Head Coach Schellas Hyndman
Overall thoughts on the game… I thought our players were really focused. They were very competitive tonight from the beginning to the end. We scored a nice goal, created some very good chances in the first half, and then the game just kind of got to the point where, unfortunately, it was more physical than it needed to be. I don't think our depth is strong enough right now with the injuries to handle it. I think one key point was when [Hernan] Pertuz got hurt. I think it changed our defense. We weren't as strong in the air and we weren't as strong marking-wise. All in all, the players showed up today to play and they gave us everything they had.
On Bryan Leyva's game tonight:
What a nice performance from Bryan Leyva, a player who was coming along for us, and then picked up an injury. Now, he's coming back and getting his rhthym. I thought he played very well. He was composed and was able to make some very good passes. He's a player that, if he can continue to get more playing time, he can compete for a starting position on this team.
On how the game changed in the second half:
If you look at the number of chances that Philadelphia had late, it was from turnovers in the back third. I thought we were doing well in the first half. If you look at the beginning of the second half, I think in the first 10 to 15 minutes we were doing the things that we wanted to do. The moment Pertuz got hurt, I really think it changed.
FC Dallas forward Blas Perez
Talk about what happened during your goal It was a corner kick, so I tried to get to the far post because I was thinking that was where the ball was going to end up. I was lucky enough to have the ball pop up for me. I was even luckier to not get injured on the play. It gave us a little gas during the early part of the first half.
Was this the most physical game you’ve played so far this season?
It wasn’t been the most physical game but there were some bad fouls. There is really nothing you can do about that but go back and try and play your game and let the referees do the best job they can do.
Did getting an early goal lift the team in the first half?
It was a big goal. It gave us a confidence boost for the rest of the first half. The second we didn’t pressure Philadelphia like we needed to and we gave away a goal on a mistake. We may have had a few more chances than them but [Chase] Harrison played well. He made some big saves for Philadelphia.
FC Dallas midfielder Daniel Hernandez
On how he felt playing a 4-5-1 with Andrew Jacobson, James Marcelin and himself in the middle I thought Andrew [Jacobson], James [Marcelin] and I were very comfortable with one another in the middle. We did a good job. I felt good. We had a good rhythm going. Philadelphia likes to crowd the midfield and I felt we did a good job of containing them.
On his first time playing next to James Marcelin
It was good. There was good communication. We were in the right places. It’s a style of play we’re comfortable with, one we have been playing for years. I think we play our best soccer in that formation.
How does it feel, getting three points at home?
It doesn’t feel good, just getting a point at home. You want three points. You want to win every time at home. I thought we played well enough to win. It’s just same old story. We can’t find a way to get three points.
FC Dallas Homegrown midfielder Bryan Leyva
On his performance tonight… I haven’t talked to Schellas other than when he walked by and said that I had played well. I felt great. It was my first game back since I injured my ankle. It did not give me any trouble during the game. I hope I can continue to play and contribute to this team.
How frustrating is it to lose a lead like that?
It’s really frustrating. I know how hard each and every one of my teammates works during training. We worked hard the whole week to be able to come out here and attack the game. We did, and we were up a goal and to let the lead slip away is very frustrating. Despite the tie, the guys still have a good attitude. It gives me confidence to be amongst a positive group of guys like that.
Philadelphia Union head coach Peter Nowak
Talk about the first half vs. the second half
We talked about how we are going to start the game and we wanted to continue to play how we did against New York, but they got the goal in the seventh minute which basically cuts you off immediately.
Talk about the adjustments you made coming into this match
We had Michael Lahoud with us for the first time, so he tried to find his feet and understand the system. We made some pretty good adjustments at halftime and basically executed very well in the second half. We created chances. We scored a goal and a couple of inches of luck here and there and we could have won the game. The 45 minutes was a good continuation of what we’ve been talking about in the past weeks and months of how we want to play and is a good sign of the future. We’re not going to slow down we’re going to play like that in the future and remainder of the season.
