Sporting KC Manager Peter Vermes
On the team’s performance playing up a man…
"I think we started the game off well and their goal is a fluke. We maintained our composure, we started playing and I think we started getting some really good chances. Unfortunately for them, one of their players lost it and did something that he is not supposed to do. Unfortunately for them, they lost a guy. I’ve said this all along, I think that VAR is a welcomed new technology in our sport. I think it’s important. There are too many things that happen and the referee can’t see everything. I think tonight was a difficult game for the referee but I thought he did a really good job. I say that because from what happened to [New England] in their last game, you knew they are going to come out, fight and be hard and he had to manage some difficult situations. I thought he did a really good job of doing that, kept the game calm, made a good decision on that play and our guys took care of the rest. It was good to get the second goal before the half. That was important to come in 2-1 and then the third goal was obviously the ability for us to close the game out. It helps us, keeping some of our legs going into Wednesday. So that’s where our focus is now."
Keys to the team’s offensive success tonight…
"Movement. And then the second goal was big-time from the point of view that when [Graham] Zusi makes a 60-yard run like that, it makes the defense have to make a decision. It’s not only him. You have Gerso on the right, you have [Diego] Rubio coming in on the left and you have Latif [Blessing] coming. All those different runs are making their defense have to make to make decisions and I thought we were really clinical in that situation."
On playing mostly starters tonight with the Open Cup Final on Wednesday…
"The fact that we played here tonight on Saturday and are playing here on Wednesday, there is no doubt that we can manage that from a physical perspective. I actually like the fact that we are in the rhythm to play the next game. Tonight wasn’t easy. No matter how you look at it, the final was in the back of their minds and so I thought the guys did a good job of managing this game, getting the points and now understanding that our focus and our preparation has to be on Wednesday."
Sporting KC defender Graham Zusi
On the play which resulted in a Krisztian Nemeth red card…
"It was a throw-in. He was backing up into me, he touched and then threw an elbow. I went down and turned to the ref. He noticed me down and I told him that I caught an elbow and I told him to look at the replay."
On the team’s performance going up a man…
"The thing is if you go up a man, a lot of times you can become lax and change the way you are playing. We did the exact opposite. We took it up a notch. First of all, we had to come back from being a goal down. Second of all, that’s what it was going to take to break them down. When we play the way that we can, really move the ball and make runs off the ball, things are really going to be there for us to get in behind."
On the boost tonight’s win gives the team heading into Wednesday…
"It’s a win so it gives you confidence. It gets us into a little bit more of a rhythm here at home. I think that is really all you get. This is a bit different. [Wednesday] is a final. We know that the [New York] Red Bulls are going to come in here with that mentality. It’s all or nothing and we have to do the same thing."
Sporting KC defender Matt Besler
On focusing on tonight’s match despite the Open Cup Final being on Wednesday…
"Leading up to the game, we say all the right things. We put our head down and approach things the right way, but we’re human. We all know what is on the horizon. Wednesday is a very big game for us. We are playing a final. Credit has to given to the group as a whole. We handled things professionally as a group tonight. We got the points we needed and now we move on."
On how the physicality of the match will affect the region process going into Wednesday…
"That is something we talked about going into the game. We talked all week long about how we wanted to fly to the ball and how we wanted to press hard. That amplified with New England’s game midweek. We were planning on going out hard form the beginning of the week, but when we saw what happened in the beginning of the week when they went down two men and had to chase the game for however long, that amplified things for us even more. We wanted to make sure we started strong because we knew they are going to be heavy-legged. And obviously, that showed."
On how the team managed the game…
"To be honest with you, I think we managed it well. I honestly think things worked out almost perfectly tonight. They had an early red so we played the majority of the game up a man. I don’t know exactly when we went up 3-1 - in the 60th minute about - so we had 30 minutes at the end where we were able to spread them out and keep the ball. I don’t think we exerted too much energy and I think that’s a good thing going into Wednesday."
On the importance of getting tonight’s win heading into the Open Cup Final…
"It was important. Again, that’s something we talked about. We hadn’t been at home in a while so we wanted to get back into a rhythm because playing at Children’s Mercy Park is a lot different than playing on the road. So we wanted to make sure we got a good one under our belt before Wednesday’s big game."
