Sporting Director & Head Coach Gregg Berhalter
On his team’s defensive abilities...
"I think that it gave us confidence. It was a total team performance, very solid defensively and it gives you confidence that we are eventually going to break through, eventually keep going, it gives the attackers confidence and to me it was more about the team defending than individuals. It was a really good compact unit and I thought that we made it very difficult for them. They could keep the ball one place and that was in the back and everywhere else was difficult."
On the impact of confidence on his team’s defense...
"I think so. Part of the plan was how can we put ourselves in position to win more games and the starting point for that is our playing style, but it’s in not conceding goals. When I look at the stat sheet, what I’m impressed with is that we had almost 90% passing completion in the second half and we still were able to hold them without a shot [on goal]. So we’re keeping the ball, we’re moving the ball well and we’re able to defend well."
On the current state of his team’s offense...
"I don’t think so. Again, in these games I think that it’s going to look a little bit different. We have to get used to that. It’s still going to be our style, but the chances they probably won’t be eight shots on goal. It’s probably going to be fewer chances, but high quality opportunities. Today I think that we were in position to create real high quality opportunities and there was a little bit missing, but I thought we were threatening."
On his back line’s performance tonight...
"I thought it was good. There was a couple of times that they [Philadelphia Union] played between our lines in the first half and got in to the center and we wanted to address that. Second half, a couple of balls over the top that we could have done better on, but the guys have been putting in a ton of work and to see it pay off on the stadium field is gratifying for them because they’ve been working so hard in training."
On Justin Meram’s performance tonight...
"He’s getting there. He’s a player that can put himself in a position to really hurt the other team and he’s getting some of that back. I think together, in this particular game, with him and Kekuta [Manneh] there’s a real explosiveness there."
On playing with three defenders in the back...
"I think we have our playing style, we have the way that we want to play, we want to dominate the ball, we want to move the ball around quickly and we can do it in both formations. So now it’s about personnel and now it’s about opponent. What’s the opponent doing and who do we have healthy that can be on the field?"
On Federico Higuain’s absence...
"I think with him it’s different because he can control the game so well, he can make something out of nothing and his passing is exceptional. You miss a little bit of quality, there’s no question, but without him we still have to play our game and I think that tonight we did that."
On Harrison Afful’s injury status...
"It is the same thing and it is the thigh so we are going to have to evaluate that, but I think that it was the same thing and I don’t think it’s severe though."
On Cristian Martinez’s performance tonight...
"I thought he was good, I thought he was good. He’s a gamer, he’s a guy that understands what that end of the game should look like and can control it really well. You see his poise for a 20-year-old is great and when you look at the guys on our team, the age of the guys that played, we have a young group, the number of guys on the field at the end under the age of 23."
On how his team prepares for their next match against Philadelphia...
"I think they are going to come out strong. I think that they are going to come out and try to pressure us early, try to create chances early and try to put us on our back foot. I think they’ll probably push more numbers forward early in the game and we’re going to have to adapt to that. I like how we’re set up, I think we have speed and our attack will always be dangerous."
On Justin Meram using not being named as an MLS All-Star to his advantage...
"Things happen like that that you don’t expect. We probably all expected him to be an all-star this season, the way he was playing and the chances he was creating. Things happen that you can’t control and he’s a guy that he’ll continue to work hard; he’ll be an all-star in his career."
On Wil Trapp’s performance tonight...
"That’s what we need. In that position we need range of passing, because what we’ll do is soften up the space between the lines, so we need those guys. I thought that Alex [Crognale] was exceptional in the second half hitting balls also that will open up space and then we get our attacking midfielders into play with balls in the pocket and they become more dangerous."
On Federico Higuain’s timeline to return...
"It’s day to day. I know that sounds pretty vague, but it’s literally a type of injury that if he wakes up tomorrow and the pain was alleviated, he could train tomorrow. So it’s day to day, we are communicating with him, he’s communicating on where he’s at and we’ll go from there."
On if he is being cautious with Federico Higuain returning...
"No. I think it’s something where he has pain and it’s not something to push through, so when the pain subsides he’ll be back."
On Lalas Abubakar’s confidence building...
"I think so, I think so. To me there was a play in the [Eintracht] Frankfurt game that showed how his confidence is growing and it’s nice to see. You hope when young players get chances that they take their opportunity and go from there and we are certainly seeing something from Lalas [Abubakar] these last couple of games."
Defender Lalas Abubakar
On his reaction to two back-to-back shutout performances...
"Anytime I’m playing, that’s what I’m always in for. Usually before the game I talk to Zack, Alex, Jonathan, all of our team to make sure we get a clean sheet. At the end of the day, we make sure we don’t concede."
On having more individual shots than the Union as a collective...
"Most of the shots, I should have done better. I was a little bit disappointed for myself, but I should have maybe scored one of my shots."
On Crew SC’s decision to play with 3 in the back...
"It’s all about the grind, the formation is there. Once we get a goal, mentally we got to hustle to get the three points. It doesn’t matter the type of formation we play, we just have to keep grinding."
Midfielder Justin Meram
On tonight’s game...
"I think defensively, our back five was really, really, good. If our defense does that [not allow a shot on goal], with a nice little lucky break we get the win."
On what the break did for his health...
"I needed it, but still I’m trying to get back to 100 percent. When minute 70 came, I was pretty tired. I felt great to put in a solid shift, it felt great to get back out there, put my boots on and help the team win. Now I have to recover and get even healthier."
On his & Kekuta’s performance without having a true number 10 in the formation...
"I think the game kind of changes for us. It’s tough to play in the pocket, but the transitions are on. When the transitions are on, it’s a real danger. I think we had some really good chances in the first half that we didn’t really capitalize on."
On how he sees getting snubbed from the all-star game...
"I’ll be honest I was upset for the day, and then I let it go. It’s over. I’m just here to play the game."
Forward Kekuta Manneh
On winning the game at home, even though he did not have many scoring opportunities...
"It’s just sticking together. We know what we had, and where we want to be. We knew this was a game we had to win. We won away last game, and we knew coming back. I think everyone today dug in, every single one of us. It was a team performance we got the goal, and defended and got the result at the end."
On working more defensively than he ever has in his career...
"It’s not easy. It’s what I have to do for the team, we had a goal and we knew we had to defend as a team. We’ve been doing that. I think everywhere you go, it’s a different level, a different team and a different style of play. You’ve got to work hard and help the team, you have to be there for the team. That’s what I’m trying to do."
On Gregg changing the formation which allows for fewer opportunities, but better quality opportunities and how it affects his role...
"I think it’s working to our advantage. We played it against Colorado and did not get a result. I think it’s working for us, we’re getting quality chances. I had one myself, Justin had one, Ola had one. We know the chances, and once we get them we know we need to do well."
