Philadelphia Union Postgame Quotes

John Hackworth
On the game

You gotta give them a lot of credit. They came out and definitely committed numbers forward in the first half and that gave us some trouble. But I thought we were handling it well until we gave up a restart — lost our man, should’ve had an easy clearance on the goal too and somehow, neither one of those happened.

Then we battled our way back into a difficult situation. We created plenty of chances, had counter after counter, and we just couldn’t pull a play off. We couldn’t execute — that’s our fault. So we were not good in that regard. Then to give up a goal in extra time in first half was really, really frustrating.

So, credit to our guys in our locker room, I thought we battled back in the second half and put them under pressure — kept the ball, moved it, created chances, got one back. And I thought we had plenty of chances to get the second one too and it just didn’t fall for us.

On Leo Fernandes

Yeah, Leo came on and was a spark and clearly at that point we needed that. He brought some energy but he also brought some quality touches, and obviously finished it up with a goal. Fantastic contributions early — unfortunate he couldn’t get a second, I really thought he would have scored. He had two great chances: One on his left —  he actually had a couple on his left foot — then the one he had going Clark, the goalkeeper, comes out and makes a good save and he kind of has a chance to get a rebound and it just didn’t happen.

On difficulty of scouting Columbus with new staff and players:

Yes and no, we saw them in preseason so we had an idea. From that regard both teams were going to be familiar with what we were going to try to do. It was a little bit of a chess match because what they wanted to do was to spread us out and we were trying to press them. Every time they could break us down it turned into a good opportunity for them and every time we were able to win a ball in a good spot we at least had the opportunity to create a scoring chance.

On team trends three games into the season: 

Well, I’m really not happy we’ve given up two restart goals, and two of those restarts were just missed clearances. You know that’s — we have to solve that. And, we have given up two goals in extra time of the half, one in Portland at the end of the game, and one here at the end of the first half. We have to solve that, obviously;  we were actually pretty strong until that. We turned the ball over in our half of the field — unnecessary turn over — and we got punished for it.

Brian Carroll
On the first half:

They had two chances in the first half and both of them were goals. Both of them were things we could have been a little bit cleaner with. Anytime you go down on the road two by half time and come out and fight and pull one back and get back into the game, that’s a good step forward. We just weren’t able to get that second goal. But, the guys fought back, gave a ton of effort in the second half and try and get back in it, we just fell a little short.

On fighting back:

We had a good number of chances in the first half as well as the second half. Anytime you go down two you’re clawing, and you’re fighting, and you’re scratching, and you’re stepping up all the time, trying to make it up and get back in the game. We did that, we fought hard; we just weren’t able to get the second goal.

Leo Fernandes
On scoring his first MLS goal: 

I’m very happy that I got my first goal in the MLS, but I’m disappointed in the result. I thought we should have at least tied the game up. We had a lot of opportunities in the second half but, you know, sometimes that’s soccer, that happens.

On what Hackworth told him coming into the game: 

He wanted me to bring more energy, to press the right center back, and to fill in the holes behind Jack, and, you know, make runs and try to make an impact in the game.

What were he was doing that was working: 

Just making a lot of smart runs and playing some good through balls. I was feeling like I had a lot of energy and I tried to use all of it. Unfortunately, we didn’t come back and tie the game. I’m just happy to get my first MLS goal.

Columbus Crew Postgame Quotes

Columbus Crew Head Coach Gregg Berhalter
On the win against Philadelphia: 

I told the guys, this win might’ve meant more to us than two weeks ago because the way we had to do it, the adversity we had to face, especially in the second half. I’m proud of the guys. They kept battling and hung in there.

On Philadelphia: 

I meant more of the opponent. [Philadelphia] played great in the second half. When I look at some of the numbers, in terms of duels won and the pressure they put on us, I think it was very good. A lot of crosses in the box and it made it difficult for us. So, besides the first ten minutes in the second half, the next 15 minutes after that was all Philly.

On the defenders: 

That’s the way we play. We try to set the tone, we try to dictate the game, we try got our backs forward, we try to be aggressive and we have that, especially when you turn the ball over in the middle of the field. We want to turn the ball over in different areas of the field and we put them in some really, really uncomfortable positions today. To be fair, we’ve been doing that all preseason, and they just keep dealing with it. We’re going to have to address it a little bit, but they do a good job in covering up for the mistakes.

On his first match at Crew Stadium: 

It was great. Anytime you can play at home, it’s fun. The fans were fantastic. I think the organization did a good job with the first game festivities and everything surrounding the game. I enjoyed it.

On the attacking game plan: 

We want to switch sides. We want to get their full backs with numbers and I think at times we could’ve switched the field a little better. Sometimes when we were attacking, we were coming off of a switch, so you want to continue on doing that. Overall, I think it wasn’t our best game, but I think it will go a long way in terms of building this team and them having to grind out a result like this. It’s not easy doing that. When you look at some of these possession numbers and duels won, the total of the game they won 56 percent of the duels.  That’s overwhelming and we still hung in there and got a win. I’m happy with that.

On midfielders: 

They play different roles. In terms of the number, Wil [Trapp] will be more of a number six and Tony [Tchani] is more of a number eight. I think they both do that very well. Tony can be a very, very good player, and he is a very good player. He’s so physical, he’s calm on the ball, he can drive forward the ball. We like the qualities he can bring to the team. I believe in him and I think part of my job is to get him to believe in himself and want more from himself. He has a lot of potential.

Bernardo Anor
On what he saw when scoring his 35-yard goal: 

That’s what the game is about; we just have to try and shoot from everywhere and hope for something good to happen. That’s exactly what happened today and I am very happy we pulled it off.

On if he prefers to take the corner responsibilities: 

Either way I think I am fine it’s just the coach’s decision, whether he wants me to take it or he wants me to be in the box. Either way I feel very confident, we practice that set pace over and over. It came out exactly as we practiced. I give credit to the coaches and the team.

On the second goal he scored: 

It’s something you don’t practice very often but, I was fortunate to score the goal and I am happy for that.

Wil Trapp
On embracing his position and role with the club:

I like it, all of the positions and guys on the field. Gregg has put us in these spots because they fit the kind of players that we are. I think the position and role that he has me in fits the player that I am, I relish it.

On seeing the fan support:

The fans tonight were awesome. Winning games for them, it will only get better. That was great to see we battled for them and they responded well to seeing us working hard and grinding out a tough game.

On how the win feels:  

Philadelphia is a good team, they have had some good results this early in the year. I think for us it’s a huge thing, this is the first time in club history we have won the first two games of the season. We came out and battled and stuck together as a team, which is huge. In terms of which game is better for the team, this one is more beneficial for us because you can see how we stick together and bend but not break.