Sporting KC interim head coach Kerry Zavagnin
Thoughts on the match…
Based on our deficiencies in recent weeks, certainly playing with four in the back, we thought an extra central defender would help us shore up some of the weaknesses that we've had especially in and around the goal. Added to that, the way Minnesota plays gets a lot of numbers in there, is a direct team, doesn't like to have a lot of the possession, picks up a lot of second balls, we felt another number in there would be able to help us in the battle of what we knew was going to be a difficult game. They're very good on set pieces, which they showed again tonight. To be honest with you, I think in the first half we defended actually very well. The set piece was unfortunate, because up until that point there really wasn't a lot going on in front of our box. For that being away from home, considering the circumstances, I was pretty pleased with. But once again, as has been some of the games this year, we've been weak on set pieces and that bit us again tonight. Coming out of halftime, I think things were a little bit more the same. Unfortunately, we gave the ball away in midfield from a central defender and they went down and scored. We were really playing catch up from then on out. And as the game evolved, as it went into the third goal and we started bringing numbers on the field, the game was more or less finished. But I do think we did have the chance in the first half, not many, but certainly the 1v1 with Mason (Toye) in on goal would have been nice to have capitalized on. Coming in at halftime even instead of down would have been helpful for us, but like has been most of the year, we weren't strong enough defensively in the key moments and that once again did us again in tonight.
On the morale of the team…
I think it's as you would probably suspect. The guys are gutted because I think they've put a lot of hard work into the year. It's been a heavy year for everybody and as we've come down the stretch, certainly in the last 6-8 games, the results haven't gone our way. And any season, no matter what it is, no matter what things are happening on or off the field, it's difficult when you suffer this many losses in a row. What I do appreciate about the guys, and I told them after the game, is that it'd be very easy to give up and quit in these last couple of weeks and they haven't. And that's a compliment to them, to their character, and the way they've addressed some of these big challenges over the course of the year. I know they're not going to give up, I know we're not going to give up. We want to finish strong. We want to put in a good performance in two weeks to finish out what has been a difficult year for us.
On the second half approach…
We didn't need the goal to start the second half and as we've come in from halftime down in a lot of games this year, we felt in the second half, as we started adding more bodies into the game around the 60th minute, we thought that we'd be in that position to now put our foot on the gas and now go in the last 30 minutes. But unfortunately, I think the second goal really hurt us. If I'm not mistaken, it was around the 59th minute, right before we were going to add a few guys into the game. That changed a little bit of the game plan, but they didn't have much in the game and the longer they went with that, I thought we defended actually pretty well in that formation in the first half. So I decided to stick with that a little bit longer to try to draw the game out, hopefully get it into the last 30 minutes and then start adding attacking players.
On the possibility of finishing last…
I don't think we actually talk about it that much and maybe that is something that we should aspire to, but I think the guys are in a position right now with so many of them uncertain about their future and with the difficulty of the season that of course there's something to play for in terms of positions on the roster next year and certainly opportunities for guys to make their final cases. That in and of itself is a strong point. But as a club, we are a proud club and our history has been very strong. We do want to finish in front of our fans in our stadium in a very good way, regardless of the situation.
On the play of Ian James…
He's a young, promising player. We've seen some tremendous speed over the last couple of games. He's getting more comfortable playing in Major League Soccer. That's what young players need. We know that there will be mistakes and he certainly had his share of mistakes, but we feel that by putting him out there, we're going to see him grow very, very quickly. I think in recent weeks, despite the fact that the team hasn't gotten positive results, he's been very steady. He's growing each and every game. It's nice for him to play in his hometown tonight. I thought he had a tremendous game. And with 1,500 minutes played for a 17-year-old this year, that's a really good sign for him and also for the club moving forward.
Sporting KC captain Erik Thommy
Thoughts on the match…
The first half was the same game from both sides. Defended well. Conceded an unlucky goal after a set piece and then had a big chance from Mason [Toye] before halftime which could have equalized the game. After halftime we need to be more alert because the way we conceded goals two, and three was way too easy. Obviously after that it’s tough to comeback. What can I say, I’m proud of my team and that we never gave up. We had a chance that hit the cross bar from [Namanja] Radoja and some small chances at the end. After 3-0, it’s tough to comeback. Obviously we are not happy with the result or the seasons and we’re looking forward for the next game against Houston.
On the group’s mentality…
If I look at the team and at the group I think they were not the problem at all the entire season. If you reflect on our games, and how often we came back in the second half, it shows our mentality. The last five games, we were not successful at all. At the end, a lot of things came together, but I'm standing right in front of my group, in front of my team, because I know how good the guys are in the locker room. In soccer, sometimes good is not enough. That comes out in different points of the game. I think it takes more than one day, more than one week to reflect on the last five games and that goes for the entire season as well.
On the mindset for the next match…
The next focus is on the next game. It's not only me, there are a lot of players who are running out of contract, but there is another opportunity for us to show ourselves as a group in front of our own fans. They deserve more than we showed the entire season. I've said it a couple of weeks ago, we couldn't do that, but we wanted to finish with at a least a win at home. Then we will see what the off-season brings us. Obviously, it's always a pleasure and I’m proud to wear the jersey of Sporting. Let's enjoy the last game. Today is a sad and disappointing day, and tomorrow will be the same, but after that, we'll come back and prepare for Houston.
