Head Coach Adrian Heath
On the matchup against Vancouver…
“I think, if you look at the 90 minutes, they [Vancouver Whitecaps] probably deserve something from the game with the amount of efforts they had. I thought they played particularly well on the break. In the manner that it [Vancouver goal] happened, that was the disappointing thing because we’ve had some explanations, but I’m still not quite sure they’re what we wanted to hear. It’s disappointing when it’s so late, last kick of the game. Overall, when I consider the group that we put out, considering five or six of them that’s the first time they played 90 minutes since preseason, I was pleased to come out of the game with something. I always talk about two points a game, that gets you near the top of the table and that’s what we’ve got. We’ve got eight points in four games. We’ve had two difficult away games. It’s been a decent start, but now we’ll turn our attention to St. Louis [CITY SC].”
On younger players earning minutes…
“Cameron [Dunbar] got on, and we got [Emmanuel] Iwe on the pitch, we got Zaydan Bello on the field. When you look at all them young guys, there’s nothing like actually throwing them in there to see what it’s going to be like and sometimes needs are a must. I thought Iwe come on and gave us a spark. The crowd responded to him. He showed his ability in one-on-one situations, got a few shots at goal. There was a lot of pleasing aspects from the weekend. I always say a point is a point. People, sometimes, underestimate how important that could be later down the year.”
On the preparing for St. Louis while still missing players…
“One of the reasons that we managed to get some of them guys on was because lads have been away, so they’ll benefit from getting some minutes as well. When they go away into international duty, you want them to go, you want them to do well, but then you’re always fingers-crossed, ‘are they coming back in one piece?’ The players we’ve got, like Bongi [Bongokuhle Hlongwane] down in South Africa, Boxy [Michael Boxall] over in New Zealand, these are days traveling, so you’re always a little bit worried. I think Robin [Lod] and Boxy are back tonight. The Hondurans [Kervin Arriaga and Joseph Rosales] are back tomorrow, and Dayne [St. Clair] will be back tomorrow. So hopefully, they all come back in one piece and then we can see where we all are, see what type of condition we think they’re in regarding the team at the weekend.”
On the elements that have brought St. Louis unprecedented success…
“I think they’d be the first to say that [Joao] Klauss has had four or five back passes that he’s cut out and that was probably not something that they envisioned, but they’ve made the most of everything they’ve got. I’ve watched their last three games that they’ve played and they’ve got a good shape, well organized, obviously playing with a load of confidence now. They’ll be full of it at this weekend and we’re going to have it all on, but we proved when we went to Colorado and went to Dallas that if we get a unit behind the ball and break when we can, then we can be a problem for them also.”
Midfielder Hassani Dotson
On the match against Vancouver Whitecaps FC…
“I thought it was a hard-fought match. It was disappointing to get a tie, especially how it ended. I thought the guys fought really hard. Like I said, it’s disappointing not to come away with three points.”
On how the team faired with seven players away from the team on international duty…
“I think all that guys that came in stepped up. A lot of the guys on the team are capable to start around the league, and it showed the quality that they had. At the end of the day, to be the makeshift lineup, a tie is an OK result for us.”
On his performance and his first 90 minutes after recovery…
“Actually, I was pretty disappointed with my performance. I thought I could’ve done a lot better, but it’s nice to get some experience and get a full game under my belt. Hopefully, I can improve in the following weeks.”
On preparing for St. Louis CITY SC…
“Like you said, they’ve won every single game. We watched some tape on them already. Because we’re undefeated as well, it also gives us that confidence to know that we can go in there and get three points as well. We’re not scared of anyone in the league, so I think it’ll be a fun one.”
Goalkeeper Clint Irwin
On the match against Vancouver…
“I thought we started a little slow but came into the game, and we had a lot of guys out there who were getting their debuts and showing how much depth we have in the team. I thought that we grinded a lot, maybe not our best effort with the ball but a lot of positives in terms of our resiliency and our togetherness. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the result that maybe we deserved for all of the hard work, but there are a lot of positives.”
On his first match with Minnesota United…
“It was awesome. You work hard for the opportunities and to be out there. It was a great atmosphere as well. The support around the stadium really pushed us on and was loud all the way up to the last minute. It was fantastic to be out there and to experience and be on this side of it.”
On moving on from the result ahead of St. Louis CITY SC…
“We have to take the positives from it, the things that we did well and realize these things happen over the course of the season. There’s going to be results where you feel like you deserved more or a call didn’t go your way, whatever it is, and you just have to prepare for the next game. St. Louis [CITY SC] is a very tough team. They started well, scored a lot of goals, obviously top of the table, so it’s going to be a tough match and we have to turn our focus to them.”
