LA Galaxy 3, Minnesota United FC 1
Sunday, Oct. 21, 2018 – 2 p.m. PT
2018 MLS Regular Season
TCF Bank Stadium – Minneapolis, Minn.
LA GALAXY HEAD COACH DOMINIC KINNEAR
Overall thoughts..
“Tough conditions, but scoring the first goal gave us a huge boost of confidence. Then those two in succession settled us down probably a little too much. We came her knowing we had to win regardless of what happened in Portland. It’s a great road win for us and gives us and gives us a chance next week to see if we can make it to the playoffs.”
On team morale after win …
“The moods good, they’re happy. They know it’s still not over. We accomplished a win on the road which puts us in a spot next week where we can maybe get into the playoffs. I think deep down inside that they’re happy, it’s been a good little run we’ve been on. I do think they do have an eye on the following week, but we’re getting carried away that’s for sure.”
On controlling team’s destiny…
Coming into this weekend there were two scenarios we were hoping for. One was if we win, we’re in. They did their part on Thursday, with their big win against New England. You’re just hoping that when they go to Portland they don’t pick up any points, and we get something here. The focus was let’s not worry about them too much and let’s rely on ourselves. The win is huge and I think the guys understand that and it gives us great motivation heading into next week.”
On playing in Minnesota…
“I can’t really tell you too much. All I know is that the music before the game I thought was too loud for warmups. When the game goes on, rarely do you take a look around. I read the lead up to this and saw the interview with Jamie Watson at the end of the game, and I thought “Wow, there was a huge crowd”, but you try to watch the ball and the team and make sure things are going on. It’s great support for Minnesota. Hopefully it carries on into the new stadium next year.”
On the positives and negatives of the game…
“It’s a road win. The most important thing is that we won the game. That’s what I liked the best. We scored some real good goals and defended the box pretty well. We defended set pieces very well, which I thought was a must considering their height and the way they can swing the ball into the box. At times I thought we slowed the game down and overall had 11 guys that were really fighting hard for each other. To have any success on the road in this league you have to be able to do that.”
On David Bingham's injury…
“He got a little stud in the knee. He’s banged up pretty good, but he finished the game. You don’t really see too much of the defenders taking goal kicks these days, especially for someone like David who likes the ball at his feet. It was a good collision and he has some cleat marks on his knee, but I think he’ll be fine.”
LA GALAXY MIDFIELDER SEBASTIAN LLETGET
On team getting better…
“It has definitely been a rollercoaster. The beginning of the season seems like it was a couple of seasons ago, it’s crazy how far this team has come along. We are finally showing how good this group can be and how good we know we can be. Moving forward we have to win against Houston and we’re in. We’ll worry about what happens after that.”
On mood in the locker room…
“I think it all worked out for us. I think we know that we have some things to do. We’re relieved it worked out in our favor and we’re happy right now.”
On looking ahead…
“We have to keep doing what we’re doing. Dom has done a great job so far, and the group is really united at the moment. We’ll have to keep training hard. We have a full week ahead before Houston, we’ll be ready.”
LA GALAXY FORWARD OLA KAMARA
On getting a result…
“In front of 50 thousand and in a must win game, it shows that we have good team spirit, that we’re working for each other and when it’s tough we can perform.”
On ups and downs of the game…
“The first goal with Ibra was crucial for us. Coming out the second half like that and attacking and scoring two goals very fast did a lot for us. I think we were really ready for this game.”
Thoughts on personal performance…
“I probably should have scored two. I think the first half was a little bit on and off. The second half was good.”
On what the season has been like…
“My feeling going into the last game now is that we’re hot. It’s a long season, but the feeling of winning and having that pressure of must winning and pulling it off, it’s great. I think that we just want to continue and we’re really excited.”
LA GALAXY MIDFIELDER ROMAIN ALESSANDRINI
On the result against Minnesota United …
“It was an important game for us tonight. Obviously, we have seen the away result for [Real] Salt Lake. So, it’s a good thing for us, because now it’s in our hands and we have to win our next game at home. Tonight, we have to enjoy because we played well. We scored three goals and we are stronger defensively so that’s why we’ve gotten a lot of good results the last few weeks. As I said now, we have to be focused on the next game because we want to get into the playoffs.”
