D.C. UNITED HEAD COACH BEN OLSEN
On if he’s satisfied with the result:
“When you come back and tie a game it always somewhat feels okay. I was very disappointed in the first half. They came out with loads of energy and commitment. We didn’t sort out the midfield and really that was the story of the first half. Their midfield dominated and we didn’t figure out the numbers. Overall they outworked us in the first half. We know about their speed, that’s going to be there but there are ways to counter that by having the ball a little bit, and not just defending and letting them have time on the ball to just look over the top to two guys that can really burn. Overall not happy with the first half, revved them up for the second and I thought they came out [of the locker room] with a little more of a purpose right from the start. In the second half, we were probably the better team, but we were lucky. Very lucky to be 0-0 at the half. Game probably could have been over at that point. We’ve had those games where we’ve been playing a team where we didn’t finish and on the tying end of that. Credit to [Josh] Wolffie and Tino [Quaranta] for coming in and making a difference. The guys really worked hard in the second half. Credit them for a good second half. We have to play the whole ninety together at this point.”
On the substitutes making an impact:
“Bill [Hamid] coming off at halftime delayed what I wanted to do at halftime. I would have liked to make one at halftime. It’s a short week and I was a little leery of the legs. I was okay with the second half and how it played out. I thought the subs came on at the right time and they ended up giving us the tie.”
On Hamid’s injury:
“It looks like a left hamstring. We don’t know the severity of it but we will know shortly.”
D.C. UNITED FORWARD DWAYNE DE ROSARIO
On Wolff’s goal:
“Tino [Quaranta] made a good run and I tried to play it to him first time but it took a deflection. Thankfully Wolff, hard worker that he is comes up and finds himself in a good position and laid it off to him and great vision by Tino to get back to Wolffie and a great finish [by Wolff.] You can’t ask for anything more from two substitutes coming on, giving 100% and getting us back in the game.”
On the Fire’s new players:
“I think the addition of Grazzini is good. He’s a good player and he’s good on the ball. They try to play football. You can’t knock them for that. I think they aren’t getting the breaks they need but we knew coming into this game despite their record that they are a good team. We knew we had a tough challenge ahead of us. We tried to compete but the first half wasn’t ideal for us because we poured out a lot of energy defensively. That’s not the way we wanted to approach the game. In the second half we were able to turn around, though we were disappointed they scored a goal. But the two subs we made were huge and they came on and got us back in the game and changed the game for us.”
On how Hamid’s injury affected the team’s strategy:
“You never like to see your keeper go down with a hamstring injury and when you look it as a coach in a game like this where you spent 45 minutes pretty much defending, so you lose a sub. We only had two subs left in the game, so it’s not an ideal situation, but it is what it is and we just move forward to getting him healthy and getting ready for Sunday.”
D.C. UNITED FORWARD JOSH WOLFF
On his goal:
“I think it was a little bit of a rebound out to Tino [Quaranta]. I know Tino likes to pass balls more than he likes to score goals sometimes so he got it on his foot and had an opportunity to shoot it, and a guy stepped to him and as he stepped, Tino played a little ball and I just peeled off a little bit, trying not to get behind that line and let it come across myself. Probably needed to take a touch but at that point I just went high and hard. It was good to see it go in. It was a tight angle and I hit it high and hard and hoped for the best.”
On if he’s satisfied with a tie:
“Yes, when you look back on it. It’s not our best night in the first half. Clearly we weren’t the better team. At times they used their pace and put you in some danger. Bill [Hamid] made some big saves in the first half and you have to give him credit because he stood some plays up with great saves and obviously it’s disappointing to see him go off at the end of the first half. We hung in there, and the goal against us we could have dealt with better. But we keep plugging away and you get to one and at that point were kind of pushing to get forward, which was good to see. If we can’t come away with all of them, we can get the point and move on.”
Frank Klopas, Interim Head Coach of the Chicago Fire
Thoughts on match:
“Obviously it’s frustrating a bit. I thought our players came out with a sense of urgency; they put everything to the line. It’s frustrating when you’re dominating a game and you don’t win. I’m proud of the players and what they put into it. They had a lot of chances and we deserved to win this game. Unfortunately that’s how it happens sometimes.”
On missed opportunities:
“The game is a lot easier on the outside. He had some good looks. That’s the position of a striker. You have to have the attitude to keep going.
