Sporting KC Manager Peter Vermes
On Graham Zusi's positive impact on the team...
He gives us something different that you can't replace when he's not out there. He was very good for 30 minutes. What was really good was his transition from defense to attack--that was excellent. As much as I think the team is playing very well, we're very dangerous, especially on the counter. We'll want to keep increasing his minutes. Maybe [next game] we'll go 60 or 75. We'll look at that in the next couple days here.
On the possibility of offering trialist Marcel de Jong a contract...
It's something that we're assessing. Obviously he's been tested against these teams, but he's got a lot of interesting qualities as a player, no doubt. He's very good on the ball and reads the game really well. He's an excellent passer out of the back, as well. It was solid play on his side.
On the developing attack partnership between Dom Dwyer and Krisztian Nemeth...
It's very early on, but I think they can play off of each other in a special way because they both have complimentary qualities. Dom can really break the line and take off and go. Krisztian is that link-up guy. So from that point of view, it's been so far, so good. It's still very early and they have a lot of time still to get adjusted. I'm hoping that somehow they'll forge a decent partnership.
On the qualities of Bernardo Anor...
He's a really powerful guy. He does a lot of things on the dribble, which I really like. It's important that he continues to get familiar with the things that we want to do. He brings some uniqueness in some of his qualities. He does things off the dribble and he's got a great shot from distance. He can hit a great ball over distance to other people, as well. We've brought a lot of interesting pieces in, and like I said before, we have a long way to go. There's a lot of newness to the team, and we're still just trying to find ourselves.
On the head injury sustained to Ike Opara early in the second half...
I think he's doing all right. I'm not 100 percent sure of what his status is, but I think he's doing okay. (His substitution) was just more precautionary.
Sporting KC Winger Graham Zusi
On making his preseason debut after returning from injury...
It felt good to be back out there. It was my first competitive match since the end of the season last year. It was exciting to be out there with the guys and a nice test for me physically. I thought I responded pretty well. I haven't thought about how long I'll play next game. I went about 35 [minutes] today. I imagine playing hopefully a half next time. If my foot keeps responding well, we can keep increasing the minutes.
On the developing attack partnership between Dom Dwyer and Krisztian Nemeth...
I think it's going to be a great pairing up top with the two of them. Krisztian will allow Dom to keep pushing the line. He's a guy who comes underneath and holds the ball very well for us. He's a great finisher himself, too. I think it works very well. We're still working things out, but every game we'll get more and more on the same page. I think it's going to get better and better.
On the qualities of Bernardo Anor...
Bernardo is a very dynamic player. I think you saw today that he's very good on the ball, and he can beat people on the dribble. He's a fast player--he's almost quicker on the ball than he is off it. He's always looking to go forward, which I think is a very important piece for us. When we win the ball, we want to look forward first, and he's a guy who always does that. The past few games, he's been very good for us. That attacking option is going to be good for us in the future.
Sporting KC Winger James Rogers
On scoring his first goal in a Sporting KC uniform...
It was a great opportunity. I'm so happy. I was just on the right side and Jimmy Medranda passed me the ball. I moved it onto my left and hit it into the back of the net.
On playing well while trying to earn a professional contract...
It feels really good. Everything I've been doing in practice is showing up and I'm very grateful for the opportunity.
On his preseason experience with the team...
It's been really fun because I'm with a very good group of guys. We're always lifting each other up.