On the mood in the locker room…
“Everyone is happy, but it’s not over. We have something great to do right now. Obviously, we have to win next week. We’re happy, but now we have to forget this win and be focused, get some rest and work hard for the next game.”
On must-win games…
“Because I think we think the same way. We try to work hard every week, everyday. Obviously, the formation has changed. As I said a few weeks ago, now we’re playing a 4-3-3 and we are more comfortable like that. Everyone wants to get into the playoffs, so everyone works hard on the field. Everyone works defensively. We know we have quality to score goals. We have [Ibrahimovic], [Kamara], sometimes me. So, yeah. We are happy tonight and now we have to continue like that.”
On his goal …
“It wasn’t bad. No, good ball from Ibra and I tried to get the ball with my first touch and I was a little bit lucky. But, it was a great goal and I’m very happy for that.”
LA GALAXY FORWARD ZLATAN IBRAHIMOVIC
On the effort in the victory…
“It was a hard one. We played against a good team. Playing away in front of 50,000, but like I said, they came for me, us, and didn’t come for them. We made them enjoy it, so I think they are happy, just as us. It is a nice memory, because I think it is the last game at this stadium. I came, I won, I went, that is the memory they will get.”
On the surface of the pitch…
“The last time I played on turf was three years ago and in the beginning I was not used to it. I was not careful, but I was trying to read the game, trying to read the movement of the ball and myself. It was burning, it was burning the toes. I tried not to focus on that because turf or no turf I came to win, I came to get the three points that we need and when you have a crowd like this you don’t focus on that, you just want to play and give back to the fans. That’s what is most important. I think we did that. I had a cramp after 60 minutes and I didn’t have that for the whole season.”
On how you feel after the game…
“I feel good. We were winning 3-0 and then we conceded one goal. It was a good and we need to push through the ninety minutes plus the extra. Everybody was sacrificing and working hard.”
On next season…
“You want to see me next season? Here in Minnesota? Or with the Galaxy? Do you have a DP spot for me or no? Because Galaxy don’t have it. I’m joking. Let’s see, we have another game and hopefully we can make it through the playoffs. I’m not focused on next season, this isn’t the moment to focus on that and we have to see what happens. How do you say, to dance tango it takes two parts. So we will see what happens.”
On keeping the team grounded…
“I think our playoffs started five games ago because we needed to win to make it still possible to make the playoffs. If we lost any of them we were out. To play under pressure like that is not easy. The guys should have all the credit for that because we are playing under high pressure and we are handling it well. The guys are handling it very well, we are controlling it very well and we play with confidence. Dom [Kinnear] he gives us a lot of confidence. He keeps the basics simple and we just go out and try to do what we are able to do and we are doing it well at the moment.”
MNUFC HEAD COACH ADRIAN HEATH
On what he said to his team following the game …
I think we have moments in games – we have lapses in games – that cost us dearly. You know, we make a mistake for the second goal, then we go and make another one two seconds later. Now the game is over. Up until then, the game was very much alive for us. We started well. I thought the first two or three better chances were for us. I thought our marking in the box was poor for Zlatan [Ibrahimovic’s] first goal. And two poor mistakes from us after that. I can’t fault the effort to the guys to get back in it when we did. But, it’s the mistakes that we make that prove costly for us. It’s something that we have to irradicate because it costs us dearly in most games.
On Romario Ibarra’s impact off the bench …
You know, it’s been frustrating with the likes of Romario [Ibarra] because he’s had his hamstring problems, same with Abu [Danladi]. So, a lot of the threats we have with pace in wider areas and through the middle, we haven’t had them enough of late. But, as I said a few weeks ago, the best of Romario will be seen next year. The same with Ángelo [Rodríguez] as well. I thought the big man led the line really, really well again. And most of our attacking threats today came from him. We’ve got to start to work out how to use him better and once we do, when we start to play off him, I think there’s a lot of promise in the attacking half.
On the feeling of the occasion …
Well, once again our supporters have been magnificent and we can’t thank them enough. I’m just disappointed that we couldn’t give them a performance that warranted the level of support that we had. This has been a good home for us. Our home form, if you look at it over the last two years, has probably been as good as most. So, it’s been a good home for us. Now we have to, obviously we still have a game to go, we have to start looking at what’s going to make us better moving into the stadium next year.
