Sporting KC Manager Peter Vermes
Comments on the match...
Look I think that first off you have to applaud Des Moines and them beating Minnesota to get here. Minnesota is a very good team. I thought they actually played a very solid game to that. On the other side I thought that we dominated the game from the beginning to the end. I thought that we had control of the game from the first minute until the end and a good chance in the first half and a good one in the second half and we had a good control of the game. Should have definitely scored more goals, but 2-0 - we'll take it and move on to the next round.
On whether the players on loan to Orlando City will be allowed to play against Sporting KC...
Well I think it's going to be more from the league, but I'll know in the next couple of days. I don't know at the moment, that's something the league has to be involved in for sure.
On if he has a preference either way about the loan situation...
I don't know. I haven't really thought about it to be honest with you since we were playing this game and I wanted to focus on this game and decide after the results. Like I said, we will have to think about this as we move into this next phase because the league will have something to say about it so we'll just have to see what they say.
On the play of Mikey Lopez...
It doesn't matter what game it is. Whenever it's you first with the team, I think it's always going to be a little bit of a nervous energy and I thought at moments he was pretty good and at other moments, aggressive to get into places where he shouldn't have been but I thought he was decent on the ball and I thought he had a pretty good feel for how we wanted to play. But it's a good start for him for sure and he's got a great attitude and the way that he goes to press the ball and play it back. He's a little pitbull, and I think that's going to serve him well as he continues to progress as a player.
On the team protecting a one-goal lead until late...
I think you always are concerned when you are in a situation like that [being only up one for that part of the second half] where you have as many chances as we did. You have got to make sure that you have the discipline in the back. I thought Collin and Lawrence were very good tonight and I thought both of them did a very good job against their center forward who is a powerful guy who has done some damage against some other teams but my biggest thing was that I just felt we needed to finish another win as opposed to them putting one in you still have to put those goals away to put a team up.
On the performance of Kei Kamara...
I thought it was good. I think that his movement off the ball was decent, to get the goal in the first half was good. He had a couple of other good chances here and there, but I think the big thing is that he's getting his legs under him again with the way we play and I think that's the biggest thing and hopefully he will continue to keep progressing in that area because honestly he's a guy that we need within this group moving forward.
On playing against KC native and former Academy player Scott Angevine...
I thought it was good for him because he has worked a number of years with us now. He was on our U-19 team with us a few years back. He's a pretty dedicated kid and he's just tried to hang on and find something and he found a team and I think he's done well with this group and it's a big chance for him to come back and play in this environment. But credit to him, he made some good saves and I think it's a good start for his career to be able to play on a team like Des Moines and I have a lot of respect for Mike Jeffries, I know him really well. I've known him a long time as a coach and he's playing for a good guy and he's got a good future ahead for himself right now.
On goalkeeper Eric Kronberg getting minutes...
I think he had good command of the game, I know he was very excited to get in games like this as we move into these kinds of competitions because he is going to have a big part in them so I was very happy to see him get the minutes. So like I said he had good command of the game. He was solid. Even though he wasn't tested a great deal, his distribution, and important part, something he has a big upside to, and that he can throw the ball past midfield and get us into the fast break so hopefully we'll see more of that as we go through the tournament.
On opportunities for Kronberg moving forward...
I don't think I have one or the other, but he'll get in home games in both competitions and at some point he'll start getting some games in MLS as well just because the rotation and the way it goes. We start getting our schedule going it's just not going to be where everybody can play game to game to game. There has to be a rotation.
On the introduction of Bieler in the second half...
These games are very difficult to play. It's tough for those guys coming in and I don't mean that in a disrespectful way it's just they want to come in and prove that they can play at this level and that they can knock off a team in the MLS. So it wasn't easy for them, but what I'll say is that you can see the class in his play and see how simple he made the game as soon as he went out there and he found the net quite a few times in a short period of time so it just shows the quality he has.
Sporting KC defender Aurelien Collin
On Sporting KC's 2-0 win over the Des Moines Menace...
