New England Revolution Head Coach Jay Heaps
On tonight’s match and Orlando City tying the game in the final moments:
Coach Heaps: “It’s a difficult game. It was a game I thought we approached all the right ways. We got two goals and that was important, but I felt like after the second goal, could we have gotten a third. We had a really strange injury to Donnie Smith, who went down and we had to push him up top, because he hurt his hamstring. That really hurt us in terms of going after the third goal before they scored their second goal. In the course of the game, I thought we were good at times and I thought the area where we struggled was the two chances they created that were two crosses from the right side. Can we do a better job of preventing service, and can we do a better job, particularly on the first goal, of defending, because I never thought they were going to break us down. It was always going to be some type of crossed ball and some type of second ball, or loose ball, and that’s what happened.”
On Juan Agudelo’s performance off the bench and the performance of Femi Hollinger-Janzen:
Coach Heaps: “The idea was to have Femi [Hollinger-Janzen] go out there and he’s fresh, and not coming back from any injury or anything like that, so he was good to go. We were excited to get him the game, because I thought he brings a lot of energy and he certainly did that. But then Juan [Agudelo] came in and I think had a little bit of edge to him. The first couple touches were excellent. Apart from the goal, he was all over the place, dangerous on the last play of the game. It was something that we’re excited about going forward.”
On what he learned today:
Coach Heaps: “I want to assess it a little bit more, but I think we learned about some of our guys. I think we saw some good things from individual play, but collectively, we still have to be better on crossed balls. I think that’s been a little bit of an Achilles’ heel for us at times, because we do it really three or four weeks, and then we have a letdown defensively. Really in terms of danger, they are not that dangerous. They are floated balls and we should be dealing with them – the first one – a little bit better, and we didn’t.”
On if dealing with crosses is a mental issue or a matter of positioning:
Coach Heaps: “I think they are in the right spots. On the first goal, from my vantage point, two guys went to Larin, because obviously, it’s Cyle Larin. I think [Andrew] Farrell had it and I think Je-Vaughn [Watson] went over just in case. It fell right to [Kevin] Molino, and I think that when you get down there, we’re just got to make sure everyone stays with their man and finishes out the play.”
On the injuries to Je-Vaughn Watson and Lee Nguyen:
Coach Heaps: “Lee [Nguyen]’s was a little precautionary, and Je-Vaughn [Watson] – I think both of them could have finished the game, but they had both gone 90, 90, 90. Je-Vaughn was the one where I didn’t want to make, but we got the go-ahead that he was maybe going to be able to finish. That’s concerning, and so we wanted to make sure we didn’t lose anyone else in terms of the long-term. London [Woodberry] has been great for us. To be honest with you, the last goal wasn’t really London’s [fault]. If you look closely at it – I just watched it on film, he wins the ball and it deflects off of [Carlos] Rivas’ foot and goes in the goal, so it was a little bit, extremely unlucky on London’s part. He noticed where the guy was, made the play, and he just kicked it off of Rivas’ foot into the goal.”
On wanting more movement in the attacking third:
Coach Heaps: “I thought we got that today.”
On how accumulating ties affects the team mentally:
Coach Heaps: “Each tie has been completely different in how it feels, right? If you go through each of them, tonight we are disappointing because we let it slip. Wednesday’s tie was a little different, because we were down and had to come back, even though it was disappointing in its own right, because we went down and we completely dominated the match in every way. We just weren’t clean enough in the final third. I go back to the tie against Toronto at home where the penalty kick and the goal called back is completely different, because you feel like you’ve won the game and it was taken away from you from another element of the game. All of them have different complexities and all of them hurt in a different way, but the way I look at it is if we continue – look, no one is happy that we are tying these games when we should win. Like tonight, we really wanted these three points. You could tell by the energy of the guys right from the beginning, the opening whistle. It was a team that really wanted these three points. Sometimes, like I said, we could have done more, but credit their guys. Their two goals, they didn’t have many chances and when they got their chances they took them. You’ve got to credit that.”