New England Revolution head coach Jay Heaps
On Krisztian Nemeth’s red card in the 11th minute…
“We’ve got to give ourselves a shot, and I thought we started the game really well, brightly. We talked about being really smart and manage 15 minutes, and getting a red card just absolutely – it hurt us in a double way because we just had two of them on Wednesday night so losing a guy and being down men down for two games in a row is really difficult.”
On how physically taxing it is to play two games in a week with players sent off…
“It’s physical, it’s emotional, it’s – you name it. When you have the game on Wednesday night and then all of a sudden you score a goal and you’re feeling really good, I thought our approach to the game was going to be spot on. Even when we were down a man, some of the stuff we were doing was pretty good. Ultimately, we never even gave ourselves a real shot cause being down for 70 minutes is near impossible.”
On if tonight was more frustrating than Wednesday because the players now knew the consequences of VAR…
“Yeah, obviously we talked about it and were aware of it and in the first 15 minutes it was game plan one – manage the game, which means be smart, and not get ourselves into any situations that would put us in trouble.”
On rebounding against Toronto FC next weekend…
“Well obviously I think it’s important that we get ourselves rested, it’s been two long games. Get back to Boston, start game-planning, get ourselves ready. It’s going to be a tough game but something that is a must-win for us.”
New England Revolution forward Kei Kamara
On enduring a tough result in his return to Kansas City…
“Since I left here in 2013, I’ve been looking forward to coming back and play in this stadium, but not the kind of game I was expecting. It’s tough, it’s really tough, it’s been tough road games for us, but I appreciate every single minute and every single fan gave me so much love as they always did when I used to be here and I can’t take that away because in this game that we play, it’s very special when people show you that much love. But I really wanted – today was the game that I wanted points more than anything else because you still want to prove yourself and celebrate but it was tough for us today, so it’s really tough to get out of here without any points but it was good to be back home.”
On the sides reaction going down to 10 men after being down to nine men on Wednesday…
“As a striker particularly, it was really hard because I was looking at Juan (Agudelo) in that last game when we went down and just knowing how much he was running around and I felt so bad for him and then that happened again today and I just said ‘man, it’s going to be the same thing just running around here.’ But we worked hard, we fought no matter what. Kansas City’s a good team and more when they play in this house it’s very difficult to beat them here. So going a man down, it was just a grind, we stuck in there, it was difficult, obviously we couldn’t get another goal – first good goal by Teal (Bunbury) - but it was difficult, we couldn’t pick up another one but it’s just frustrating when we get an early card like that but hey, another victim to VAR.”
On physically and mentally rebounding when Toronto FC visits next weekend…
“We have to know it’s been two tough road games, but there’s one thing that we do well – it’s play well at home. So it doesn’t matter who’s coming over, they’ve been there before and we’ve shown what we can do so that’s one thing we can do – get our points at home. To go far, you’ve got to get points on the road too and that’s been hard for us this year, it’s really about just getting back East, getting home, get rested and be ready for the weekend.”
New England Revolution forward Teal Bunbury
On the team’s reaction to the red card having just played two men down on Wednesday…
“It’s difficult, really, to put into words. Mistakes I guess happen but some things – you just know better. It was tough going down a man, especially playing away from home, especially playing in Kansas City. We know how much talent they have and we knew they were going to put us under a bunch of pressure. We were able to handle a little bit of it but inevitably they were going to break through at some point. I commend the guys for putting in all the work for 90 minutes, we didn’t let up, so I’m proud of the guys for that but moving forward now, there’s just zero excuses.”
On scoring early and then being impacted by the red card…
“Going up a goal on the road, it’s huge. It should’ve been something to catalyst us to go forward but the most important thing is getting points and we dropped points tonight that are crucial for us so now it’s looking pretty tough. But we’ve got to keep grinding and now we’ve just got to stick together and see what happens.”
On if it’s extra frustrating to get a VAR red card tonight after receiving two VAR red cards on Wednesday…
“It’s just frustrating, period. It’s not anything added or less, when things are frustrating, that’s what they are. They happen in this sport unfortunately but at this level we have to all be alert, be bought into something and just be ready for whatever comes our way.”
On the importance of recovering this next week after the two-game road trip…
“We’ll have to recover, but there can’t be any excuses anymore. We need three points at home and probably here on out we need to win every game. So starting with TFC, we have to have a mindset of winning no matter what it takes. If guys need to get ice, get treatment, whatever it might be, we need to be ready Saturday night at home against Toronto."