I am happy to get the win. That is the biggest thing for us in the (U.S. Open) Cup. We have great memories of the Cup from last year, so this is important for us. Maybe we could have scored more, but we should be happy to keep going.
On the Des Moines Menace's performance...
They did not make it easy. They played very hard. Maybe you can say we have the better players, but they played with their hearts. You have to be proud of them for that.
On playing in the U.S. Open Cup against a lower-division opponent...
It is a little different-the stadium is not as crazy, but a game is a game. Like I said, we have great memories of the (U.S. Open) Cup. And if we want that to happen again, we must win these games. It does not matter if it is the Cup or the League. We are only going for the win, and it would be very sad to lose.
On Mikey Lopez, Michael Thomas and Eric Kronberg getting their first minutes of the season...
They did a good job tonight. When you play a lot of games, you need a lot of players. Mikey (Lopez) and (Michael Thomas) are very good, and everyone believes in Eric. They can all play and make a positive (impact) on the team. We need them.
Sporting KC midfielder Mikey Lopez
On making his Sporting KC debut...
It felt good to be out there in front of a big crowd. My performance could have been a lot better. It was my first pro game, so I just need to get into a rhythm and get used to playing games. I wanted to hold onto the ball better, but I'm at least happy we got the win.
On his pregame nerves...
I was obviously a little nervous before the game. You never want to mess up and cause something bad to happen, especially in a knockout tournament like this. But by the 20th minute I settled down a bit.
On competing in the U.S. Open Cup...
Getting that first game under my belt was good, no matter what competition it was. I thought I'd maybe have to wait until CONCACAF Champions League. But the timing here was nice. It's just crazy to think that I'm really on the team now. I'm playing in front of my fans and representing the club. My goal now is just to improve from this and continue to get better.
Des Moines Menace Head Coach Mike Jeffries
General thoughts on the match...
I was a little bit disappointed by the first goal. I would say that by the end of the night, the only thing that disappointed me was the goal we gave away. We tried to organize set pieces and be sharper on that, but to give away a goal on a set piece play put us behind the eight ball a little bit and made the game a lot tougher than it already was - which is an understatement probably. I will say that I thought the guys reacted incredibly well after giving up the first goal 12 minutes into the game and kept their composure. So full credit to them for that because I think it would have been easy for us, in that position, to self-destruct at that point or chase the game and obstruct what we were trying to do. So full credit, they reacted and responded to the game. We always felt that as the half wore on we would be able to settle into the game a little better and I think that happened. Obviously we were hoping to survive the first 15 minutes better than we ended up.
Playing at Sporting Park...
It meant a lot coming in here, just with the opportunity to play at Sporting Park and the opportunity to try and advance in the Open Cup. I said to the guys after the game, when you look at the guys you just played against on the field, the national team players that were in the lineup for Sporting Kansas City and the experience and the quality they had on the field, I think it's a tremendous accomplishment to play the game we did. Also most importantly, you walk out with that good experience, something that you will hopefully treasure. I think there were so many areas, little things, that their [Sporting KC's] professionalism and experience showed up in the amount of times they were able to push us off the ball, the right body position, the way they were able to read plays just a little bit quicker.
On Scott Angevine having trained with Sporting KC in the past...
Scott [Angevine] was obviously a big help in our pre-game preparation. We had a pretty good sense of what to expect. I thought we were pretty well-prepared for what they put on the field. But, in terms of how they played and where guys went in the movements, it doesn't make it any easier for our guys to deal with it when it comes up and the ball is moving fast and you have to make decisions on which guy to pick up and what angle to take to close guys down. Scott was obviously a big help.
On Angevine's performance...
Scott was superb. Certainly he was everything we could have hoped for in goal and he made big plays. At the end of the game when you are down two goals you have to take your chances and make the game crazy. For us, it was a really long shot at that point, but we were still going to try and do everything that we can. So we hung him out to dry a little bit and so forth but that's the nature of goalkeeping and that's what you expect from the guys. When it all breaks down in front of them, he can make the big play and I thought he did that tonight in a superb way, so, very proud.
On the overall performance of the team...
