Sporting KC Manager Peter Vermes
Initial thoughts on gameâĤ
âThey were the better team in the first half. I think we were just sluggish, I donât know if it was (because of) Wednesdayâs match or not. Obviously we spent energy there but we just werenât sharp enough there in the first half. We had to change our mentality in the second half and I actually thought we were a better team there in the second half. We moved the ball a little bit, we had good movement off the ball, thatâs where Danielâs goal comes from. We had very good movement and we were just better in possession in the second half. If we were a little more patient, I think, we probably could have had a game winner. But unfortunately we stayed tied.
On play of Daniel SalloiâĤ
âHe knows, and weâve been talking about this, his progression has been very good. Thereâs always aspects that a player needs to continue to get better at, but if thereâs one thing that Iâve said about him, and Iâll keep repeating it, is that anytime heâs in or around the box, heâs deadly. He has a good goalscorerâs mentality, he wants to score. But not at the detriment to the team. Not where heâs selfish at times but he picks and chooses the right moments. But the movement that he had off the ball for that goal was world class. It was an excellent finish.â
On Gersoâs statusâĤ
âI think he dislocated his shoulder. He seems to be okay, I saw him in the locker room since then. So Iâm sure they had to put it back in, and weâll see. Iâm sure theyâll probably have to do an MRI and all that kind of stuff and see where heâs at from there.â
On how Gersoâs injury affected gameâĤ
âIt changes your team, but obviously, and I say this all the time, the most important part of our job is coaching. Itâs to make sure that all the players on the roster are prepared, and I know that Daniel was. We were talking about who we were going to put in and it became a very quick and easy choice. Just because heâs been training very well and working hard. Thereâs a reason that weâve been sending him, when thereâs a chance that doesnât affect us, to Swope Park Rangers to make sure he keeps getting fit so he can play. That wasnât even a question in regards to the game. Itâs not like âis he going to be okay to play all these minutes,â but he was great. He understands everything weâre trying to do, itâs just repetition for him.â
On Portlandâs penalty kickâĤ
âI havenât seen the replay, I just know that when I saw it, it didnât look like Tim [Melia] had any effect on the play at all. He just dove, just like there was quite a few other dives on the field from their guys. Which at some point those situations require cards. Itâs sad that week after week the disciplinary committee hasnât come in and basically be the Monday quarterback on Monday and decide that wasnât a foul or that wasnât a red card or that wasnât a yellow or we have to give this guy a yellow for embellishment, we have to fine him. I donât understand why it canât be taken care of in the game. Same thing with the pace of the game. It was slow. Every ball that went out of bounds, it was slow. I just donât understand the management of the game. The great thing about Tim is that heâs very concentrated, heâs not easy to get past. Whether itâs through the run of play or a penalty kick, and he did a tremendous job. I love the fact that he stood up and basically read the whole thing from the very beginning. It was good. It was something that we needed in the moment. We always talk about how the goalkeeper every once in awhile is going to make a big save in the game and he did that today and he kept us with a point which is huge.â
On clearance of ball after penalty kickâĤ
âItâs something that we talk about a lot. Whether itâs set pieces, like free kicks going into the box, or penalty kicks, we have to be alert in that moment. Because if the goalkeeper makes the save and the guy follows up and is first to the ball, his work is for nothing. So it was a good response to the ball by our guys, it was a good reaction to be there to clear the ball. Although I think we werenât as concentrated as we needed to be there on the corner kick after, but we weathered the storm there.â
If absence of USMNT members had effect on play style...
