Head Coach Adrian Heath
On today’s training session…
“Good. It’s a little bit different having no game at the weekend, and we feel as though it’s a good opportunity for some of the guys to get plenty of work in. The next sort of five to six days are going to be important for some of the group who have not played enough football. The guys that maybe didn’t have a [good] game at the weekend, this week we can really push them.”
On the scheduling of a bye week in the second week of the season…
“Well, I’m glad we’ve got the bye on the back of a road win. I would hate to have 14 days sort of mulling over getting beat on the road and overthinking everything as you do with defeats at times. But, it is what it is. We’ll get on with it. It would be nice to keep this little bit of momentum, but it is what it is.”
On what stood out about the attack during the FC Dallas match…
“Not so much about the attack. It was strange. Having watched it a couple of times since the weekend, I thought as a collective, it was a really good performance. I don’t think anybody had a game where that goalie was outstanding. I thought the back four were very good in their decision making. They played when they had the opportunity, they cleared the lines when they should have done, and I thought that overall the defensive shape from the front two, all the way back, was excellent.”
On if the style of the play is similar to 2019’s team…
“We didn’t go down with that sort of mindset [to sit deep and take chances on counters]. We wanted to have a line of confrontation in and around the center circle so we could stay nice and compact. And if they [FC Dallas] beat us, they had to play with some really quick, really good combination play. I can’t really remember them breaking down where they’ve played through us very easily. So, that worked well for us. We were pleased with everybody’s contributions. The wide guys took it in at the right time, then getting forward at the right time. Overall, I was really pleased with the performance because it was a testy week last week with the weather and having no guys here, not knowing who’s going to be available for the game up until Friday. For us to play the way we did and get the result we did, it speaks volume of everybody’s commitment to what we were trying to do.”
On what Mender Garcia needs to do to retain his starting spot…
“Mender’s just got to keep doing what he’s doing. I thought his defensive work was excellent. I don’t want to keep talking about his defensive work, but the goal came from Mender. The ball [came] in from Kervin [Arriaga], got a good spot in between the full-back and the center-back, chested-down from Fraga [Franco Fragapane] and then scored off the rebound. There’s a lot more of Mender to come. And, I know that having been a forward myself, there’s nothing like scoring a goal to give you confidence to hopefully get you to the next level. It was a big goal for him. Luis [Amarilla] has still not got his passport back, so he’s still in Paraguay. He’s training. Mender’s put himself in a really good spot.”
On what the team needs to do to get Mender’s touches and chances up in number…
“I don’t think it’s just Mender. If there’s one thing – and I even mentioned it before the game on Saturday – is that we have got to be better in the final third. It’s not isolated situations, but we have to get more bodies in there and then I think our combination play has to be better. Because when we got in the final third over the weekend, we created some opportunities. We’ve got to do it more consistently and do it better.”
On if there is competition between Luis Amarilla and Mender Garcia for a starting position…
“It’s a competition for everybody in the squad. It always is. Every time that you play, you’ve got an opportunity to hopefully nail down that position. That will do Mender no end of good.”
On a timeline for Luis Amarilla’s return to the squad…
“It’s day-to-day. We thought it was going to be last Friday, then we thought it was going to be Monday. As of this morning, nothing’s come through. The fact that we have got a bye this weekend helps us a little bit. Obviously, we want him back sooner than later.”
On a potential U22 Initiative signing…
“We’re hopeful. Wato’s [Mark Watson] flying back from Europe as we speak, so hopefully he’ll have a bit more news for us tomorrow.”
On the health status of Mikael Marques, Brent Kallman and DJ Taylor…
“DJ [Taylor] is one hundred percent. He’s joined in there today. He had a little bit of tendonitis, feels a lot better with that. As I said, [Mikael] Marques rolled his ankle and is probably going to be another couple of weeks I would have thought. And, BK [Brent Kallman] was out jogging this morning, so that’s a good sign. But in terms of, ‘I wouldn’t have thought they’d be available,’ DJ will be for the [New York] Red Bulls game.”