On Chase Harrison’s performance
He was very courageous on a couple of corner kicks and crosses and the free kicks from the sides. As you can see right now, he took some hits. Some hits on the head and some on the ankle. So listen, you always keep everyone fresh and everyone on their toes because you never know what is going to happen.
Talk about the result
This is a very positive result for us after a disappointing loss against New York. Because we all felt bad thinking we had played our best game of the season, so it’s a good sign of the continuation. That the guys are starting to believe in the way we play. As I’ve said, there’s still work to do, but we are moving forward as a group and we are going to keep fighting.
What have to tried to change in the first couple games this season?
What we tried to change was just the defensive game. Which we didn’t have in the first part of seven or eight games and we’ve tried to make it better. Now we are more dangerous. People are looking at us like ‘what are we going to do?’ We made the changes and we get shots, so the backline is stepping up and creating room and creating the chances. It’s time. It’s the new guys settling in. They know each other. They play with each other, so now the understanding as a group is pretty good and we’re going to keep fighting.
Philadelphia Union goalkeeper Chase Harrison
On his first start
It’s great. It’s been a long road getting here. I’ve been on several different teams and to have the coaching staff here believe in me, that I can get the job done; it means a lot that the coaching staff has my back and I’m glad we were able to come out and get the result.
On returning to Philadelphia
It was still up in the air. There were still a lot of things that happened in the offseason that happened behind the scenes that made me feel like they might be bringing me back, but it was hard to say until it got closer to preseason and when they gave me the call and said: ‘Hey we’d like to bring you in. We think this is going to be a good opportunity for you to come in.’ I came into preseason. Did well and they ended up signing me for the season.
On Dallas’ goal
When that early goal gets in you have to say, ‘alright that’s done. There’s nothing else I can do about it, so let’s just play hard for the rest of the 82 minutes left in the game. Let’s recoup and move onto the next play of the game.’
On his ankle injury
This happened probably 60 minutes into the game. I came out onto a cross and rolled it. And then I did a kick save to my near post and it tweaked it again. And the contact there at the end, it wasn’t bad contact, but when I stepped I rolled it again. It was extremely painful. It looked like I was wasting time, but I knew the referee was going to add more time anyways. I just rolled it again at the end there.
Philadelphia Union midfielder Michael Farfan
On the second half
In the first half, we just couldn’t get a rhythm. We were not possessing the ball too well. But in the second half we came out and spread it out a little more. We adjusted well and we got a good amount of chances. I think we put more pressure and we came out a little stronger [in the second half]. We were able to get out on the flanks and create a couple chances here and there, so I think we did a lot better in the second half.
On the player changes coming into the game
We’re familiar with everyone that we’ve played with, so I think we all know our tendencies pretty well by now. I think we were prepared for this game just like any other game.
On playing with Chase
I think he as confident coming into the game. He does well in training, so I don’t think anyone was more nervous with him back there.
On locker room reaction to recent trades
We just stay positive. We just have to look forward to the next game. We can’t really dwell on the past, so I think we just look to the next game, train hard and come out strong.
Overall thoughts on the game… I thought our players were really focused. They were very competitive tonight from the beginning to the end. We scored a nice goal, created some very good chances in the first half, and then the game just kind of got to the point where, unfortunately, it was more physical than it needed to be. I don't think our depth is strong enough right now with the injuries to handle it. I think one key point was when [Hernan] Pertuz got hurt. I think it changed our defense. We weren't as strong in the air and we weren't as strong marking-wise. All in all, the players showed up today to play and they gave us everything they had.
On Bryan Leyva's game tonight:
What a nice performance from Bryan Leyva, a player who was coming along for us, and then picked up an injury. Now, he's coming back and getting his rhthym. I thought he played very well. He was composed and was able to make some very good passes. He's a player that, if he can continue to get more playing time, he can compete for a starting position on this team.
