Portland Timbers Quotes
Head coach John Spencer
On overall performance:
"Just disappointing, obviously. Guys are obviously gutted ... I think we had chances to close the game out and win it. It's a cruel game sometimes and tonight is one of those games."
On second-half adjustments:
"Well I thought the first half we had some good chances, obviously ... I don't think we started the game as slow, like we did the last couple of games. I thought we were at it at a good team, tempo of the game was pretty good; I felt that we probably edged the first half. Then you got a goal down, you come in, try to get the guys going again. Guys were kind of upbeat in the locker room at halftime, felt that we had a good performance, very unfortunate to be down a goal. We came out and played with energy again. I felt we dominated the game most of the [second] half, but when you play against good teams, you got to close the game out."
On Darlington Nagbe's performance:
"Well I thought it was two wonderful goals. It gives us two good chances ... puts us 2-1 up, and I think on them nights when you're expecting to take a few points, and as I said, very, very disappointed. Not with the performance, just very disappointed with the result."
On coming back from a 1-0 deficit again:
"You know, we never came back last year after going a goal down, and we've done it three games now, so that's a positive. "
On going forward:
"It's a loss at home against one of the best teams in the country for the last three, four years. I think if we would've gotten blown out and never looked capable playing against them and we're short in every department, then I think that would be guys being down on their confidence. I think you've seen us attacking ... they struggled to cope with us for most of the game. So I don't think confidence is going to be a huge problem."
Midfielder/forward Darlington Nagbe
On his goals:
"I think the first one was a throw-in to me, and I took a touch on the guy, went inside and just hit it low and it went in. And the second one, everyone was underplaying the ball and it was bouncing so I decided to hit it and lucky it went in."
On how to close games:
“You just got to come out, and stay focused for 90 minutes. Coach has been saying, he's been telling us over and over to stay focused for 90 minutes."
On how to recover from a game like this:
"Hopefully you sleep it off, and wake up the next day and come back ready for training."
On his confidence:
"It's crazy how the momentum changes, and you feel on top of the world, but then you feel like crap after. It felt good scoring two goals, but I just wish we would've won the game."
Forward Kris Boyd
On feeling after the game:
"I don't know. I'm gutted, I'm disappointed. We put so much effort into the game; just dominated for large, large pieces of the game. We know they're a good team, we know they got it done in the past."
More general thoughts:
"It's easy to point the finger at them and look at it from that point of view, but we're 2-1 up in 88 minutes, and at worst we should draw the game ... It's a hard one to swallow."
Real Salt Lake Quotes
Head coach Jason Kreis
Feeling on second half:
“I felt like we were going to score but I don’t want to say too much as I would have been happy with a tie. However, I felt that the third goal was a little bit of a gift and I walked away with a smile on my face.”
Rebounding from last week’s loss:
“No, we lost last week, but the performance was very good, it was silly that we lost that game. I thought we kept up with the guys on the field and performed well just like we have all year. We’re not going to criticize ourselves over what is in the past, we just are going to go out there more.”
Thoughts on Steele’s performance:
“He did great, but there are a few tactical things I know he needs to work on. Obviously we are really happy to see him get the goal.”
Thoughts on Beckerman’s performance:
“Yeah he absolutely wanted that goal. Even with his miss he was right back into it either way. I am glad he got the goal.”
Overall thoughts on the match:
“I thought Portland was really dynamic. I saw things I hadn’t really seen before like bringing their outside midfielders in. Eric Alexander was everywhere tonight, causing a lot of problems for us He was coming inside and making things look different. Nagbe as well caused us trouble by getting inside and behind Beckerman to cause plays in the first and second half. If I was john I’d be really pleased with my group because I thought they played really well.
Midfielder Kyle Beckerman
Feelings on tonight’s match:
“We had to try to keep pushing. We would have been okay with a tie, but we are fortunate to come out with a win, especially in front of a crowd like this.”
Positives to take from the match:
“We will take some confidence boosts from this, and of course winning a game gives it to you. But we have to turn around and get ready for the game on Wednesday because it doesn’t stop. You have to take it one game at a time.”
This season vs. last against Portland:
“They came into our place when we needed a win and we only got a tie. Home or away they are a tough team to beat. Yeah you like to play them more at home.”
Midfielder Jonny Steele
Atmosphere of crowd:
“The fans are unbelievable here and that’s the way soccer should be. It’s very European.”
On scoring the game-tying goal:
“I just came into the game and looked to make an impact and that’s what happened. We got the goals we wanted. I happened to be in the right spot to score the goal. That moment really gave us the buzz to get going the rest of the way. Beckerman’s goal just sealed the deal.”
Notes:
- The Timbers debuted their white, retro-inspired third kit on Saturday against Real Salt Lake. The club has already worn each of its three kits through the first four matches of the 2012 campaign.
- The Timbers and Real Salt Lake have split their all-time series at 1-1-1. Portland is 1-1-0 against RSL at JELD-WEN Field.
- Saturday’s match was the Timbers’ first home fixture against a Western Conference opponent in 2012. The Timbers were 6-2-1 against Western Conference clubs at home in 2011. In 2012, the Timbers are 0-1-1 overall versus Western Conference foes.
- Nagbe became just the second MLS Timbers player to record a multiple-goal performance. The first was forward Jorge Perlaza, with two goals in the Timbers’ JELD-WEN Field opener on April 14, 2011.
- Now with three goals on the season, Nagbe is Portland’s leading scorer through its first four matches of the season. He scored two goals in 28 matches as a rookie in 2011.
- Since joining MLS in 2011, the Timbers are 10-6-3 all-time against MLS clubs at JELD-WEN Field.
- The three goals scored by Real Salt Lake marked just the fourth time the Timbers have allowed three goals in a match at JELD-WEN Field; Portland is 0-3-1 in those contests.
- The Timbers have conceded the game’s first goal in each of their four regular-season matches in 2012. The club has been able to fight back to earn points from two of those four games. The Timbers are 1-2-1 in 2012 when allowing the first goal of a match.
- Portland is 1-5-0 all-time in MLS matches when conceding consecutive goals in a span of less than five minutes. Real Salt Lake’s final two goals scored Saturday came three minutes and 47 seconds apart.
- All six of the Timbers’ goals scored in 2012 have come in the second half of a match.
- Midfielder Eric Alexander recorded the first multiple-assist performance of his professional career and the Timbers second multiple-assist game of the season. Midfielder Jack Jewsbury was the first, notching two assists in the Timbers 3-1 win over Philadelphia on March 12.
- Saturday’s loss marked just the third time in the Timbers MLS history that the club suffered a defeat when scoring multiple goals in the contest. The last time, was July 10, 2011, in a 3-2 loss to Seattle Sounders FC at JELD-WEN Field.
- Portland’s Starting XI against Real Salt Lake featured two changes from the side that started against New England last weekend, with defender Andrew Jean-Baptiste and forward Jorge Perlaza replacing injured players Hanyer Mosquera (concussion) and Kalif Alhassan (groin strain).
- With start Saturday, captain and midfielder Jack Jewsbury appeared in his 230th career MLS match. FC Dallas goalkeeper Kevin Hartman is MLS’s all-time leader in games played at 390.
- Defender Eric Brunner played in his 75th career MLS match on Saturday; it was his 36th as a member of the Portland Timbers.