On the timeline for Doneil Henry’s return…
“I think he’s day-to-day, and we’re just going to bring him through.”
On if Doneil Henry will be seen in action soon…
“You’re always hopeful, but I would think three weeks maybe.”
On the tackle on Mender Garcia during the second half of the FC Dallas match…
“Well, the ball doesn’t move. You normally look at the ball, and if it’s got a little bit of it. The ball doesn’t move. It is what it is. I’d probably be a little bit more disappointed with the decision had the result not been what it was. It was their call to say the ball doesn’t move. It’s a foul, so, red card.”
On if Mender Garcia was okay following that tackle…
“He’s fine.”
On decision making and if that leads the guys to success that they have seen…
“We spoke about it as a group on Friday when we did the video of the game. People say it’s bullet point material. I didn’t see anybody that thought we were going to win the game at the weekend. Nobody. You put that on there. These are proud men. The reason that they’re professionals and they take things like that personally. And that’s what they did at the weekend. I sensed in the dressing room before the game that we were going to have a good performance. Can’t guarantee that you’re going to win, but I thought – listening to the group and they way they were talking to each other – I felt good about the 90 minutes. That was the way it unfolded. More of the same, we’ve got a big game coming up in 12 or 13 days against the [New York] Red Bulls. That won’t be any easier. I watched their game over the weekend and thought they were really unlucky not to take something from the game in Orlando. We know what’s coming. The full-press, everybody’s going to be pressing, young team, very exciting team. So, we’ve got to get ourselves ready for that.”
On any new updates on Emanuel Reynoso…
“No.”
On the new MNUFC2 singing Britton Fischer…
“Yeah, he’s doing well. I’m pleased with him. He’s doing really well. Cameron [Knowles] is really pleased with what he’s done. He trained with the first team this morning and I thought he did excellent. He’s had a good start. Very encouraging.”
On his takeaways on the first week of MLS Season Pass on Apple TV…
“I’ve got to be honest, I’ve got a lot of other things on my mind than worrying about the Apple deal. I’m sure it’s going to be good for us long term. A huge company like that, they’ve got the resources to actually do the game and the league a good service, I feel. I think it’s only going to get better week-by-week. I think over the next four or five weeks, you will see that real improvement because they’re all probably still getting to know each other and what their strengths and weaknesses of each other is. I know for a fact that people in Europe just can go on Apple TV now and know when the games are going to be on. That’s a huge bonus for the league because the one thing that my friends in England, they never knew when we were playing or what channel we were on or whatever. I think that’s a real positive.”
On if his friends will watch at the very early hours of the morning in England…
“They do. Just getting in, some of them, but they’re watching.”
Defender Zarek Valentin
On his Minnesota United debut…
“Three points and a shutout, hard to ask [for] too much more. It was awesome to get out there, definitely a little bit nervy. You want to go out and put out a good showing personally. We had a tough preseason but it was one of those things where I think we went out and unified as a group and got a great result in a tough place. It’s [Dallas] a tough place to get a result for most teams.”
On Alan Velasco and shutting him out on Saturday night…
“I wouldn’t say I shut him out, it’s always a team effort. I have a lot of great players around me to make me look good. Boxy [Michael Boxall] covered me from my left and Bongi [Bongokuhle Hlongwane] in front put in an awesome shift, Bongi was fantastic, and Wil [Trapp] too. Those three guys make my job easy just to communicate through those situations and try to force him [Alan Velasco] to get the ball in spots where he might not be as close to goal or might not be as comfortable. I guess that could go for pretty much any winger in the league. Again, I have great players around me to help me out.”
On if the league-wide expectations of the team impacted their play…
“Well everyone always knows, right? These are on Twitter, everyone posts it. You know exactly which pundits gave you what position, but ultimately, we’re inwardly focused on what we can do because that’s all we can control. I think this is the team in the MLS that has the longest standing playoff appearance streak in the league, and there’s something to say with that. Every year, you constantly check and the team is being counted out for a variety of different reasons and this year is no different. Ultimately, we can control what happens on the pitch, whether that’s players being here, whether that’s players not being here, injuries, being on the road, whatever that might be, we have to try to control what’s happening here in Minnesota day-in and day-out to put our best foot forward on the weekend.”
