Sporting KC head coach Peter Vermes
On gradually breaking down Saint Louis FC to earn a 1-0 win...
Saint Louis was pretty organized; they defended well. I thought we possessed the ball well. You know those are always difficult games. It is obviously a huge game for them, coming in here and playing. The referees aren’t used to reffing in this environment as well so it changes the game, too. They’re not speeding the game up. So there are a lot of things left up to the players to try to do. You could tell it was only a matter of time. We have keep this momentum going to Sunday.
On the atmosphere at Sporting Park...
It was fantastic, I don’t really know what else to say, the fans were fantastic. It proves every time we play a game here that this is an incredible environment. I think every player that has a chance to play a game here leaves saying, "Wow what a great place and what a place I’d like to play in." Great fans, great environment and it makes it easy to play a game as a player that’s for sure.
On Chance Myers' return to the starting lineup after a year out through inury...
He was great. He was better than expected with his conditioning. He probably could have easily went another 10 to 15 minutes more. I really only wanted to play him to half, but he said he could go another 10 to 15 minutes easily. I pulled him off at the end, but I’m glad he got through it and he played very well. It was a good day for him. He has went through a lot of work for a year now trying to get back on the field. He looked like his old self and that was good to see.
On sticking with Tim Melia as the starting goalkeeper...
He hasn’t played a lot of games yet as a starter and I think it’s important to keep him in his rhythm. It’s not as if he’s tired. He’s a guy that has been waiting for this opportunity and now he’s going to keep his rhythm up and I’m gonna make sure it stays that way for awhile.
On fielding a strong starting lineup...
As I said before, the schedule couldn’t have worked itself out better. We had a bye week, playing on a Tuesday, then playing on a Sunday works out great. We get enough time to rest and recover and get back for the next game so it was really about keeping rhythm for the guys.
Sporting KC midfielder Benny Feilhaber
On countering Saint Louis FC’s defensive tactics…
Obviously they put a lot of guys behind they ball, so that makes it tough. I thought we were patient when we needed to. Obviously it would have been nice to get the goal a little earlier, but the bottom line is that you have to win and move on in these type of situations.
On the assist to Graham Zusi…
I forget who played Saad (Abdul-Salaam) the ball, but obviously Saad was able to get down the line, and I was screaming at him to try and chop it back since I had a little bit of space at the top of the box. Once he gave it to me, I picked up my head and saw Dom (Dwyer) and Zusi running in. I just tried to serve a ball in the direction of both of them and Zusi was able to get on the end of it.
On the largest fourth-round crowd in modern U.S. Open Cup history…
Obviously against Saint Louis, there’s a cross-state rivalry. It was a lot of fun. Their crowd was pretty good, and obviously our crowd is amazing, we know that all ready. It was important for them to show up and for us to give them a win.
On a potential rivalry if Saint Louis FC ever joins MLS…
I would have no doubt that there would be a rivalry if they’re ever in MLS. We’re a three-hour drive apart, so it would be a really good rivalry. Hopefully it happens because it’s great for the town and great for the city of Saint Louis as well.
On losing the team’s rivalry with the Chicago Fire…
I never thought Chicago was too much of a rival with us, to be honest. We probably have better rivals in the West. Obviously it’s different than having a rival based on how close they are to you. If Saint Louis FC does eventually come to the league, I think it would be good for both organizations.
Sporting Kansas City forward Graham Zusi
On finally breaking through with a goal after having an attempt cleared off the line…
It wasn’t frustrating. We expected this type of match, high percentage of the possession throughout the game with a team coming in playing very defensive. It’s what we expected, and we didn’t let it frustrate us. We kept pushing, didn’t go away from our game plan, and eventually we got one.
On defender Chance Myers returning from a year-long injury…
It’s awesome. I’m so happy for him, and he played a very good game as well — a very smart game. It’s great having him out there and in the locker room. I’m just really happy for him.
On the largest fourth-round crowd in modern U.S. Open Cup history…
It was incredible. I was shocked when I heard how quick this place sold out. It was amazing. It just goes to show that there’s a rivalry they’re trying to build up and that our fans aren’t going to let it happen.
On the goal…
It was a very good play. We were patient. Saad got it to the outside and he easily could have crossed it himself, but I think he recognized that we didn’t have many numbers in yet so he pulled it back to Benny and allowed more people could get into the box. With more people in the box, the better chance you can get on the end of it, and I guess I was the guy to do that.
