Quote Sheet
Real Salt Lake 1-1 Minnesota United FC
Rio Tinto Stadium; Sandy, Utah
Saturday, May 29, 2021
Head Coach Freddy Juarez
On the result:
“Cruel. You put your heart and soul into it and I thought everybody had a great game. We pushed and created, but the goal comes out of nothing. It’s just football. That’s how football goes and we have to keep our heads high. There was a lot of good. Some guys had some fantastic games. Aaron [Herrera] had his best game, and Brody was very, very good. The guys were pushing and creating, but we gave up an unlucky goal. I’ve been with enough teams to know that if you keep up that work ethic, then good things will happen.”
On the importance of a second goal:
“I think the goal still comes from nothing, but I think that if we just have a little bit more quality in that final third and we get the second, then who knows how that turns the game? Sometimes you get the third and the fourth and if not the second kills the game. We’ll learn from it. I think the team is still playing very well. We have a lot of energy, and we continue to be dangerous in the final third. We’re defending well, we just have to put that game away.”
On Damir Kreilach’s finishing ability:
“I think I said it last time—it’s like he has this magnet to the ball. Let’s not forget it all comes down to a quality service, and we have guys that can serve the ball well; Aaron [Herrera] is one of them. I do think we can have more consistency when running in and attacking the ball, we talked about that before the game. There were a couple of other balls that Aaron put in later in the game that created opportunities as well.”
General Manager Elliot Fall
On Jonathan Menéndez’s qualities:
“He’s a really good all around footballer. He likes to get the ball out wide and come inside; he’s also crafty with the ball at his feet. He looks for goals and he’s also good at creating for his teammates. He’s a well-rounded player.”
On the challenges to sign Menéndez:
“We are certainly relieved to get signatures on contracts, you can never count these kinds of deals as done until you have all of them. It is always challenging to negotiate and work through all of the logistics with both the clubs and the players. The transfer window was closing and on top of that, we had the COVID situation in both countries so our work is not done yet. We do have signed contracts and we know we’ll have him here, it’s just a matter of how quickly we can get him. We’re working furiously behind the scenes to do so.”
On Menéndez impact on team rotations.
“He provides competition. I don’t think anybody is ready to say whether he’ll come in as a starter or off the bench, but he’s another player that we believe will have an impact on our team and in us winning games.”
On bringing new players in:
“Yes, absolutely. We’re still in contact with some players and still discussing things. We’ll see how those play out.”
Defender Andrew Brody
On the result:
“It’s a bit disappointing to get the draw. I think we did everything right to earn the three points, but they just got one chance and they scored. There are a lot of positives to take away though. We were on the front foot towards the end and I thought we were going to get one. Sometimes you get the winner and sometimes you don’t.”
On the opponent’s goal:
“It’s super frustrating and so unlucky, because it’s just come off his back. There’s nothing really you can do but keep your head up. We have a long season ahead of us, so it’s important to keep going and working hard.”
On how they were structured tonight:
“We created a few chances. Their goalkeeper made a really good save on Meram’s shot. There were a few dangerous crosses and a few through balls. But I think we created more than enough chances to win that game. I also think we could’ve won that game with just the one goal that we scored, if it wasn’t for the one unlucky moment that we had there.”
On the team's third consecutive draw:
“I don’t think it’s concerning. We are walking away with points at the end of the day which is always good. Obviously we always want to go for three, but it's a long season. We will grow from this. We will put in work during this break. Hopefully we can come back for our next game and get all three.”
Defender Aaron Herrera
On the coaching staff’s message:
“They’re just saying we’re right there, one step away from being where we want to be. We just have to keep our heads up. We’re not losing games but obviously we are dropping points we don’t want to be dropping. At the end of the day we have only lost one game this season. We’ve had a couple of games here at home that felt like losses. We’ve also had a game on the road that felt like a win. We just have to keep pushing. We’re one step away from being able to give teams that kill shot and end the game. I think we’re capable of dominating teams, especially here at home. In my mind we should be 6-0 right now, so it hurts. One more thing we have to figure out is how to get better at targeting the next level. Once we do that we’ll be a great team.”
On Menéndez:
“I’m not going to lie, I don’t really know much about Menéndez. I’ve heard he’s a good attacking player. Obviously Bobby Wood’s a big name that’s been around for awhile. Hopefully we can help revive his career. Hopefully he can come in and be a big player for us. It’s going to be good competition because Rubio [Rubin]’s been absolutely tearing it up for us. I think anytime you’re bringing in players like that they’re supposed to be game-changers. That’s what we need right now, more game-changers and guys that can make us better in the final third and sort of connect the back to the front. It’s not going to hurt bringing in good players like that. It’s more competition for us and competition always helps players take their game to the next level.”
On dominating the right side of the pitch:
“If I want to get to the next level as a player, I have to figure out how to be more deadly in the final third. I believe that I’m capable of scoring goals and getting multiple assists a game. Personally, I have to be a lot more clinical in the final third and doing that will obviously benefit the team. It’s a personal goal of mine to get more goals and assists. I just have to keep working at that.”
