Head Coach Ben Olsen
On the match...
"It was a fun night with a lot of goals for the fans and both teams came out with a good mentality. It gave us a chance to play guys like Júnior [Moreno] who had been away with the death of his father, Paul [Arriola] who is suspended and some of the guys who haven’t gotten a lot of minutes up to this point in the season. It was good for them to get a run against quality opposition. Then you got see some young kids who are the next wave of players for the club come in and get some important minutes. We were also able to integrate some players from Loudoun United. It was a good night but I still don’t like to lose.”
On Griffin Yow...
"I thought he was great tonight. That’s why we were keen on signing him and we’re excited to continue working with him to get him to where he needs to be… which is getting real minutes with the first team. He looked comfortable in his own skin out there. He’s clever, technically gifted and has a good feel for the game. We have to work on his physicality and he has some lessons to learn defensively… but he’s going to be fun to work with."
On Chris Odoi-Atsem...
"We were going to start him at 45 minutes and get a pulse on him at halftime. We talked to him and he said ‘I’m good’ so he stayed on the field. This kid has been through a lot and for him to be playing at home again was a joy to watch. I don’t think he missed a beat and defensively he was sharp and calm on the ball. I’m sure he will factor into this season sooner rather than later."
Defender Chris Odoi-Atsem
On his return to action...
"It means everything especially this organization that has stood by me throughout this whole time with my battle with cancer and on my road to recovery. It felt great and the only way I can repay the city and this organization is coming out and playing as hard as I can every time I put on the jersey. I really appreciate everyone in this organization from top to bottom the fans, my teammates, the coaching staff, everybody for giving me support and this is my way of repaying them."
On playing 65 minutes...
"I definitely felt tired but better than expected I knew 45 minutes would feel like a struggle but once I got out there and started playing I lost total thought about that and I felt good for the whole 65 minutes, better than I thought."
On his form...
"I felt like I could have been a little sharper. I’m hard on myself but I got up and down a bit. I felt could have done that more but that will come with time as the fitness gets better but thought it was a good step in the right direction."
On Real Betis...
"Yeah, great team. I was little nervous it being my first real test back, but I thought I handled myself well and the team handled it well, the score maybe did not reflect that but I think we did okay."
On the youth in the squad...
"I thought we all did well. Akeem [Ward] put in a hard shift 90 minutes, he defended well got forward made passes and then Griffin [Yow] came in on the right side with me and we did well. Obviously, he scored that goal which was great for him and great for the team as well."
Midfielder Griffin Yow
On the game...
"It was an incredible experience not just to get my first goal but to get my first real minutes on the field and be able to bond with the players and create chemistry with the team. It was incredible."
On the opposition...
"I think I held my own that’s what I tried to do. I didn’t wanna come out from the start and do something crazy, do a nutmeg or do a fancy move. I tried to hold my own, get a few passes, get comfortable, but I thought it was an overall positive and good game."
On chemistry with Odoi-Atsem...
"It’s great seeing him back in the Black-and-Red. I remember when I was a kid I used to watch him and to be able to play on the same side as him and see him make the recovery... I thought he was amazing today."
On his performance...
"I think its huge for me not just to get my first goal but it was a confidence builder so when that first game with more than 10 minutes does come around in MLS or maybe something bigger I’ll be ready for it, I’ll be confident and maybe get another goal."
