Minnesota United welcomes the Houston Dynamo to town this Wednesday at TCF Bank Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT. Read what the boys had to say ahead of kickoff below:
Head Coach Adrian Heath
On what he can expect from Houston given the number of International call-ups they have:
Well, certainly you can never underestimate the people who are coming in. The likes of Andrew Wenger, people like that who were the number one draft pick. Now, obviously, do we prefer to play this group than one with Alberth Elis and [Romell] Quioto and [Erick] Torres and Boniek Garciá? For sure. But we’re in a similar boat. We’ve got four or five people we would love to be able to play. And we can’t. So it’s not ideal for both sets of teams. And I’m sure, I have spent a lot of time with Wilmer [Cabrera], I think he’s a really good guy, I think he’s a really good coach. So I have no doubt that whoever he puts out, they’ll be well organized and will cause us lots of problems. As they have done for most teams this season.
On an update on Nicholson and Boxall:
They’re in Canada. They’ve had stuff stamped, or Visas granted today. It’s just a case of now getting the passport back. So it’s day-to-day. Hopefully we can get them back today, and then we’ll have a decision to make tomorrow. So, we’ll leave it as late as possible. But, you know, it’s not ideal the fact that they haven’t been here today.
On Brent Kallman looking ready to go:
Yeah! You know, he’s not had enough — he hasn’t done an awful lot of football — for the last week or so. But sometimes needs are a must, and we need him. Because he’s been terrific this season, and we’ve said we’ve missed him when he’s not been available.
On how Brent Kallman is viewed in the leadership hierarchy:
Well he’s at that stage now in his career where he’s here on merit. In the beginning when you're just getting the team, and you’re not sure yet where you stand, in the back and order of everything, you know, it’s a little bit hard to be that leader and be vocal. But as I’ve said to him, he’s here on merit. There’s not many players I would exchange Brent [Kallman] for in this league, and I expect him to start exactly where he finished in terms of his performance levels, because they’ve been excellent this season.
On how important this home-stretch is to get the guys believing they can get this ship going the way they want it to go:
I think it’s pivotal for this season. The next three home games are going to be massive for us. Obviously we’ve got this game tomorrow, which we knew wasn’t going to be easy. Then we’ve got the Red Bulls coming into town, who for me, are probably one of the best teams in Major League Soccer. So, I honestly think we are capable of taking seven to nine points out of these three games. I really believe that. And if we do, this league table will look an awful lot different, and I think it will give the squad a lot of confidence and a lot of belief to move forward.
MNUFC Goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth
On what it’s going to be like to play Houston again, because that was the game he got hurt:
Don’t really think about it too much, to be honest. We’ve played a lot of games between then and now. I’ve had a broken nose and a couple other things, so it’s not really in my brain to be honest.
On what he thinks went well for the team:
When I was playing, not a whole lot in the beginning. But going back and watching the game, I thought in the second half we created a lot of chances. Even in the first half we had a fair amount of chances. They’re one of the best teams at home in MLS, so for us to go there and do that, that’s a positive, and hopefully we can do the same thing tomorrow and create a lot of chances.
On if it adds confidence because MNUFC has already gotten a result against Houston in tougher conditions being on the road:
Yeah. I mean, I think any time that you’ve played a team in the season and have gotten a positive result that definitely helps going into the next time you play them. Obviously us being at home too, because we’ve had great crowds all year, I think for us, it’s just putting in a good performance and getting back to winning at home.
On if they have talked as a team about the importance of these next four home games:
We haven’t had too many team talks about it. I think everybody in this locker room understands that we have to do the business at home. This year our five wins have been at home, so everybody knows how important this next month is for us.
On if the team has assessed the expansion team goal of making it to the playoffs:
For us, we’re trying to take a game at a time. We’ve gone against some of the better teams in this league and got positive results this year, and shown that we can do it on the road against one of the best teams at home in MLS. It’s all about focusing on ourselves. Being a positive team, and going at other teams. Kind of not waiting, sitting on our heels. Like I said, I think tomorrow is a big test for us and an important game.
MNUFC Defender Brent Kallman
On how the rehabbing has been going for him:
The rehab has been good. It’s one of those things that just takes a little bit of time to heal, but it heals itself. Certain things are painful, but it’s pain that goes away right away. So like, it hurts for a couple seconds, and it’s gone. I’m good enough, I’m good to go for tomorrow.
On if he is 100%:
The hardest part is — No, I’m confident in my knee and everything — the hardest part is I haven’t been training in a while. So, I mean, we’re out of options so the team needs me to step up, so I have to, but it was the same thing for Joe [Greenspan] against Columbus. Joe hadn’t trained for a while, and we needed him to step up. And he played, and he did pretty well given the circumstances. So I just gotta follow his footsteps and do what I can I guess.
On how he views his role in this team as a regular starter, and someone who has been around for a while:
I’m not the most vocal guy all the time, it’s something I’m working on, but honest to God, I try to lead by example. And I see my role being solid, week in and week out. I don’t have to try to do too much. I just have to defend well and organize the guys around me, and be solid. I would say that’s my role. And if guys want to follow me from doing that, and hopefully they do, because I try to do things the right way, then that’s good as well.
On if he feels like there is room for him to become more of a leader, or if there are already leaders on the team:
We have some good leadership on this team. We have a lot of veteran guys. But, there is always room for me to grow as a center back and become more of a leader. That’s an area that I can definitely do better in. And it’s such an important part of the position.