On what he hopes first-time fans will take away from the game …
I think the most important thing is that it’s an indication of where the game is at in this country at this moment in time. You know, there’s 50,000 people here. And you know, I think they’ve enjoyed what they’ve seen. I thought it was a terrific atmosphere in the stadium, but obviously the disappointment has been the result and I can’t get away from that.
On if he expects more from Romario and Danladi next week vs. Columbus Crew SC …
Well, we’ll see how they are towards the end of the week. But, you know, you would like to get them on the field, maybe get them some minutes before the season ends. But, really for us, we thought they’d give us 20 minutes, half an hour today. We’ll have to see where we think it is next week. Because the last thing we need to do now, with one game left, is push them and maybe they break down. We’ve got a really good period now where we can get some proper work into them and hopefully build them up so they’re nice and sharp and fit for the start of next season.
On what he’s looking for in next week’s season finale at Columbus …
I think Columbus have still got to win the game, I think. So, we owe it to Montreal and everybody else. That’s what I’ve said to the boys. This might be the last game here, but the guys in Montreal have worked as hard as anybody to get themselves in a position to have a chance and we owe it to them to go and put a performance in.
On Rodríguez’s offside calls on a number of goals …
No, I think he’s, we maybe could have given it to him a bit earlier at times, but it’s something that we’ll work on. I think that last two or three games, he’s probably been our outstanding forward. You know, he has made things happen in the game. It was a great ball from Darwin [Quintero] and it was a great header. But, as I’ve said before, once we give ourselves a mountain to climb like that, to get back three goals against a really experienced group, I think that showed today. You know, killing the game, the referee trying to hurry them up. But, they were savvy. A lot of experience in that team. And the Galaxy are one of them teams, with the players that they have, you know, there’s a few teams that have sort of backed into the playoffs and then ended up going on and winning it. They have enough talent to do that and it’ll be interesting to see how they go. But they’ve got one more to go.
On Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s performance …
Yeah. He’s been an outstanding player. I think, people look, we all know how big and strong he is, but people forget he’s all talent. The ball he plays for their third goal, you know, a yard further forward, a yard behind, it’s no chance. Now, for some younger people who had probably been at the game for the first time, they got a chance to witness one of the great players in the last 20 years in European and world football.
MNUFC FORWARD ÁNGELO RODRÍGUEZ
On the loss to LA Galaxy …
Truthfully, a bit ashamed for the people who came to watch us in this last game. But well, I think we continue to commit those small errors that we need to learn from and correct. We hope to finish well in the last game and start thinking about next year.
On the support of the Minnesota fans …
That’s why I tell you that personally, I feel ashamed. We always try to do well during the week to give [the fans] joy on the weekend. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t, but truthfully I’m amazed [by their support]. I came from a team that was just crowned champion, finishes in first place and doesn’t fill the stadium. Here, every weekend you see a full stadium.
MNUFC MIDFIELDER MIGUEL IBARRA
On playing in front of 52,000 fans …
I have seen it when it is packed for college, so now knowing it was packed just for our game, coming from NASL days to where we are at now is just amazing.
On the feeling being on the field …
It was a great feeling. Soccer here is big and it is going to keep growing. Once we have our stadium next year we are going to always sell out every game. Just having them support us and be behind us is big for us.
On the impression left on first-time fans …
I hope they liked the atmosphere out here. We did not get the result we wanted to, but we are going to keep going. We are going to get better and we are going to get there.
On what went wrong in the loss to LA Galaxy …
For me it was just little mistakes — little mistakes that we can easily fix. We had chances too that we could have put away faster and earlier in the game and we didn’t. That is soccer, so we have to move on.
MNUFC DEFENDER BRENT KALLMAN
On the growth of the club …
It has been steady growth ever since I joined the club in 2013. That was the first year of the rebrand and our attendance has just been going up and up and up, culminating tonight with the 50,000-plus that came and showed what we have. We have incredible support and it just keeps growing and growing. Even though it wasn’t the result we wanted at all, it was a good way to send us off heading into Allianz next year.
On the feeling being on the field …
It gave a little bit of extra adrenaline in the beginning and that showed a little bit. We seemed to be a little nervy and a little jumpy in the first half. It took us longer than usual to settle into the game and that could have had a little bit to do with it. Everyone was just so fired up. It was an experience for sure.