New England Revolution Forward Juan Agudelo
On having an influence on the game:
Agudelo: “I definitely would have been happier if we got the three points. I think that’s the most important thing. A little bit unlucky at the end. I thought we deserved the three points and that’s how football is sometimes. You know, you don’t win them all.”
On the ending to the game:
Agudelo: “Their goal, like you said, [was] a little bit flukey. It’s tough, though. Defenders have been doing great all season, so it’s not their fault at all, and with my header, I did the best that I could. I think that was the highest that I could jump and unfortunately I couldn’t get a couple centimeters higher.”
On his goal:
Agudelo: “I realized it in the first half and the coaches also told me to get to the near post, and I was able to do that and it’s funny, because it worked out as soon as I came in.”
On not getting the start today:
Agudelo: “I mean, I talked to Coach [Jay Heaps]. He was telling me how I’ve just come back from my hamstring injury and Wednesday-Saturday is a quick turnaround, and Femi [Hollinger-Janzen]’s been doing great, so hat off to him. I think he did well.”
New England Revolution Midfielder Diego Fagundez
On the start of the game:
Fagundez: “It’s one of those, it’s a frustrating one. Not the way we wanted it to end of course. We were fighting all the way until the end and we let it slip in the last minute. We just have to keep focusing on trying to finish games out and the goals are going to come.”
On getting into good spots and getting the end product:
Fagundez: “I think in the attack, we’re definitely getting the ball inside the box and we’re creating a lot of chances, and now we just have to finish them. We got to finish a couple of times today, but all those chances that we have, if we could just finish a couple more, it would be a different game. Of course you know we can’t let them hit some crosses like that and let them finish.”
On his goal:
Fagundez: “It was one of those when, I don’t remember who crossed it, but when it was me and [Brek] Shea going on one-on-one, I just knew I had to beat him and Lee [Nguyen] made a good play where I just touched it to him, he laid it off and then I just had to finish it.”
On Femi Hollinger-Janzen’s first start:
Fagundez: “I think he was nervous. Of course it was his first game, I remember my first game and it was one of those, but he came in, he did his job, he worked hard. There’s nothing bad you could say about him. Now, we just have to keep moving forward. He understands his role a little bit more and we just need to keep working with him.”
On the difference between quick passing in this game from previous games:
Fagundez: “I think we finally connected with each other. It was one of those things where we were passing and moving off the ball and we got to the eighteen and from the eighteen we can work our magic and try to get a goal.”
Orlando City SC Head Coach Adrian Heath
On his overall thoughts on tonight’s game:
Coach Heath: “I asked for a much improved performance from the team from last week. I didn’t think our levels of desire, enthusiasm, commitment were what they should have been last week and then even though we scored later on. I thought we got that tonight, which was a start for us. I thought we played some good football in the first half; gave away a poor goal. I always thought we were dangerous during the night and certainly on the counter-attack. I thought we had some really good control of possession first half and then obviously we made the changes later on to have a go at it and fortunately, you know, obviously Carlos [Rivas] gets the goal, but I thought Julio Baptista gave us a lift as well when he came on. Overall, would I have accepted a point before the game? You bet I would. I think this is one of the most difficult places in the MLS to come and play, so for us to go away with a point after the last two or three weeks, I’m delighted.”
On whether or not it was difficult to defend against Femi Hollinger-Janzen without previously having tape to watch on him:
Coach Heath: “Well, we’d seen him a little bit before we came here so we were a little bit aware of what he does, but it’s one of them things that our two center backs probably didn’t know him and he’s willing. He put himself about in the first half, made some good run, so it was the way Juan [Agudelo] came on and scored with virtually first touch and then he hit the cross-bar with the header. I’m just glad he was only for ten minutes and not 25.”
On whether or not it was difficult to adjust to Juan Agudelo’s playing style when he came on the field:
Coach Heath: “Well, Juan [Agudelo] came and trained with us for about six weeks down in Orlando before he came back to the Revs, so I was fully aware of his talent. He’s a really talented boy and he made a big impression when he came on. He was a handful for us to deal with. He got a good goal across the near post and I think had a great header later on—I think it was him—so I’m glad he was only on for ten minutes.”
