It was setting up to be such a special night for the Black-and-Red. A
new presenting sponsor
, a national television audience, a big crowd and the chance to knock off a hot opponent. It was not to be, though.
Here's dcunited.com's
take on the match
.
And some quotes from those involved:
D.C. United Head Coach Tom Soehn
On the current situation
“It’s very concerning. I asked the guys to come out with the effort and I thought that improved a bit, but still, over 90 minutes it still wasn’t good enough. We broke down and good teams are going to punish you. So it’s very concerning. We’ve got to really evaluate and make sure now that we turn this around. It’s getting to a crucial time.”
On moving forward
“I think first off we need to get a couple guys healthy, so that we can select from everybody. But in the final third we lack creativity and that final punch, and we’re going to have to work real hard to make sure now that killer instinct comes back.”
On similarities to last season
“I think it sits in our head, but the Colorado game still sits in my head, that we came out without any passion and any energy. That improved today, but it still wasn’t good enough, so we have to continue to do that consistently. But yeah – it’s similar to last year, but it’s not last year. It’s this year and we have to fix it now.”
On sensing pressure
“There’s always pressure. We’re not winning, so I have to fix it.”
D.C. United Midfielder Rod Dyachenko
On the game
“I thought we were moving the ball around. I thought we were breaking them down little by little, getting some shots off. After the goal, we closed down a little bit.”
D.C. United Midfielder Santino Quaranta
On frustration
“You work so hard and you come in with a mindset…We worked very hard and we had a let down, and they get a goal. It’s just not good enough.”
On Chicago’s first goal (and getting caught out of position)
“I’m in a position now, obviously I like to attack as a player. It just naturally when the ball was in the air I wanted to go help Bryan [Namoff]. I didn’t know that nobody else was going to be behind me. As an attacking player, I was just trying to help defensively. I ran so much and worked so hard. I want to go forward, that’s my first instinct. I’m in a situation where I have to be honest, and I was honest about it.”
On the loss
“It happens, you learn. Getting caught, our shape was bad. They are a good team. You have to give these guys credit. They went on the road, and they are so honest, and they work so hard as a team. They defend and are very athletic. They were a better team.”
On Chicago
“They are organized. They are doing the things right to win right now. You have to give them credit.”
D.C. United Forward Jaime Moreno
On the loss
“I don’t know what to think anymore, because we work so hard each week. I don’t think we were playing so bad, you know, we created chances but we couldn’t put it away. It one of those things where you have to make your luck change and the only way to do it is to keep working. We got nothing else to do…We have to turn it around, that’s the only way.”
On playing in the center (play making role)
“I always like to be involved with the ball. Unfortunately, we didn’t create enough chances to score. That is something that we are struggling with right now.”
D.C. United Forward Luciano Emilio
On the loss
“It’s very sad for us not to be able to win, not to be able to play a soccer that looks good, so it’s a very disappointing situation.”
On what to do to avoid home losses
“We have to maintain the order of the game from beginning to end. For a moment we lost the order. When someone scores on us, we get lost. We haven’t come in with enough clarity to be able to score.”
On the absence of Fred and Gallardo
“Of course, they’re players that help out a lot, especially in my case, a forward depends on them.”
Chicago Fire Head Coach Denis Hamlett
On getting ready for D.C.
“We respect them cause they’re a good team and we know coming in here it’s always going to be good soccer. Our guys know that and these guys are professionals, they know the importance of every game.”
Chicago Fire Defender Diego Gutierrez
On beating D.C. United
“It’s about winning every week, not necessarily just against D.C. because it’s a long season. This is a team that it trying to establish a tradition, an identity, a character and I think we’re on the right track.”
On the defensive performance
“I feel very good right now, collectively and personally, things are going right for us. We have to keep working with humility, with honesty and with a strong will. This group keeps advancing, keeps getting better and I hope that continues.”
Chicago Fire Midfielder Justin Mapp
On his goal
“Chad [Barrett] did a good job of getting on the end of it and knocking it back down. It was just me there. I tried to put it on target and thankfully I was able to.”
Chicago Fire Midfielder Cuauhtémoc Blanco
On going forward
“We are only just beginning the season. We have to keep working and getting better each day.”
So there you have it. The reserves suit up in the morning. Kick-off is set for 10:00 a.m. on the training field.
