D.C. UNITED HEAD COACH BEN OLSEN
On the outcome of the match:
Yeah, I thought it’s a good sign to get a point at Columbus. That’s what I keep trying to tell myself.
On being up a man:
I don’t think we managed well. I would say we managed it well if we get the second goal. If you’re down, it doesn’t matter if you have five men on the field you are going to try and push and get a goal. They’re going to go with their numbers you just have to punch them for it. We didn’t do that part. We also didn’t possess the ball well and we should have been able to do that, and we didn’t do it.
On seeing growth of the team:
Absolutely, this is a good measuring stick for us because of how recent the game was against them. I thought tactically we were very good tonight, I thought the guys did everything we asked them to do and I think we’re frustrated. This is a team that has been as good as any in the league and we came in here and I thought we had a good game plan but at the end it still hurts.
On Fabian Espindola’s game:
He had a great goal. Whether it’s him or somebody else, we have to do better with finishing teams off but Fabi is a special player. He is going to continue to make special plays for this team were still figuring him out and his teammates are still figuring him out but I am extremely happy we have him and once again tonight he proved to be the game changer.
D.C. UNITED DEFENDER BOBBY BOSWELL
On the team coming together:
Yeah I think we keep improving. You know that’ll come with games. I think there are a lot of really good players. It’s a deep team and practices are tough and hard and I think there is a ton of room for improvement. Some guys that have been playing together a little longer maybe don’t make a couple of these mistakes. I’m excited still about this group of guys we’re getting results against good teams and we need to keep our foot on the gas pedal and keep striving forward. Good things will come.
On not getting a second goal:
I’m a center back. We pride ourselves on keeping zeros. We’ve done it the last two weeks and I thought this was going to be more of the same. I think we got a little disconnected. Obviously I want to see the video before I talk too much. It was a hell of a shot. It wasn’t necessarily a fluke play or a real dumb play that got it. It was a piece of brilliant play from them. We’ll look at it from an analytical point and say what could we have done when we have the ball going forward to make sure it doesn’t come right back down our throats.
D.C. UNITED FORWARD FABIAN ESPINDOLA
On the equalizer:
They were better than us with the ball. I think we did the right thing taking the one we had. We put it in and after that they just play like they do. They know how to play football. It wasn’t enough.
On doing better with chances:
Yeah but like I said we didn’t keep the ball. We just didn’t. They were the better team with the ball.
COLUMBUS CREW SPORTING DIRECTOR AND HEAD COACH GREGG BERHALTER
On the 90th-minute goal:
I think our game wasn’t on today and I’m disappointed in that more than anything. We were looking forward to playing a great game and really putting them under pressure. Going a goal down, we’re going to be talking about this a lot this year. What are teams going to do? Are they going to drop back? Are they going to stay very compact? It’s, honestly, difficult to break that down, and we did it to ourselves.
On the team’s struggles against D.C. United:
It takes two. They had a good game plan, they wanted to press us, they wanted to disrupt our rhythm and, at times, it didn’t disrupt us, but at times it did, and it affected us. The goal was a careless play, but I don’t get too wrapped up in that though because we’re asking the guys to play. We’re asking them to take risks, to pass the ball. So we’d lose the ball, and now it’s about recovering from losing possession, and [D.C.] did a good job countering and they scored.
On Trapp’s assist:
That was a real play. That’s why he’s who he is. That’s amazing. First, he recovers off of [Fabian] Espindola, then he takes the ball from him, then he drives I don’t know how long, then he makes a pass. That’s a real play by a real player.
On 62nd-minute substitutions:
We just needed to mix it up. It was just something where I felt to put more of an attacking option at left back with Bernardo [Anor], could give us a little something where we had to risk something. So we put Justin [Meram] in Bernardo’s position, we moved Bernardo back, and I thought that could really get us some threat inside the final third and we were going to send our backs forward anyway. So we had more of an attacking player in that position. Then with Jairo, [he’s] been looking good at training all week and I thought Dominic [Oduro] was a little bit off and like most guys were. So I thought this was a good opportunity to get Jairo into the game, and I thought they did well. I think all three subs in this game did well for us.
On losing a man then coming back to get a result:
It says a lot. It says a real lot. A result in that game was looking grim, and they were really tight and defensive oriented and we went down a man. But, the guys didn’t quit and I commend them on that. I said we have to get better, but that effort not to give up in that game and get something out of that game, to me, was spectacular.
On the tempo at the beginning of the game:
I don’t think there’s always an explanation. Ideally when you have a game plan, you want to go out, score in the first 10 minutes, you want to score in the next 10 minutes, and you want everything to go perfect. But, I don’t know if it wasn’t going to plan. We let up a goal against a run up play in my eyes, then, all of a sudden, it’s fasten your seat belts.
On the position the team wants to be at:
Well there’s a balance because on one hand, I’m very proud with how they fought in this game and they didn’t give up, and that’s great. On the other hand, I just stated clearly, we have to improve, and we have to get sharper, we have to be more precise. We will and that’s why you develop a team.
COLUMBUS CREW MIDFIELDER HECTOR JIMENEZ
On coming back to tie the game despite being down a man:
It shows a lot about the team’s character. We didn’t have a great start going down 1-0. I love that we took the challenge, and didn’t back down from the physical game that was going on. I am really proud of the team, and hopefully a game like this will carry us on throughout the season.
On what he saw before scoring the goal:
Before I kicked it, I saw a little gap and I was just happy it went in. We would have loved to have three points tonight, but it’s always nice to get one.
On the struggle offensively:
They did a really good job of sitting back, and they didn’t give us much. We were able to keep pushing forward and luckily get a goal.
COLUMBUS CREW GOALKEEPER STEVE CLARK
On tonight’s game:
It’s nice to come back. I think they had a good game plan, so give them credit, but I think we have to be better on the ball. I would have liked to make the save it was a good finish by him, but that’s life.
On what was different in the second half:
We were sharper in the second half. It’s important the way we play that we connect our passes. We have work to do, but I’m excited it’s great to come back.
