeah, we had some chances for sure. The biggest one was probably when Eddie [Johnson] slipped past Robles down near the edge of the 18 and crossed the ball and Oba [Martins] headed it wide. Obviously, if you put that one in it changes the complexion of the game.”
(On Brad Evans’ penalty kick…) “He’s done well with his penalties. Robles went the right way, but the ball was well-hit.”
(On the status of the team…) “I think there’s no reason to panic. We still have some games in hand. I know we got some tough games coming up and next week’s going to be a tough week with Colorado and then Vancouver in the middle of the week. And then the end of the week Portland. That’s going to be a tough week for us when two of the three are away. We’ve been put in tough situations before and we’ve met them, so we just have to stand up and meet them again.”
(On the injury status of Clint Dempsey and Leo Gonzalez…) “Clint just wasn’t ready to go and Leo’s been bothered by that groin. We felt we needed to shut them down or else we’d lose him for a more significant part. We’ll see how they come along this week. The expectations now are that they both have a chance at playing this coming weekend.”
(On Marc Burch’s play…) “I thought he did alright…I’m sure he’ll tell you, as well, that he would have wanted to play a little bit more at times. It’s been a while since he played left back. It’s a position he’s played enough few years that it’s not an uncomfortable place for him to play.”
(On the play in the first half…) “I thought we struggled early in the first half and then, like you said, the last 20 minutes of the first half we did really well because we played a little more direct. We also needed to play with less touches. I thought we took too many touches at times on the field and the ball needed to flow a little bit quicker.”
Mike Petke – New York Red Bulls Head Coach
(On the game …) “I’m extremely proud of my guys. Not only to get a result here, but to play very good and to put pressure all over a phenomenal team like Seattle. And to have many scoring opportunities – and they had some as well. To come in and not be intimidated by this crowd and with the recent form of Seattle and in a very stressful environment – I’m very proud of them.”
(On the weather …) “I love this weather. I think this weather was possibly the best thing that could’ve happened to us, to be honest with you. Any type of disruption, although they are used to it here, but any time you can make the conditions and environment a bit ugly like this, you’ll take it.”
(On New York’s season …) “Like I said, all credit goes to the players. Any negative play by us, any bad results, that comes down on my shoulders. Any good results, positive results, is a direct credit to the players.”
(On the game plan and moving Peguy Luyindula up top …) “The insertion of Peguy into the lineup tonight was strictly because he’s very good at holding the ball and he has great vision. We knew that if we could get him the ball past the midfield line, then he turns and goes, that we could be dangerous. I thought he did great tonight.”
(On Tim Cahill’s play …) “Tim never ceases to amaze me – with his work rate, his attitude, his rallying the troops. It’s just another game for Tim.”
(On how their missing players may have affected things tonight …) “I think a lot of emphasis is put on who we didn’t have than on who we did have play tonight, and I thought that was a discredit to a lot of the guys. We knew they weren’t going to travel early in the week so it was out of our mind. That was the focus for these guys. I have faith in these guys and they have faith in each other to come in and get a result, and they did that.”
(On the team’s halftime adjustments …) “Honestly, the adjustments at the half were to keep doing what we were doing. From the opening whistle, we had an opportunity and wanted to keep the pressure on. In the second half, we hit the post, hit the cross bar and had opportunities. It was a good a good game to watch at home, or I’m assuming it was, unless I misread it from the sidelines. I thought it was a great game for ESPN to have and I’m sure people were satisfied.”
