D.C. United midfielder Santino QuarantaOn preparing for Real Madrid
We’ve been watching around the league. We watched Seattle the other night and you don’t want to put up a performance like that in the second half where you don’t get past your half. You want to have some joy in the game.
On what the team hopes to accomplish against Madrid
You want to represent yourself well. People say it’s a friendly, but when you’re on the field, it is competition and that’s the bottom line.
D.C. United midfielder Ben OlsenOn Kaka and Ronaldo
In this day and age, for any player to kind of separate themselves, in any sport, is pretty remarkable. With the talent that’s out there and the resources sports give you – to have those guys separate themselves is pretty remarkable. It’ll be a real treat to go against guys like that.
On what the team can gain from this game
More tired legs. Probably a groin or a hammy – who knows? [laughs] Of course, it comes at a good time. We don’t have a Tuesday game or Wednesday game coming up, so it’s a regular weekend-type schedule. It’s a great opportunity for everyone. And not just for the young guys – for the guys who’ve been around, we still don’t get many opportunities to play against this type of competition.
On how much fun playing Madrid will be
You want to run around, chasing after Kaka? It’s serious. I don’t think we’ll go into it with the same mentality as we would for a play-off game or a game that means something in the standings. But at the same time, this is a great opportunity for our team and our organization to be on the stage with one of the storied clubs in the world and some of the best players out there. So how we do reflects on this club and it’s important that we do a good job and represent ourselves and the league in the right way.
On the younger players’ nerves
I think that nervous usually transforms into positive results for young kids. Their minds are on the game and I think they’ll do well. It was always a learning experience to go into these games as a young player. I remember when I did it, once the whistle goes you pretty much forget about that stuff. You’re concerned with yourself and the team. And once the whistle blows, I’m sure guys will be running after jerseys.
On how he expects the team to fare
Historically, we have done well teams that are quote un-quote better than us. Hopefully, that trend will continue. But it will be fun.
D.C. United midfielder Chris PontiusOn playing against Madrid
This is obviously the most people I’ve ever played in front of and against the best team. So that kind of changes things. But in our style of play, there’s not much we can change – we are who we are. I’m sure they’ll be some nerves in the beginning, but once we get over them, I think we’ll be fine.
On Kaka and Ronaldo
I like them both. They’re at Real Madrid for a reason. They’re the best players in the world, so it’s going to be a fun game. It’s a test for us – a really good test.
On what he thinks of Madrid’s off-season spending spree
I kind of like how teams like Arsenal and Man U bring people up from the youth system and don’t go on big spending sprees. Even Barcelona does that. They are what they are. They went out and bought a bunch of big players and they have a great team. I’m not going to judge them for that, but I’m more of a fan of bringing players up from the youth system.
D.C. United midfielder Clyde SimmsOn whether he will be recovered from injury in time to play against Madrid
Going all out and sprinting is still a little painful and striking long distance, it’s still tight in there. Hopefully I can get some minutes. I am definitely more worried about Toronto the following week.
On how this game is different from the last time D.C. played Madrid in 2006
Being a professional for a little longer, you follow those teams a little closer. So I feel like I’m more familiar with their players now and the guys they brought in. I think it’ll be a little bigger deal this time around, for sure. And playing in D.C. will be better than playing in Seattle. We get to play in front of our home fans.
On what the team can gain from the match
In these types of games, if you have a good showing it gives you a lot of confidence. Even if you don’t win the game, if you feel like you play with those guys at their level, it definitely gives you some confidence going back to our league and even games in the Champions League.
On Kaka
Kaka is one of those players who’s definitely great with the ball and can take you on the dribble. But he’s such a smart player and combines well with other players around him, and that makes him even more dangerous.
On Ronaldo
Cristiano, you know what he’s going to bring to the table. He can hurt you in different ways, with his feet off the dribble and he scored a lot of goals last year with his head off corners and things like that, so it’s going to be a tough test.
D.C. United Head Coach Tom SoehnOn playing Madrid
It’s still a great opportunity. You’ve got two of the best players in the world playing, so it’s going to be a great opportunity for our guys. But we’re also going to have to manage our roster after what we’ve been through. Still, we’re going to take it serious and I know they are.
On Madrid’s organization
We’ve talked about the history of clubs. Their history is unbelievable. What they’ve accomplished for 100 years, you can look at that as something we strive to be someday as D.C. United. There are certain clubs you want to emulate how they run the business and they’re a great example of that. The great players they’ve had over the years, the championships they’ve won, the success they’ve had – they’re just a model franchise.
On what he expects to see out of Madrid
Everybody is aware of what their qualities are and I think as a team we need to make it difficult for them to play. We’ve always gotten up for these competitions. The side Real Madrid put up a couple of years ago was a really good side and we played them pretty evenly. We expect it to be difficult, we hope it’s really hot and humid because that might be something they’re not used to, but I think it’ll be an exciting game. I think you’ll see some flair from some guys.
