COLUMBUS CREW SC SPORTING DIRECTOR AND HEAD COACH GREGG BERHALTER
On the importance and impact of the red card and if it was the difference in the match…
I can’t tell. I have no idea. I know how the game went with what happened on the field and that’s part of soccer. In my eyes I’m proud of the team because I think it was a really professional performance. We have the tendency to get sloppy and to maybe get discouraged if you don’t get that second goal up a man, but I think that it was a very professional performance and we really didn’t give them anything. So I think it was good. I was happy with it.
On his club’s scoring chances tonight…
We had some chances. Again, I think that it’s a difficult game. When the other team is very defensive and has a clear game plan to limit you from scoring it becomes challenging. I’m looking at this as a positive thing because I think that the mindset of the guys and the performance of the guys to keep going and keep going and still stay balanced, was to me, something that’s going to help us down the season, having dealt with this and having played like that.
On Mohammed Saeid’s injury…
I think he got hit a little bit and we have to take a look at the video and see exactly what happened, but he got hit and he needed to come out.
On playing at home in MAPFRE Stadium…
We are comfortable here. We love playing in front of our home crowd, we love playing in Columbus and it’s great to get our second win in a row here. Looking at our first three home games and our first four away games last year, we had the same exact record. So we realize that we have work to do and we just keep moving forward.
On what to take away from the two home wins moving into Seattle…
It’s going to be a good game, it’s going to be a great game. We’re excited for it. We will turn the page on this game. We’ll analyze it and move forward. Our next task is Seattle and it’s going to be fun. It’s a great atmosphere, they have a good team and we’ll do our best.
On how the team is playing this year compared to last year at this point in the season…
It’s hard to tell. Last year, when you look at our first three home games, in two of them, our opponents got red cards also. We were able to open up some good leads in those games. What I would say is our first four road performances this year have been better than the first four road performances last year. We are comfortable, we like the position we are in and again, we still want to keep improving and that is the important thing, that we keep getting better. There have been some good performances this year so far from the group.
On how Rodrigo Saravia looked tonight…
It’s a great opportunity for him to come into the game when you’re up a man and in control of the game. Having said that, I think he did really well. We are happy with the progress Rodrigo [Saravia] has made so far and we want to keep pushing him and keep improving him so he can be a good player in this League.
On how far off the team is where he wants it to be…
We never are going to be happy. We always want more. I’ve never seen a perfect performance, so we want to keep improving and keep pushing to have really, really good performances.
On the importance of the way Crew SC won tonight compared to last week…
It is. I think quite honestly it’s difficult to play up a man. Especially when you don’t score – it is a hard task because what happens is you start thinking you need to force balls and you need to get that goal. That’s why I’m so happy with the performance because we stayed patient and we stuck to what we were meant to do. We didn’t give them any chance and that’s the most important thing. So that is certainly going to stay in our memories as we go through the season.
On Houston’s last corner kick…
As you’re on the sideline you’re thinking, ‘this can’t be.’ … We’ve been talking all week that they’re good on set pieces, they get a corner in the last second of the game, the goalie comes up, and you’re hoping it’s not a fairy tale ending for them. Thankfully, it wasn’t.
COLUMBUS CREW SC MIDFIELDER WIL TRAPP
On adjusting into slower pace early on in the game…
I think in this game we stuck to our game plan regardless of what happened on the field. I mean, obviously, 16 minutes into the game there’s a red card and a penalty and we score. And it changes the complexion a little bit, but I think the way they came out for the first 16 minutes was still a defensive setup. So, it didn’t really change how we were going to approach the game. But, to piggyback off of what Gregg [Berhalter] said, the professionalism of the performance, the relentless effort I thought was really key in finishing out the game.
On creating chances against a defensive team…
What was interesting about how they played was that they were defensive and compact, but they also played a higher line. So, I thought we had some success playing balls behind their line, with runs getting in behind them. I think Harry (Harrison Afful) had a couple, Kei [Kamara] made some good runs, and Justin [Meram] as well, so we had some good opportunities getting in behind them.
On whether or not this was the most physical game of the season…
I think their style of play is very direct; they play long balls and battle for seconds. Any game is going to be intense and physical. But, I thought it wasn’t overly physical than any other game we’ve played.
On whether or not pressure is lessened with another win for the season…
I think every game, you want to win. For us, it’s one game at a time. I know we always say that and it probably gets old for you guys, but approaching each match as if it’s our most important game is the way we want to go about it. Getting two wins at home in front of our crowd is important.
COLUMBUS CREW SC MIDFIELDER JUSTIN MERAM
On the game plan…
No. The game plan was just to get in behind and we have to find the space and take what the game gives us. The space was open on the left side. It was open on the right side too. You saw how many crosses Harrison [Afful] had.
On Harrison Afful’s play/crosses and offsides calls...
You’re not going to be perfect. Did anyone see my whiff I had today? That’s part of the game. We keep working on it. I thought they were well. I thought Ethan [Finlay] was well. They were making sure he didn’t get it behind, but he still had chances. So overall I thought it was a good performance, a professional performance. We handled ourselves well and shut the game out.
On if Crew SC needed these past two wins…
We did. Absolutely.
On his yellow card…
I did well to beat the defender. There was minimal contact. I kept playing. It was one of those clumsy plays. I wasn’t there to dive. I got right back up and kept trying to play. But the ref saw something different and I told him, ‘I’ve been here a long time and you know the type of player I am and that’s not something I do.’
On the difficulty to stay positive in the game…
It’s tough. Everyone might take their foot off the gas (after the red card). But tonight we stayed in-tune and we made sure they didn’t really have any chances and we closed the game out. I thought we did a really good job of that.
On the last corner…
I thought I got shoved, to be honest. I don’t know if you guys saw. (I was at) the near post and then I got shoved. Could have been a foul. Luck was on our way.