On why he decided to sub in Carlos Rivas and Julio Baptista:
Coach Heath: “We wanted to try and get something out of the game and, you know, 2-1 down. You’ve got to do something to try and get, you know – we put forwards on. We wanted to get something out of the game and we did. We looked dangerous. A couple of occasions with a good final ball in the last couple of minute and we could have even. And another couple of opportunities, so overall we did when they come on. And obviously I’m delighted with Carlos [Rivas]. He’s been really frustrated with the fact of his lack of playing time but that will no doubt do his confidence a lot of good.”
On Julio Baptista’s progress:
Coach Heath: “Yep, getting better. We’re getting a better understanding of what he can do. As I said, I thought he gave us a lift when he came on and he’s getting fitter by the week. I think it’s over a year before he played, before he came to us so he’s not going to get much fitness and back to his sharpest in two or three weeks. The guy’s got unbelievable talent and as I said before, I think he’ll be an important piece for us moving forward.”
On whether or not he is planning to start Julio Baptista moving forward:
Coach Heath: “We started a game with him a couple of weeks ago against the Revs, but we still think he needs a bit more time, but he’s been a big pick-up for us.”
On how he felt tonight’s formation compared to last week’s formation:
Coach Heath: “I thought at times we controlled, had some good control of possession in the first half. Second half, we were under a lot of pressure, but I thought we were going to withstand it, and then obviously they got a really good goal, but our lads responded really well. I think there’s been quite a lot of positives for me to look at during the week.”
On whether the turf at Gillette Stadium affected his decision not to bring Kaka:
Coach Heath: “No. Obviously, we’ve got turf. We know what it’s like. But as I said before, we’ve got another six months left. We don’t want to rush him when he’s not 100 percent fit and I’m almost certain he’ll be fit for next week against the Red Bulls.”
On how taking home a point will affect their momentum after their performance in February:
Coach Heath: “We hope so. We’ve had some really poor decisions go against us that have cost us dearly. And what happens is, when you don’t win, obviously it starts to ebb away at the confidence and I’m hopeful this will give us a lift before we’ve got a big game next week against the Red Bulls. If we were to win, that probably puts us in around the top of the tables. Considering just the last four games that we’ve had, I’m quite pleased where we are.”
Orlando City SC Midfielder Kevin Molino
On the last month being a tough one and if getting a point will turn the page:
Molino: “Definitely, we had a rough month and now we have to put it behind us and look forward to the next month and hopefully we stick to that and continue working hard in training and everything will be good.”
On the last few moments when they tied the game:
Molino: “All credit to the guys for not giving up and keep fighting. We’re going to take a point any day. At the end of the day, you kind of take a point for granted. You know later in the season that one point can take you to the playoffs, so we’re just happy for the tie now and we’re looking forward to next month and it’s going to be better than this month.”
Orlando City SC Midfielder Carlos Rivas
Quotes provided by translator
On what he saw before he came on the field and what he would try to do:
Rivas: “He said that Adrian (Heath) told him to utilize his speed, that there was going to be some open spots and to be aware of those.”
On how the last goal felt and if he knew it was going to go in:
Rivas: “He said he saw it coming from the beginning and he envisioned it happening and he’s really happy that he just got his first goal in MLS and he hopes to continue this trajectory.”
On if it’s been hard with the recent changes in formation:
Rivas: “He said that as a player, he’ll always respect the coach’s decision and that’s just kind of what [the player’s] role is. As a player, you’re always going to want to be in and you’re always going to want to have your first foot forward, but at the end of the day, it’s all about what the coach tells you to do.”
On playing this team again and getting a tie again:
Rivas: “He said coming into an environment like this and coming out with a point is always a great thing. At home, you try to go obviously for the win, but in this type of environment and the fact that we weren’t at home, we’ll take the point.”