On fielding choices:
“We’re trying to put the best group out there. That’s based on training. And of course they’re all playing for jobs for next year.”
On Grazzini’s fitness:
“I wanted to push him a bit more but he couldn’t go. He told me he needed to come out. It’s just a matter of fitness with him. It’s unfortunate that when we bring players in at this moment, at the window that they miss preseason. Aerobically they’re not there so you have to push them through games. I wanted to push him more today but he gave everything he had. It’s a big difference when he’s on the field. He can make things happen when he gets the ball. He scored a great goal. He made some very good passes. We’re a very different team when he’s on the field.”
On choice to take off attackers as opposed to defenders:
“The offensive players had worked their butts off. They were tired. We still needed to be solid in the back and midfield, Pavel provides a lot of stability in the back and he’s a very experienced player. Sometimes when you go 75 minutes and your forwards haven’t scored you have other guys that need to be in there. Maybe I should have brought them in sooner. But Patrick and Dominic worked really hard. It’s a bit of a risk to put the three up top, but we needed to win the game. The guys put a lot into it. When you look at the stats sheet, it’s amazing how sometimes you don’t win games like this. But you got to keep working hard 'til the end. I feel good.”
On MLS record 15th draw:
“It’s frustrating because every team that we’ve talked about, other than the Vancouver game, that sometimes you guys write about, you look at mistakes that we’ve made. That happens with a young team. Every other game you look at all of the games that we should have won. That’s soccer. The good thing is the team is working ‘til the end. I felt that we were very organized. We took some risk in the end but you have to keep going. We’re not very far off.”
Dominic Oduro, Chicago Fire striker
On the game:
“The game is over, I can’t bring it back. I just have to keep my head up and move on.”
On missed scoring opportunities:
“It’s really frustrating right now. It happens. You have to keep going, that’s the only thing you can do. Stuff like this happens. We just have to get over it.”
On getting a win:
“It’s not far away now. We still have hope. We are trying to get a ‘W.’ We’ll have to work hard. We’ve played really well and now we just need to finish it.”
On team morale:
“This year, particularly for this season, it’s been frustrating. It’s all part of the game; you just have to keep your head up.”
Sean Johnson, Chicago Fire goalkeeper
On the game:
“Obviously it’s frustrating. We went up one but then coming out with a draw, we gave up another opportunity. It’s frustrating. But we’ve got another game on Sunday. Hopefully we’ll get the result then. We’ve got to make the playoffs. We’re taking it one game at a time.”
On what the team can change to get a win:
“We’ve got to keep to what we’re doing here, work hard. We’re working hard on the field. There’s just a bit extra that’s just that much more that’s the difference. Once we figure that out, it’s just a matter of putting everything together. Get some more opportunities in the offensive third and get three points.”
On dominating performance, but not being able to come away with win:
“We’re a good team. We’re a team of 11 players. There’s going to be nights when they save us, and when we save them. At the end of the day, we all take the result on our shoulders. Everyone’s responsible for the result, no matter if you score goals or give up goals. We all stick together.”
On team morale:
“We’ve got a good group of guys. When you have that, there are good vibes in the locker room. Obviously we’re disappointed in the way the results have been going, but the last thing you want to do is have negative energy. We make sure to keep positive. There are more points out there for us to get so we’re focused on that.”
On potentially changing practices to change results:
“I think we do all the right things during the week. We just have to keep going. I think we’re doing all the right things and those should eventually take care of themselves.”
Gonzalo Segares, Chicago Fire defender
On the game:
“We had a few chances to put the game away, but they end up scoring on one chance. But that’s the way some of the games have gone this season. After every game we’re going to keep coming back. You have to get up and keep on pushing.”
On first half defensive effort:
“We have been very strong on defense since preseason, and tonight was not an exception. But one chance and they get a goal. It’s frustrating working so hard and having them score on one opportunity. We just have to keep working hard and try to get three points.”
On approach to rest of the season:
“Just approach the same way we have been for the whole season. We’re definitely trying to work hard, pushing ourselves to be competing, and keep working hard. After a tough game we come back to Toyota Park and keep working hard. On Sunday we have another opportunity for a win.”
On close next home game:
“At this point the entire season, we’re used to playing Wednesday – Saturday – Wednesday. This upcoming game will be hard for us but we’ll just have to recover our legs as soon as possible."
