Well, that didn’t go exactly as everyone had hoped, did it? United falls 2-0 to the Kansas City Wizards. The good news is that every single season the Black-and-Red has opened with a two-goal loss to the Wizards, they’ve rebounded to win the Supporters’ Shield. Get up on your history, folks.
I am, by no means, the appropriate person to offer any sort of review of the game. I can tell you that the guys were disappointed not to start the season off on the right foot. Everyone was up for this game and excited to get out there. The focus now turns to getting a positive result in Pachuca on Tuesday. Do I need to stress how huge that game is? I think not. You probably get it.
The team spends Sunday in Kansas City, before departing for Mexico early Monday morning. With only a mid-afternoon pool workout to worry about, it’s likely folks will explore the city a bit. Any tips on things to check out while we’re here?
(A few behind the scenes photos here.)
UPDATE
: Post-game quotes follow..
Santino Quaranta
On team philosophy:
“We wanted to come out strong and win the game in the first half. Obviously, the first 15 minutes of each half are crucial. We let a goal up in the first five minutes of the second half, and it killed us. Our mindset wasn’t good coming out of halftime, and it hurt us.”
On team chemistry:
“I don’t think it’s struggling with chemistry, we’ve been together two months now and that’s long enough to iron things out. It just wasn’t good enough tonight, but we’ll regroup for Tuesday.”
Marc Burch
On the game:
“We came out there and played hard. They got lucky on a few and we were unlucky on a couple. I don’t think it was a distraction, but we do have another game in two days so we’ve got to get ready for that.”
On the Kansas City goals:
“They had a couple of good minutes where they had a little bit of possession and chipped two balls in. I don’t think there are any problems; nothing we can’t solve. I think we looked good as a unit. They didn’t have anything in the first half, and they had two chances in the second half.”
On Tuesday’s CONCACAF Champions Cup match against Pachuca:
“It would be nice to have a little bit of legs going down there at high altitude, playing a really important game. Not to say this one wasn’t important, but it’s a really important game we have down there.”
Zach Wells
On the game:
“I thought both teams were pretty organized. Most of the first half was just feeling each other out, not a lot of pretty soccer. Like I said before, it was just a couple of lapses and we were punished for it.”
On the team coming together:
“We’re all learning to play with each other and it’s going to take a little bit of time. We’re just got to stay organized defensively, make sure that teams are earning their goals and that we’re capitalizing on our chances at the other end."