On if the backline’s decision making was due to veteran experience…
“I think that helps to have guys who have been there in certain playoff atmospheres and guys who have played in different leagues, guys who have played in different MLS teams for a variety of years. I know Boxy [Michael Boxall], myself and Kemar [Lawrence] have been in the MLS for quite some time now. I think it’s definitely a little bit of that but also the midfield had a great game as well. We were able to go out there and execute our plan, and we got a result because of that. Now we enjoy it, and we enjoyed it for a few days, but now we have to focus on [New York] Red Bulls. We have a little bit longer of a lead-in then I think some of us might like but really, it’s one of these situations where we’re going to take the rest, and we’re going to get stronger from this, and we’re going to come back and hopefully put on a good performance at home.”
On having a bye in the second week of the season…
“It actually happened to me recently when we were in Houston. Early in the season allows you to clean up some things. If you’re learning and you’re adapting while you’re winning games, that’s a good thing. And obviously, it’s just been one game, so we have to take that with a grain of salt. But ultimately if we can grow from positive results, that’s something that good teams do.”
On if he would prefer to have the week off due to missing players or capitalize off the win…
“It’s tough to say. There’s a variety of reasons for why you’d want to play immediately. When you win, you could go out and play a 90-minute game right afterwards and obviously if you lose, you might want to take some time to reflect. We do have some guys that are away and some knocks, so I think we’re going to use that to the best of our ability. We have a great staff here that’s hopefully going to get these guys back as soon as possible and fulfill our team and get that competition going. Because, the best teams I’ve been on have been deep ones, and the guys that aren’t necessarily starting on the weekend are pushing the starters day-in and day-out.”
On his relationship with DJ Taylor…
“We have a great relationship. We’re just buddies on the field trying to push each other and ultimately want the best for each other. I know that he had a fantastic year last year, and it was awesome to see him play. He won against us [Houston Dynamo]. He was on the squads on the right and on the left, so it’s great to see him develop as a player. To be a veteran, I just want to come in and try to do my role as best as possible. That might look a lot different from week to week. I play a little bit on the left, a little bit on the right, maybe play down the middle but ultimately, just trying to help the team in whatever way possible, and help DJ [Taylor] in whatever way possible.”
On if DJ Taylor has talked to him about his clothing line…
“I have not yet, but I will ask him immediately once we leave here.”
On how he feels about the possibility of a cold, snowy Home Opener…
“Awesome, awesome. I love it. I’m a Northeastern guy from PA [Pennsylvania] so for me this is normal, this is what I grew up in and what I love. For me, I’d rather have the colder temperatures than the warmer temperatures, and I’ve had a few of the warmer temperatures down in Houston for a bit. So for me, it’s been exciting to get out and see snow. My son’s enjoying it, my dogs are not enjoying it, but we’ve enjoyed the weather and enjoyed the change so far. It’s been awesome. I have two half-Frenchies so they want to sit on the heating pad in their bed. They don’t want to go outside very much, I’ll tell you that much.”
On his impression of Mender Garcia…
“He’s a workhorse. Doesn’t take a play off and that’s awesome. I think he rightfully deserved a goal. He’s put in so much, he’s put in a shift, whether he has to play 10 minutes or 90 minutes or 75 [minutes], he’s come out and executed the game plan. He does a lot of the dirty work that I don’t think people give him credit for. For me, when you have a center-forward that’s willing to put in the work, and they get a goal, we should glorify that as much as possible because they’re doing all the dirty work. They’re back-pressing when they have to, they’re pressing the goalie, they’re our first line of defense. We have a good group of attacking players that does the work and is willing to do the work, so when they get rewarded with that goal, I think they’re in the game to score the goal, that’s why they get paid the big bucks. We hope that we can put them in a spot to succeed and to get those.”
