Sporting KC Manager Peter Vermes
Comments on the match...
I thought they played well in the first half. I thought they had more of the game in the first half. I mean, the goal was a terrible mistake on our part. We had the second half. We were around the goal but just didn't finish one off. You can't give that goal away. I say outplayed in the first half whereas in the second half, obviously, we owned the game. But it's too late at that point and you're chasing the game.
On the team's energy...
I'm not making excuses by any means. I know that we haven't really played in this type of heat that much because it hasn't been hot around here. And then all of a sudden tonight it hits hard and we're not necessarily accustomed to it. But at the same time, again in the second half we had a ton of possession and a ton of opportunities in and around the box. Obviously, they had a couple counter opportunities here and there but that's going to be expected when you throw so many guys forward. Like I said, we controlled the second half but it was too late. And giving that goal away breaks you, because it's not an earned goal. It's a goal that we're sleeping on.
On not defending the title...
Credit to them, they played well in the first half. It's definitely not something we wanted to have happen. We wanted to go deep into the competition and try to go after it again. It's devastating.
On the play of Kevin Ellis...
He played very well throughout the whole entire game I thought. I'm proud of him and I'm happy for him because I know that he's worked very hard. He's been in a consistent form for probably three months now and I thought he did really well with his opportunity.
On Teal Bunbury's return...
I was hoping that Teal maybe breaks one at the end, you never know. He has the ability to do that and his pace is always a problem for teams. It was a combination of the two.
On the strength of Orlando City...
They're a good team. We've played them before. So it's not like we don't know them. Yeah, they were good. They were busy, they were hungry for it. And like I said, the first half they were the better team.
On the substitution of Lawrence Olum...
I wanted to go to two and then push Nagamura up. And i actually thought that Lawrence came on and did a great job. I'm very, very happy with his performance and the way that he has played the last couple times he has come on. He's really pushing for a starting position.
Sporting KC midfielder Paulo Nagamura
Comments on the match...
I'm very disappointed. Playing at home, against what you can call a lower-division team, we are very disappointed that we didn't go through. But we need to pick our heads up and work toward the next game. We are going through a tough time right now and we have to show our toughness and our character and turn this thing around.
Sporting KC forward Teal Bunbury
On returning to action...
Obviously, it's nice to be out there. To be honest, though, right now I'm pretty bummed out. It's been a great journey to get to this point and I'm glad to be a part of the team again and be available. This game is a let down, though, and we owe the fans a lot more than we showed tonight."
Sporting KC defender Seth Sinovic
Thoughts on the match...
Disappointing is probably the biggest word for it. We had another great opportunity at home with another unbelievable crowd, especially for an Open Cup game, and we just couldn't get it done.
On not being able to repeat as U.S. Open Cup champions...
It's disappointing on a lot of levels. We know what it feels like to win this thing and we all desperately wanted to win it again. We are disappointed to let down our home fans again. It's just disappointing all the way around.
Orlando City goalkeeper Miguel Gallardo
On the significance of Orlando City's 1-0 win over Sporting Kansas City...
This is definitely one of our top moments. We've been one of the best teams in our league for two or three years now. And this is one of the things we set as a goal-to advance far in the Open Cup. So far we are really happy with the results.
On the experience gained in losing to Sporting KC in last year's U.S. Open Cup...
It helped us. We knew the field and personally know some of the players. We were a little bit more careful. We knew their strengths and what we had to look after, so it really worked out for us.
On Orlando City's mindset entering the match...
We came here confident that we could win. We came here last year and played well. We had a lot of good opportunities to score in that game, so we came into tonight with confidence. If we didn't think we could win, why come?
On Orlando City defeating two straight MLS clubs...
We've already taken care of two very tough MLS opponents. (Sporting) Kansas City is one of the best teams in the league. To go away to their stadium and get this result is great. We'll be full of confidence in the next round, no matter who we play.
Orlando City defender Justin Clark
On Orlando City's mindset entering the match...
The coaches prepared us very well, we had a game plan, and we stuck to it. We had a lot of self-confidence coming into the game, and coach told us to come out there and play our stuff. If we did that, we knew we were capable of winning the game.
On the significance of Orlando City's 1-0 win over Sporting Kansas City...
It's definitely one of our top wins. They're the defending champions of the Open Cup, so it's got to be one of the best wins in our club history.
On the experience gained in losing to Sporting KC in last year's U.S. Open Cup...
Playing on the road against an MLS team is difficult. But that experience helped us. We played really well here last year, and we knew if we played well again and defended better, we could win.