Saint Louis FC head coach Dale Schilly
On Saint Louis FC's 1-0 loss to Sporting KC...
We would have liked to have had a little bit more of the ball and we would have liked to have forced them to defend a little bit more. But all in all, I’m really happy with the performance by our guys. We were organized, we defended well. When we had some legs, we got out a couple of times and threatened a little bit. So we were happy with those moments. Like I told the guys before the game, we didn’t have to be spectacular for 90 minutes. We had to defend, we had to work for each other, but we had to be really good in 3 or 4 key moments. But we weren’t good in those moments or else we would have scored a goal and made this thing very, very interesting. It’s just tough, playing the number of games that we have and the amount of travel we’ve had. Playing a fresh team where Peter has been with them every day in training for 10 days. They were sharp technically, they were hungry to get after the game, and our guys are very fatigued after playing a game and then again pretty soon here in a couple days. Tough day for us, but happy with guy’s performance.
On the few scoring chances Saint Louis FC had...
It’s hard because the level of play between the two leagues is different, so we don’t go against many Matt Besler's or many Graham Zusi's. So when these guys are performing, they’re performing at a higher level; a higher technical level, a higher athletic level. It’s hard for our guys to make that adjustment without seeing it regularly. We can’t recreate that in training because our guys aren’t quite to that level yet, they’re still trying to get there. We broke in a couple times, but the speed at which they could recover and the speed at which they could deal with situations is different than what we’ve seen in our league. So that makes it difficult.
On the atmosphere at Sporting Park...
I appreciated the fact that they knocked it 25 times in a row at one point, I think. They were good. The atmosphere was great. You can’t help but notice it when you walk out of the tunnel and on to the field and you have the Cauldron chanting. Yes, I’ve been in the Cauldron and been chanting before. I’ve come up here for a number of games and supported the team. So I’ve been in that and I knew it was like that. To really hear it at the end of the game, when I really tuned into the Louligans, hearing them still supporting the team still at that moment, and hearing the Cauldron guys going at it. For me it just rings of hope that maybe we can continue to meet each other in these sort of matches so that maybe a rivalry can happen. We know it’s always going to be difficult, but that was a really cool atmosphere, I would assume for the Sporting guys as well as our guys.
Saint Louis FC goalkeeper Mark Pais
On the Sporting Park atmosphere and Saint Louis FC’s traveling fans…
It was electric. Deep into the second half they were chanting “STL, STL.” It gave me some chills knowing the whole city was behind us. They’re so passionate about our team and the community of the club. To establish this as a consistent rivalry and maybe an annual thing would be remarkable. It would definitely be something both sides would be interested in.
On the gap between MLS and USL clubs…
I think it’s very slim. I’d be wrong to say we were the better team. They clearly had the better of possession and better chances, but the gap between us and them is very slim. It’s a couple things here and there that put you above or below that line as a USL team or an MLS team. If a chance or two goes our way, it’s tied up there at the end of the game. The gap is slim and I think some of our guys are right at the level of some of their guys. It should be encouraging for the whole league.
Saint Louis FC defender Sam Fink
On playing in a full stadium at Sporting Park…
It was incredible. It was everything it was cracked up to be. Walking out there, emotions were high just to be in this stadium and be in this atmosphere. You’ve just got to tell yourself to calm down a little bit and get into the game. It was a good experience, for sure.
On Sporting KC’s goal in the 70th minute…
(Benny) Feilhaber whipped in a phenomenal ball. That’s a hard goal to defend. (Graham) Zusi came in from the top of the box and he ran across my face. I’ll take the blame for sure. I should have put my head on it, but I thought we battled.
On the gap between MLS and USL clubs…
We always knew that there was going to be some kind of gap and that we were going to have to defend as a unit. Technique-wise and shape-wise, I thought we were a good match for them. I think they had a few good opportunities, but for the most part we showed them that a lot of us belong on the field like that.
On the challenge of containing Sporting KC’s attack…
You always have to be checking your shoulder to see where (Dom) Dwyer is or if Zusi is coming out of the midfield. I think that the biggest thing is you always have to be thinking; you always have to be checking your shoulder.
On a potential rivalry if Saint Louis FC ever joins MLS…
It would be a dream come true. I think this could be fantastic rivalry. I think if you ask any Kansas City fan tonight, they could tell you where our fans were sitting. Hopefully it’ll get bigger and better as time goes on. It was phenomenal to see that many people screaming through minute 90. It was something special, and you want to fight for that; you want to play for that.