âNot at all. I think physically in the first half, and maybe mentally, we were a little bit tired. I think a lot had to do with our mentality. But the mentality changed in the second half and I think we were a little bit of a different team there.â
Sporting KC forward Daniel Salloi
On pressure to step up going forwardâĤ
âI donât feel like it is a pressure, I feel like it is a great opportunity. Since so many players are gone, unfortunately Gerso got hurt, I feel bad for him, but itâs an opportunity for me to show myself and play well and score goals and be a part of the team. So I donât feel pressure. Iâm happy that I could score and that we got the point and weâll keep working.â
On coming in earlyâĤ
âI wanted to come in as quick as I could and warm up real quick, but mostly just to find my spot on the field, get the first touches right and get comfortable real quick. I was just trying to be patient and wait for halftime, but I knew I was going to be warm and ready for the second half. But it worked out.â
Sporting KC goalkeeper Tim Melia
On the penalty kick saveâĤ
â[Our Performance Analyst] Ashely Wallace, our goalkeeper coach [Alec Dufty] and the rest of our staff do a really good job preparing us for these types of situations. Fortunately enough, it was the correct call in that moment and I was able to make the save.â
On the emotions following the saveâĤ
âIt was a pivotal point in the game for that call to be made. I would have to go back and look at it. I canât put myself in that situation to even give the ref that opportunity to make that call because if that goes in and we lose 2-1, we are dropping points at home.â
Sporting KC midfielder Roger Espinoza
On Daniel Salloiâs goalâĤ
âIt was huge. It was good for him and his confidence. He is a guy that has been fighting and heâs been playing well in practice. Itâs great for him that he is able to that for us.â
On Tim Meliaâs saveâĤ
âWe are confident the is going to stop it. Tim has saved us many times this year and in the past few years. Itâs great that he is able to do that. We have all the confidence that he is going to do make plays like this one. He definitely played with [Diego] Valeriâs mind I feel like. Itâs great for us and he kept it 1-1.â
Thoughts on the matchâĤ
âFirst half I thought it was very tough for us. They play a little better than us. We couldnât connect passes. Second half, we figured it out, started fighting and played with heart. We were very tired, but we played with heart and we were able to come back at the end.â
Thoughts on the gameâĤ
âI thought it was a good performance. Obviously disappointed not to get the three points, if we scored the PK or the tap on the cross, we get out of here with three points but I thought the performance was very good and itâs something we can build on because we wanted to come in this game and execute â I thought we did. With the exception of a few moments, I thought it was a very played match against a very good team in a difficult place to play. So, like I said, we can build on this and clean up a few things still, but overall performance, mentality, even the unity and mental toughness that we showed was all there.â
On scoring against Sporting KCâs stingy defenseâĤ
âWe wanted to play a combination of high pressure and low pressure and I thought we gave them a lot of problems early in the game by pressing high, disrupting their build-up, and once they broke it, we let them come forward and we were going to look to play on the counter. The goal that happened came on a quick transition where we won the ball, broke the lines, and obviously Valeri scored a great strike on that goal. Like I said, we shouldâve scored a couple others but in any match like this where you have two evenly matched teams, it became a bit of a chess match. The chances were few and far between, they only really had three clear chances: the goal, Ike Opara header off the set piece and then youâd say Espinozaâs shot from distance â so the only three real chances that they had on the day. We defended really well and I thought we picked our moments to keep the ball and press, if it wasnât for a bit better on the PK we wouldâve gotten out of here with three points.â
On his sideâs defensive play without key playersâĤ
âWe wanted to come together in this game and we knew our backs were against the wall a bit and we knew we had some guys out and we knew we were coming into a difficult place against a team thatâs at the top of the table and I thought our guys really responded and they showed that they have it in them to be a team that can grind and in this league you have to grind and we came on the road and those guys gave everything on the pitch today. Like I said, cut out a few mistakes â obviously the goal was a mistake â and finish our chance on the PK or the cross and we get three points. We told Valeri in there that he canât think twice about that PK because weâre not even in the position weâre in unless he scores the goal. It was unlucky and obviously heâll score that nine out of 10 times.
Portland Timbers midfielder Diego Valeri
On getting a draw at a difficult place to playâĤ
âWe are satisfied about the performance, but not about the result. We had our chances to get three points, it was important for us but the point is okay. We have a game on Wednesday where if we win, this point will be good.â
On managing the emotions of the game after scoring then missing a penaltyâĤ
âIâm thinking about the next ball, always, until the last whistle. Itâs hard, Iâm responsible about that, I made a decision in the PK, the âkeeper got my attention and thatâs it. Itâs a moment, you have to think of the next moment.â
On handling Sporting KCâs momentumâĤ
âI think we managed it really well, with the ball, with a good position on the field and even the last minutes, we could score another goal. Iâm glad about the performance because weâre playing the way we want and itâs a good one if we play a good game on Wednesday against Chicago and we win the three points.â
Portland Timbers defender Lawrence Olum
Thoughts on the gameâĤ
âIt was a good game between both teams, it just came down to chances and it was 1-1 so not a bad game at all.â
On denying Sporting KC goalscoring chancesâĤ
âWe had to absorb the pressure at times, we depended on everybody making good plays in some instances and the team defending together. I think we did that, itâs unlucky we gave up a chance and they scored. It happens.â
On if the result feels like a point gained or two points droppedâĤ
âA point on the road is a point, you canât take off what guys did â they did a good job just to get us that point â so we cannot say itâs two points lost or anything. It shows that weâre doing all the right things and the results will start coming.â
