PASADENA, Calif. -- LA Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena addressed the media following his team's 7-0 defeat to Manchester United in the Chevrolet Cup at the Rose Bowl.
(On Crowd…)
ARENA: “I think that the crowd was great. I have nothing but the greatest respect for the show that Man U put on. A bunch of guys out there fighting for jobs and it looked that way. First half I don’t think was a 3-0 game but being as professional as they are and the quality that they had they punished us on every mistake. So it’s a good lesson for all players…certainly the second half was a bit of the same.”
(On what they got out of tonight’s game…)
ARENA: “I think a real lesson for a lot of our players. You talk a lot about some of the things that happened tonight that they very rarely see and tonight being on the field and getting punished for mistakes and really getting a lesson on speed of play. It was there, it was all out there for them. I think we can actually use this as a positive, obviously there was a lot I wasn’t pleased with but I think really a good lesson. We’ve done this for a number of years against quality clubs, and have always been able to hang in a lot better than we did tonight, so I think it’s a good lesson for our team.”
(On Man United’s game…)
ARENA: “This time last year we beat Juventus, and we weren’t proclaiming that we were better than any team in Italy. This game tonight is not going to give an indication where they’re going to stand in the premiership. Their style is obviously different. They’re playing a style that their manager’s very comfortable and familiar with in his career. They’re playing a back 3 and some version of a 3-5-2 or a 3-4-3, and that’s a big change for a Manchester United club that’s traditionally played 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 at times, so it’s a different style but it looks tactically a lot like what we saw out of the Dutch team in the World Cup. That’s his style of play and I’m sure he’s going to get some new players and be even a little more dangerous going forward, and get the players that fit those tactics in the right way. They’re certainly going to be a good team this year; it’s going to be a great campaign in the premiership. There are some outstanding teams and they’re going to be fighting from the first week on and it’ll be interesting but I think that’s a quality team.”
(On Omar not playing…)
ARENA: “Not ready to play yet. He’s still coming back from an injury. Anything could happen on Monday.”
(On value of game to young Galaxy players…)
ARENA: “If they aspire to be top flight professionals they see some of the top fligh professionals and the way they conduct themselves on the field and speed of play. Our young players and a number of our players still are not quality passers. And one thing you saw tonight, the passing by Manchester United was quick and crisp; it was of quality. We have too many players who are technically deficient right now, and it’s something they should learn. It’s also speed of thought. Quickness in moving, winning tackles, running off the ball…all the simple things we frequently talk about but unless you see it live and in real life it’s sometimes hard to have a picture of it, and they got a great picture of it tonight.”
(On Ander Herrera…)
ARENA: “Technically good…he and Mata and Fletcher I thought were very good in the middle of the field. I think in the first half that was a big part of them owning the game in the middle third of the field they were terrific, not only with their passing, but winning some tackles, and picking up some second balls I was very impressed with that. I hadn’t seen much of that player but he’s a good player.