I'm very proud of the team. Flat-out proud of the guys. It is everything that I as a coach, or the organization could have asked of them. They put their hearts into the game and every part of it. They showed good discipline throughout the game and good concentration, so I'm really pleased with them. It's a different perspective being the underdog, but it was a really, really enjoyable challenge trying to get a result in this game and also to set a good tone for these guys and our team.
Des Moines Menace Captain Brandon Fricke
On the experience...
It was a great experience for all of us. A lot of us haven't played in this sort of an arena in front of this many fans, on this good of a field, against that good of a squad so it was an eye-opening experience. And like coach said on the experience part, I'm going to take away a lot and it really comes down to the little things. When you look at us player to player we aren't that much different but those very small differences, those details, make a 2-0 loss instead of us winning the game. At the end of the day, it was a good experience and great learning curve to move on with and overall I'm happy with it.
On the gameplan for the second half...
I think after we withheld that first 5-10 minutes stretch in the second half we knew they were going to come after as. So we were trying to withhold that and then go after them a little bit because we were down 1-nil at that point and we had to get back in the game a little bit. So we were pushing, and then unfortunately they scored the second goal. It was bit deflating, but at that point, that late in the game, we were already behind, we just had to move forward and just try to get as much out of this game as we can. I think after the first goal we responded well and even after the second goal, I thought we tried to keep going and push for that goal to get us back in the game, because 2 - 0 was still a dangerous score line for them. You know if we would have scored one with ten to fifteen minutes to go it would have been a crazy game trying to get it to 2-2. But we were responding and just trying to get back into it.
Des Moines Menace goalkeeper Scott Angevine
What it was like playing back at Sporting Park...
It was a great feeling being here again I was happy to be back. When the bus pulled up in front of the stadium I couldn't help but smile and it brought back a lot of great memories. I knew playing against my old team was going to be fun and I obviously know, a lot of guys and knew how they played, and I knew it was going to be a tough one. It was a little out of hand for us, Sporting KC pushed and controlled the game, but I was happy that the guys still fought throughout.
On facing Kei Kamara in a competitive match...
It was terrifying; he is a big guy (laughs). His biggest facet is his aerial game and I thought they would exploit that more. I expected they would float it down the wing more so he could power it down with a header. It was fun playing against all those guys. Actually playing against them on the field in a real match was a lot different than just the training environment.
On coming home and the magnitude of the match...
It was the biggest game I've ever played in just because of the magnitude, and the fact that this is the longest standing professional tournament in all of the United States. It was a pleasure to put on the Menace Jersey and play for my team, against my former team.
On the pressure of this game...
I've always been good with nerves; I train six days a week 10-11 months of the year exactly for this. Once the first whistle blows it's exactly like training, same ball, same goal, same type of field. The competition may be tougher but essentially it was the same game. I would say I was more excited than I was nervous.
On playing in front of the KC Cauldron...
I honestly thought they would heckle me a lot more so I was prepared. Someone actually tweeted at me this morning and said that they were going to say that (Scott, it's all your fault) but honestly I love the fans here. I had the pleasure of playing at several stadiums in MLS and witnessing different fans. I honestly believe Sporting Kansas City has the best fans, they love their team and when you play them it shows by how much they hate you (laughs).
Personal performance in the match...
As a goalkeeper, even if I make twenty saves, giving up two goals is still going to make me mad at myself. I'll always be contemplating what I did wrong. I mean, Claudio he megged me on that cross and I felt that a little on the inside of my left knee and I just wondered if I could've got down quicker and made that save. And that's what I wanted to do here, make big time saves and not only showcase myself to Sporting KC, but also to all professional teams out there as well.
On playing against Kamara in a competitive match rather than a practice setting...
I wanted to play against Kei. We've always had a close bond, he was always a mentor to me and helped me acclimate myself to the professional level. I have nothing against Kei. After the game I gave everyone a hug. Even new guys who didn't really know me recognized me from training with them a bit during the preseason before I left. All in all, it was great to get to play against them and during the initial 90 minutes it was intense, but after it was all smiles and hugs and congratulations.
