Head Coach Adrian Heath
On his experience over the course of All-Star week…
“It’s been a heavy schedule trying to look after two teams instead of just one. It was a huge game for the club this week. It’s been a different week for sure, but looking at the guys this morning… real spring in their steps. Looking forward to the weekend.”
On his pride for the club as a whole on Wednesday night…
“I thought it was a great night for everybody associated with our club. I was pleased for the ownership group who’ve invested an awful lot of money and for all of that to come together on one special evening was great. The people, the staff who worked internally and externally, unbelievable when you consider we had the Skills Challenge to cope with as well. There’s a lot of things to be pleased with and as you say, I couldn’t be more proud for everybody connected with the club.”
On any particular standout moments from the All-Star game…
“I think the game was really important for Dayne [St. Clair] coming on the back of last week. I think the fact that he’s come up with a couple of big saves I think will do him good. Restored a little bit of confidence. Overall, the night for me was the support again. Incredible atmosphere within the stadium. Another victory because, whichever way you dress it up, it’s a little bit more important than people think at times. I think it showed with the reaction of the players at the end of the game how much it meant to them.”
On how the team feels after the result at Colorado last week…
“We trained earlier in the week and I gave them Thursday off and today’s been real spring in their step this morning. Some real good quality. Everybody looks fit. We’ve got the guys back again, Robin [Lod], and Boxy [Michael Boxall], and Rey [Emanuel Reynoso]. I’m looking forward to the weekend.”
On how new signee Jonathan Gonzalez has been settling in…
“Really good. He speaks perfect English anyway, so that’s not been a problem. The one thing that stood out, you can see his quality. We had a good long chat of where he sees himself and I’m looking forward to getting to work with him over the next few months.”
On what he has made of Nashville’s season so far…
“Well, obviously, it’s not what they had last year. But the one thing is they have a load of talent. Teal [Bunbury] and C.J. [Sapong] up top are a real handful. You know we’ve seen for the last two or three days, I’ve seen close up, the talent that Hany Mukhtar’s got. They’ve got a lot of really experienced players. As I said to the guys this morning, we’re going to have to play well to win this weekend.”
On Nashville’s approach to playing at home…
“I think they’ve switched their formations around a little bit. They’ve gone with three in the back and then a real solid five in the back. They’ll be back to a four with nearly a diamond in the midfield, so they’ve changed the way they’ve played and a lot of flexibility this year. It’s one of them for the opposing coach where you’re not quite sure what will happen until you actual get there on the day.”
On getting players back into the lineup…
“Obviously, I didn’t want to use this as an excuse last week, but to lose five of your first team starters is never ideal. They’re all back. They’re all looking fresh. Let’s go again. We’ve got a huge ten, eleven games coming up and every game is going to count.”
Midfielder Jonathan Gonzalez
On what it’s been like since he has arrived…
“It’s been great. I’m from the States so I know how everything works. I’ve seen the club. I’ve seen my teammates, all the staff, and I think that we have a big chance of doing good things this season. It’s just been great.”
On approaching coming to the MLS…
“I was actually looking for that move back a while back. I’m glad it happened. I’m really happy to be back here and just show the league, my family, everything that I can do. Happy to be back.”
On who from the team has been welcoming…
“Just coming in…the Latinos. Just from me being from Mexico, they’ve helped me here. Shown me around.”
On how he sees himself contributing to the team…
“I’m just hoping to help the team in any way, wherever I’ll get the chance to play. I’m really happy for that.”
On how much he followed MLS in his time away…
“In Mexico I did watch a couple of games. My brother also plays here in the U.S. so I would be aware of the games. We’re in a good position, so we’ve got to keep getting points.”
On if he experienced any of the All-Star festivities…
“I didn’t get any tickets, but I saw it on TV. It’s a great show. Everything was great.”
On how the MLS has grown over the years…
“When I left when I was like 14, 15 the league was so much different. Just coming back…it’s changed drastically, so that’s great.”