On Miguel Tapias’ debut…
“I think he fit in well, you wouldn’t have even thought it was a debut in MLS. He’s a good player. I think he’s only going to grow. A lot of teams will sign players that aren’t necessarily from America and there’s a lot of extenuating circumstances that, at times, take longer to acclimate to I would say whether that’s the weather, whether it’s the travel, whether it’s the style of play but Micky [Miguel Tapias] has come in and adapted really well, and I’m excited to see him grow. I’ve already seen him grow in terms of personally, his personality within the group which is awesome. I know the team is looking forward to getting the best out of him this year.”
On the effort the team had and how to continue it all season…
“I think that has to be the baseline. I know it sounds repetitive or maybe overly simplistic, but everybody needs to give 100 percent on the field and be willing to die for your teammates, obviously facetiously, but you need to be willing to give that, and that has to be the bare minimum. If we go out and we sacrifice for our teammates, that’s step one, that’s what we can control. I can control my effort, my teammates can control their efforts, and we can control how focused we are to execute our game plan. That has to be the bare minimum. And then from there comes moments of brilliance, comes moments where you have to organize during set pieces, comes maybe reading the game where we can capitalize on a mistake. We had a breakaway, that was off a mistake. Even just the savviness to follow up a shot, things along those lines. In terms of having that baseline organization and baseline willingness to grind and compete for each other and be a brotherhood. Want the best for your teammate, put them in a good spot, have their back, pick them up when they’re down, pick them up after a mistake. Those things need to be ingrained so deep in us that we don’t have to think about that. That should be starting point no. one and then from there the quality can take over.”
Forward Mender Garcia
On the feeling of scoring his first goal of the season in the opening match of 2023…
[SPA]: “Creo que ha sido un bonito momento, un bonito comienzo al torneo. Para mí es muy importante que haber marcado en el primer juego. Me llena de confianza y es algo que el equipo quiere, el equipo necesita de mi, tanto de mis compañeros, pero muy contento en el personal porque pude marcar el primer gol del juego.”
[ENG]: “I think it was a great moment, a great start to the year. For me it’s really important that I scored in the first game. It fills me with confidence and it’s something that the team wants and needs from me, as well as my teammates, but I’m personally really happy that I was able to score the first goal of the season.”
On the difference between the first and second half of the game…
[SPA]: “El primer tiempo fue un primer tiempo donde tuvimos en un trabajo táctico. Muy poco tuvimos el balón donde teníamos que prepararnos bien y contratacar. Así fue el primer tiempo. En el segundo tiempo ya cogimos al balón, jugamos, por ende, del partido y de estar jugando entre la bola, creo que por ahí vuelve el gol y creo que esa segunda parte fue muy importante tanto para mí, como mis compañeros porque eso nos ayuda llenarnos de confianza.”
[ENG]: “The first half was more tactical work. We didn’t have the ball a lot and we had to prepare ourselves and counterattack. That was how the first half went. In the second half we had the ball, we played between the ball and I think that’s how the goal came to be. That second half was really important for me and for my teammates because that helped us fill ourselves with confidence.”
On his work ethic and how he came to play the way he does…
[SPA]: “Desde que empecé jugar al futbol, siempre he tenido claro que ese es un trabajo más allá del futbol, que uno se divierte y uno le gusta. Siempre con la responsabilidad de hacer las cosas bien. Me he gustado siempre trabajarme y prepararme bien. Muchas veces no se dan las cosas, pero creo que el trabajo siempre te va a traer recompensas y esa ha sido siempre la clave. Mas allá el orgullo de pues de mi familia que me apoyan siempre, entonces eso me ayuda a motivarme cada día más.”
[ENG]: “Since I started playing soccer, I’ve always had the clarity that it’s work more than just the game, and playing to have fun. Always with the responsibility to things the right way. I’ve always enjoyed working and preparing myself well. Sometimes things don’t go your way but the work will always reward you and that has always been the key. In addition to my family who always support me, that’s always helped motivate me every day.”
On the expectations he has for himself this season…
[SPA]: “Mis expectativas desde llegue acá siempre ha sido que puedo marcar muchos goles primero que todo, de sacarme como goleador. Es lo que quiero y ya más allá lograr objetivos con el equipo grupal que es lo que queremos todos.”
