Quote Sheet
Real Salt Lake 0-1 Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC
Rio Tinto Stadium, Sandy, Utah, April 20, 2022
Defender Jaziel Orozco
On moving on from the recent losses:
“I think it’s all mental, all in the group. We’re trying to move on from what happened, and the losses from last weekend and this game were all mental. As a group we’re trying to cheer each other up and keep working hard on getting better every day in training and try again tomorrow, so we can keep our heads up in Portland.”
On the intensity of the Hailstorm
“Yeah, I think [Hailstorm FC] just wanted to be there. They wanted to come and play an MLS team, and they wanted to give it a go and prove themselves. When we were out there, it was difficult for us to get the ball, and unfortunately they scored a goal because we didn’t win that second ball and that’s why they scored. We need to just get better. No matter who we go up against, we need to have the same mentality like we’re going up against the best teams in MLS so we can get better throughout the season. [Hailstorm FC] wanted to compete and be there and be present in the game.”
On getting called up to the U-20 USYNT
“It’s a blessing. It’s something great that I was hoping to get called up for Mexico or the U.S., and I got to take the challenge to try and make the team and get as much motivation as possible. I have to get my mentality, my body, and everything right, so I can go and take that challenge and try to represent RSL in the best way possible.”
Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni
On the morale of the group
“Obviously it’s not great. It was a lot different when we won three in a row, but we’re still in a good spot in the table. It’s early in the season. It’s going to test our character and our resolve as a group. It’s on us to make sure that we go to Portland and put forth a very good performance and more importantly get a result to get this thing going. My experience in this league is that you can win at home, you can win away, it’s really about the belief system. What we’re working on in the next couple days, along with getting guys fresh and seeing who we have available, is that we’re prepared mentally to go to a difficult place and get a result.”
On the lineup and substitutions
“Everything was planned. It’s one thing if you have three games in seven days. We have three games in six days, traveled to and from New York. We’ve got Justen [Glad], Jasper [Loeffelsend], [David] Ochoa coming back from injury. Everything was planned. It was making sure that we bring them on in a way that was in line with our medical and sports performance staff and making sure that they’ll be available for the game on the weekend.”
On having the right mentality and upping the intensity
“I’ve talked about mentality a lot, coming in here, and I think that’s the holy grail. I think once you have the right mentality, you’re steeling your resolve, you go down a goal, much like we were in New England, so we’ve shown the capacity to bounce back from difficult situations. But to go to Portland, we’re going to need all that. We’re going to need everyone firing, we need 9 out of 10 performances from everyone. Along with that, the grit and mentality that you’re going to need when moments aren’t going well for you. Every match is an opportunity to learn from and grow from, and these two difficult games, it might feel like it’s been like this for a long time, but I think the positives are fleeting and the negatives stay with you for a while. We’re going to recover tomorrow, get the guys back, and go to Portland and put forth a very good performance.”
On the performance of the younger players
“I was looking more at positioning. In this game you need to make plays on both sides of the ball. Did the defenders make plays? Did Bobby Pierre make a couple good plays? I think so. I think the attacking game requires, in any sport, the X-factor. You’ve got to have the guy that’s going to unlock defenses. Chris [Garcia] had some decent moments, but it’s only going to be judged on the final product. If not, it’s only fleeting. The fact that we didn’t score just tells me that we weren’t good enough in that final third. We’ve got to make plays, and I think there’s moments when we could be more selfish and take more responsibility in those areas, and that’s what goal scorers do. They don’t pass, they shoot. We’ll go back and watch the tape, but again, you gotta make plays in the attacking half, and tonight we didn’t do that.”
