Sporting Kanas City head coach Peter Vermes
On the team’s performance over the week...
“It’s been a good week, for sure. I think the biggest positive about it is that the manipulation of the roster, Sunday, Wednesday and today, the contribution from all the different guys we had on the field was fantastic. I think to me that’s probably the biggest positive thing going into the end of the season. We’ve given a lot of opportunities to a lot of guys throughout the course of this season due to the number of injuries we’ve had and it’s paying off like we were hoping it would. The experience and guys being able to come in and contribute positively at this time of the year is really important.”
On if this performance was more impressive than their last match in Portland considering the roster changes…
“I do. I think the other thing too is that we stuck really well to the game plan. We knew we were going to create something at some point, there was going to be an opportunity because we’ve been in this situation many times at our place. They actually took advantage of a couple years ago one time at our place where we were on in the game. We had the possession, we had a lot of the chances in and around the goals but they countered us a couple times and they had the goals. For us it was really about making sure we were going to be able to deal with the danger that they pose in regards to quite a few guys that they have that are weapons. I thought we kept our composure. I thought we had good concentration through the game and at the same time we knew there was going to be a point we were able to strike. I didn’t know it was going to be as good as Krisztian [Nemeth] did but that was a fantastic goal.”
On how the win affects the team’s confidence going forward…
“Confidence is one thing but what I really appreciate is that many people would have said it would have been very easy for us to have a letdown after Wednesday. Tonight’s performance shows a really strong mentality in the group and that’s probably the most important thing that I look at. When you get into this time of the season you want to make sure you have that going into what’s going to be the toughest time of the season. It’s good to see that our guys have it.”
On if the team is peaking at the right time…
“What I would say is, I’m a big believer in you keep the high’s low and the low’s high and I’m not going to get way ahead of myself but what I do like is us finishing out the week the way we did and now we have 10 days off, two weeks off which is a big, big thing for us because we need it. There is a good chance we could get one or two guys back from injury which would be a big help and a step in the right direction”
Sporting Kansas City goalkeeper Tim Melia
On if this performance was more impressive than their last match in Portland considering the roster changes…
“I thought we did such a good job tonight. To come off a midweek final that went into overtime in penalties is really an emotional roller-coaster. To be able to come into a place like [Providence Park], which is a really difficult place to play, to get a result in the fashion that we did and to be able to rest a few guys, it’s an incredible feat for our club. I’m proud of all the guys tonight.”
On if the results from the week is how he dreamed this week would turn out…
“The [U.S.] Open Cup was huge for us. That was a really important hurdle we had to cross. It was a difficult turnaround to it being a couple days later [and] having to grind out results. We’re a little higher now but the [Western Conference] playoffs are so difficult and everyone is jockeying for positions just to get into the playoffs so this was huge.
On if he was concerned there would be a drop-off in energy following the Open Cup championship win on Wednesday…
“No I think that [head coach] Peter [Vermes] did a good job inserting guys who were maybe were a little more fresh and could come in and give us that energy we needed.”
On how the win affects the team’s confidence going forward…
“I think it’s huge. We have a couple days off now. We don’t play until the following Friday, [we’re] going to San Jose and we need to make sure we have a good game there. Last time we played there it was a really rough game for us so we feel good about that.”
Sporting Kansas City defender Matt Besler
On playing the match on short rest…
“We don’t have much left in the tank but it was a heck of a week for us. We left everything we had out on the field in both games and that’s all you can ask from your teammates and of your team. I think this is a week we can be proud of.”
On if this performance was more impressive than their last match in Portland considering the roster changes…
“Anytime you can come in and get a point here in Portland, I think it’s a good result. Portland is a great team and [Providence Park] is such a hard place to play but the fact that we were able to get three points on three days’ rest having mixed up the lineups so much, yes, I do think it was a much better result than last time.”
On if coming to Portland seems less tough each time they get a good result…
“I think anytime you can win on the win you should gain confidence from that but at the same time the next time we come here we aren’t going to take anything for granted. We know it’s going to be tough and we know we’re going to have to work our tails off in order to give ourselves a chance. I just think right now we’re focused on ourselves and trying to get as many points as possible. I know the [Western Conference] is extremely tight and people are jockeying for position and there’s going to be a lot of action that goes on in the next two weeks but right now we’re worried about getting as many points as possible and trying to get the highest seed possible.
On how the win affects the team’s confidence going forward…
“I think it’s great. This game is all about winning. At times today it wasn’t pretty. At times on Wednesday it wasn’t pretty but at the end of the day we found ways to win games on the win. That’s all you can ask for from guys in the locker room.”