On how the game changed in the second half:
If you look at the number of chances that Philadelphia had late, it was from turnovers in the back third. I thought we were doing well in the first half. If you look at the beginning of the second half, I think in the first 10 to 15 minutes we were doing the things that we wanted to do. The moment Pertuz got hurt, I really think it changed.
FC Dallas forward Blas Perez
Talk about what happened during your goal It was a corner kick, so I tried to get to the far post because I was thinking that was where the ball was going to end up. I was lucky enough to have the ball pop up for me. I was even luckier to not get injured on the play. It gave us a little gas during the early part of the first half.
Was this the most physical game you’ve played so far this season?
It wasn’t been the most physical game but there were some bad fouls. There is really nothing you can do about that but go back and try and play your game and let the referees do the best job they can do.
Did getting an early goal lift the team in the first half?
It was a big goal. It gave us a confidence boost for the rest of the first half. The second we didn’t pressure Philadelphia like we needed to and we gave away a goal on a mistake. We may have had a few more chances than them but [Chase] Harrison played well. He made some big saves for Philadelphia.
FC Dallas midfielder Daniel Hernandez
On how he felt playing a 4-5-1 with Andrew Jacobson, James Marcelin and himself in the middle I thought Andrew [Jacobson], James [Marcelin] and I were very comfortable with one another in the middle. We did a good job. I felt good. We had a good rhythm going. Philadelphia likes to crowd the midfield and I felt we did a good job of containing them.
On his first time playing next to James Marcelin
It was good. There was good communication. We were in the right places. It’s a style of play we’re comfortable with, one we have been playing for years. I think we play our best soccer in that formation.
How does it feel, getting three points at home?
It doesn’t feel good, just getting a point at home. You want three points. You want to win every time at home. I thought we played well enough to win. It’s just same old story. We can’t find a way to get three points.
FC Dallas Homegrown midfielder Bryan Leyva
On his performance tonight… I haven’t talked to Schellas other than when he walked by and said that I had played well. I felt great. It was my first game back since I injured my ankle. It did not give me any trouble during the game. I hope I can continue to play and contribute to this team.
How frustrating is it to lose a lead like that?
It’s really frustrating. I know how hard each and every one of my teammates works during training. We worked hard the whole week to be able to come out here and attack the game. We did, and we were up a goal and to let the lead slip away is very frustrating. Despite the tie, the guys still have a good attitude. It gives me confidence to be amongst a positive group of guys like that.
Philadelphia Union head coach Peter Nowak
Talk about the first half vs. the second half
We talked about how we are going to start the game and we wanted to continue to play how we did against New York, but they got the goal in the seventh minute which basically cuts you off immediately.
Talk about the adjustments you made coming into this match
We had Michael Lahoud with us for the first time, so he tried to find his feet and understand the system. We made some pretty good adjustments at halftime and basically executed very well in the second half. We created chances. We scored a goal and a couple of inches of luck here and there and we could have won the game. The 45 minutes was a good continuation of what we’ve been talking about in the past weeks and months of how we want to play and is a good sign of the future. We’re not going to slow down we’re going to play like that in the future and remainder of the season.
On Chase Harrison’s performance
He was very courageous on a couple of corner kicks and crosses and the free kicks from the sides. As you can see right now, he took some hits. Some hits on the head and some on the ankle. So listen, you always keep everyone fresh and everyone on their toes because you never know what is going to happen.
Talk about the result
This is a very positive result for us after a disappointing loss against New York. Because we all felt bad thinking we had played our best game of the season, so it’s a good sign of the continuation. That the guys are starting to believe in the way we play. As I’ve said, there’s still work to do, but we are moving forward as a group and we are going to keep fighting.
What have to tried to change in the first couple games this season?
What we tried to change was just the defensive game. Which we didn’t have in the first part of seven or eight games and we’ve tried to make it better. Now we are more dangerous. People are looking at us like ‘what are we going to do?’ We made the changes and we get shots, so the backline is stepping up and creating room and creating the chances. It’s time. It’s the new guys settling in. They know each other. They play with each other, so now the understanding as a group is pretty good and we’re going to keep fighting.