[ENG]: “My expectations since I arrived have always been that I can score lots of goals, and above all, to be a goal scorer. It’s what I want and even more to achieve the group objectives with the team, that’s what we all want.”
On if he prefers having a week off or to continue playing with the momentum they gained…
[SPA]: “Por la motivación que tengo y tiene el grupo, nos hubiese usado jugar este fin de semana, jugar el sábado. Vinimos con la confianza y eso nos hubiera ayudado mucho a seguir creciendo durante el torneo. No se dio así y hay que seguir. Eso nos sirve para trabajar más. Va a ser una semana muy buena donde vamos a corregir errores y vamos a estar concentrados por la próxima fecha. Pero me hubiera gustado jugar este fin de semana.”
[ENG]: “Because of the drive that I have and that the group has, we would have liked to play this weekend, play this Saturday. We’re coming with confidence and we would have liked to keep going through the season. It didn’t turn out that way. So it serves us better to work more. It’s going to be a good week to fix the mistakes and we’re going to concentrate on the next date. But I would have liked to play this weekend.”
On how he views last season…
[SPA]: “Tenia expectativas de poder marcar más goles. No se me dio. Fue un torneo más de adaptación donde llegue a conocer mis compañeros, conocer el ritmo nuevo. Creo que fue más eso, pero ahora es diferente por lo que ya tuve una temporada completa con el grupo y ya conozco a mis compañeros. Tengo mas confianza y el grupo confía más en mí.”
[ENG]: “I had expectations that I could score more goals. It didn’t happen for me. It was a season more about acclimation where I arrived to meet my teams, know the new rhythm. I think it was more of that, but now it’s different because now I have a season complete with the group and I already know my teammates. I have more confidence and the group has more confidence in me.”
On if the confidence from Saturday’s game carried over into training today…
[SPA]: “Si, obvio. Eso te llena de confianza durante los entrenos y cada vez que marcas en el entreno, vas a saber que tienes esa confianza allí y que siempre vas a impulsarte a hacer más. Realmente, espero tener esa confianza durante el torneo, marcar muchos goles que es lo que todo esperan y lo que todos queremos.”
[ENG]: “Yes, of course. It fills you with confidence during training and each time you score in training, you are going to know that you have that confidence there and you are always going to be pushed to do more. Really, I hope that with that confidence during the season, I score a lot of goals which is what everyone hopes for and what we all want.”
On a benchmark for goals and assists this year…
[SPA]: “Creo que lo único que quiero es que marcar muchos goles, no sé cuántos. Si es más de 10, pasa la temporada más de 10, poder llegar de goleador y obviamente marcar muchas asistencias que eso es algo bueno tanto para mí, para el grupo porque todos vamos a tener la oportunidad de marcar gol. Todos tienen esa convicción y espero marcar muchos goles quedar de goleador.”
[ENG]: “I think the only thing I want is to score many goals, I don’t know how many. If it’s more than 10, through the season more than 10, become a goal scorer and obviously get many assists which is something good for me and for the group because we all will have the chance to score goals. We all have that conviction and so I hope to score a lot of goals and become that goalscorer.”
On his relationship with Luis Amarilla and how it has evolved…
[SPA]: “Con Luis [Amarilla], bien. Desde que llegue, ellos fueron los primeros que me acogieron al grupo. Me empezaron hablar como eran las cosas aquí, con el siempre he tenido esa comunicación, tanto el como Fraga [Franco Fragapane] que son dos de la parte adelante. Siempre me he sabido comunicar con ellos y la relación con ellos siempre ha sido muy buena en por fuera y en el campo. Espero seguir allí, sígueme apoyando a ellos.”
[ENG]: “With Luis [Amarilla], good. Since I arrived, they were the first ones that welcomed me to the group. They started to talk to me about how things were here and with him I’ve always had that communication, as well as with Fraga [Franco Fragapane] who is another part of the forward group. I’ve always known to communicate with them and the relationship with them has always been very good off the field and on. I hope to continue like this and I will continue supporting them.”
