U.S. Open Cup 2010 Quotesheet

D.C. UNITED HEAD COACH CURT ONALFO

On the game strategy
We talked about getting an early goal and really setting the tone and Adam [Cristman] did a great job of scoring that first goal. It all started with his pressure on the goalkeeper about 45 seconds before that, and then a great little ball from Andy [Najar] slipping him through and then a great finish. That really set the tone for the game, we went up 2-0, came into halftime, regrouped, sorted some things out defensively, came out and scored the third goal, had a chance to get the fourth and really put the game out of reach. We didn’t, we let them back in it with two goals and all of a sudden we showed some real good character and got ourselves a fourth goal and walked away 4-2 with a result we needed for our psyche and to get us ready for the game this weekend.

On Andy Najar
[It was a] very, very good performance from Andy [Najar]. The big thing we took from the last performance he had was ‘we got to get him farther up the field’. He’s very good 1-v-1 and just makes things happen, and that was the case this evening. He had a good all-around performance – scored a goal, got an assist, probably should’ve had a second goal. But really showed some great qualities there and I’m very pleased with his performance.

On Andy Najar’s defensive performance
I call [Andy Najar] “El Pequeño Guerrero” which is “The Little Warrior” in Spanish and that’s what he is. It’s been gratifying to watch him progress. And just like any player there’s ups and downs and this certainly was an excellent performance for him to build on.

D.C. UNITED MIDFIELDER CLYDE SIMMS

On returning from his injury in the second half
It felt great to be out there honestly. The hamstring feels strong but I lost a little bit of fitness that I need to get back in order to gain my first step. I’m exciting to get healthy and have a good season.

On his assist to Adam Cristman
Adam [Cristman] does a great job of playing off of the opposing back four, and he put his hand up and I just chipped [the ball] in there. He did well with it, and fortunately I played a good ball where he could bait the goalkeeper a little bit and it worked out well with a good goal.

D.C. UNITED MIDFIELDER SANTINO QUARANTA

On getting the first win of the season
It was very important to get that first win for the morale of the team, first off. Second of all, the guys that were in there worked very hard and it was certainly a team effort. Any win is a good win right now, and it is a great feeling.

On moving forward this weekend against New York
It’s a good feeling winning games, and we haven’t had that feeling around here this season. So you move forward from here and take these positive feelings into the next game.

D.C. UNITED FORWARD ADAM CRISTMAN

On his two-goal performance
Coming in to this game it was my first real opportunity to get on the field and start, and I wanted to make an impact. I tried to lead the team and to be a handful for the other club, and fortunately I was able to put a couple of goals away tonight.

On moving forward from the result
Just getting the monkey off of our back builds our confidence and lets us know that we can find ways to win and we just have to put it all to work. If we play as a team and fight for each other good things are going to happen; we saw that tonight.

D.C. UNITED GOALKEEPER TROY PERKINS

On the four-goal cushion he received tonight
It’s nice to have that confidence knowing we are going to score. I think we learned how to fight tonight and keep a lead and to battle back when they got on the board. I think it shows great character and this is a great step forward for us.

On getting that first victory
I think it’s too bad that [the win] wasn’t in the League, but at this point we will take a win any way that we can get it. Obviously it is important for us to be involved in the Open Cup this year because we pride ourselves on going after this competition.

On his individual performance
Yeah, I think I played better tonight – I played the way I want to play. Sometimes things happen, I feel better and the confidence is coming back and now I just have to keep it going.

D.C. UNITED GENERAL MANAGER DAVE KASPER

On bringing back striker Luciano Emilio
We never really thought it was an option to bring Emilio back because of the money, but with our injury situation it becomes hard to pick up pieces outside of the transfer window – especially within the League. To trade a player or to add a player is difficult [within the League]. Once we got past the financial hurdle with [Emilio], this move made sense for us.

On Emilio’s mentality
[Emilio] is a complete professional, he is a sharp guy. We laughed this morning and had a coffee at Starbucks and he said that he feels like he is coming home, and it is good to have him back.

FC DALLAS HEAD COACH SCHELLAS HYNDMAN

On attitude coming into the match
You know, both teams have struggled recently to get results. Neither of us have won so I think this was an opportunity to put that aside and to go out and try and continue to be in the competition.

On the overall game
As far as the game, I thought we gave up a soft goal early and then we worked awfully hard trying to come back and we kept fighting. Both teams were basically trying to save players for this weekend. You start to notice late subs and all of a sudden Moreno’s in, Quaranta’s in. We put Dax [McCarty] in, some players that can do things a little bit more special, but for me I thought it was a game that just went back and forth.

On the goalkeeper
I think our goalkeeper is a better goalkeeper than what we saw tonight.

On defensive mistakes
It seemed like whenever we did something wrong we paid for it. For us it’s been mistakes costing us goals.  It was a very good game, we’re disappointed we’re out of the Lamar Hunt [US Open] Cup, but at the same time we’re focusing on the MLS and picking up points there.

On fighting back after going down 3-0
I thought we made it an exciting and interesting game by not giving up. That’s the thing that coaches look for: the attitude, player’s execution. The performance may not be what you want, but I think the attitude is something that was good. Our guys worked hard all over the pitch and if we had had better execution it might have been a different ending. Right now we’re not getting the results and results build confidence.