Philadelphia Union goalkeeper Chase Harrison
On his first start
It’s great. It’s been a long road getting here. I’ve been on several different teams and to have the coaching staff here believe in me, that I can get the job done; it means a lot that the coaching staff has my back and I’m glad we were able to come out and get the result.
On returning to Philadelphia
It was still up in the air. There were still a lot of things that happened in the offseason that happened behind the scenes that made me feel like they might be bringing me back, but it was hard to say until it got closer to preseason and when they gave me the call and said: ‘Hey we’d like to bring you in. We think this is going to be a good opportunity for you to come in.’ I came into preseason. Did well and they ended up signing me for the season.
On Dallas’ goal
When that early goal gets in you have to say, ‘alright that’s done. There’s nothing else I can do about it, so let’s just play hard for the rest of the 82 minutes left in the game. Let’s recoup and move onto the next play of the game.’
On his ankle injury
This happened probably 60 minutes into the game. I came out onto a cross and rolled it. And then I did a kick save to my near post and it tweaked it again. And the contact there at the end, it wasn’t bad contact, but when I stepped I rolled it again. It was extremely painful. It looked like I was wasting time, but I knew the referee was going to add more time anyways. I just rolled it again at the end there.
Philadelphia Union midfielder Michael Farfan
On the second half
In the first half, we just couldn’t get a rhythm. We were not possessing the ball too well. But in the second half we came out and spread it out a little more. We adjusted well and we got a good amount of chances. I think we put more pressure and we came out a little stronger [in the second half]. We were able to get out on the flanks and create a couple chances here and there, so I think we did a lot better in the second half.
On the player changes coming into the game
We’re familiar with everyone that we’ve played with, so I think we all know our tendencies pretty well by now. I think we were prepared for this game just like any other game.
On playing with Chase
I think he as confident coming into the game. He does well in training, so I don’t think anyone was more nervous with him back there.
On locker room reaction to recent trades
We just stay positive. We just have to look forward to the next game. We can’t really dwell on the past, so I think we just look to the next game, train hard and come out strong.
AUDIO HIGHLIGHTS
Soccer Today
Soccer Today
Soccer Today
Soccer Today
Soccer Today
Soccer Today
Soccer Today
Soccer Today
Play Podcast Soccer Today broadcasts an international edition with Marc Stein in London to cover the FA Cup final for ESPNFC, while Steve Davis joins from the ESPN Dallas studios in Las Colinas.
Play Podcast Robbie Rogers joins Soccer Today to discuss his MLS comeback plans, what it's been like for him at the Galaxy's training ground after he said in February that he is gay and needed to step away and Jason Collins' announcement in the NBA.
Play Podcast It's a travelogue edition of Soccer Today with Marc Stein in Houston covering the NBA playoffs and Steve Davis just back from a trip to the nation's capital to visit Jurgen Klinsmann. The guys kick off the morning by sharing stories from the road.
Play Podcast At the end of a sobering week in sports, Marc Stein and Steve Davis open Soccer Today from Copa ESPN by discussing the New England Revolution and the heavy emotions involved in playing a game just days after the Boston Marathon bombings.
Play Podcast Marc Stein and Steve Davis discuss Brek Shea's new team Stoke City taking on his former team FC Dallas in a friendly this summer.
Play Podcast Marc Stein and Steve Davis lament the performance of MLS clubs in the CONCACAF Champions League after the Seattle Sounders and Los Angeles Galaxy lost at home in the semifinals.
Play Podcast Marc Stein and Steve Davis discuss the United States national team after its 0-0 tie in Mexico shifted all the World Cup qualifying panic from the United States onto its hosts at Estadio Azteca.
Play Podcast Marc Stein and Steve Davis discuss the United States' 1-0 win over Costa Rica in the Denver snow and the inevitable Costa Rican protest afterward.
You must be signed in to post a comment