CHICAGO FIRE 2, NEW YORK RED BULLS 0
CHICAGO FIRE HEAD COACH DAVE SARACHAN
Opening comments:
"Thanks for coming to our party tonight. This was really a historic night and an exciting night for the Chicago Fire and it would have a shame if we didn't reward the people that came tonight with three points. I felt from the opening whistle to the end that we were the team that took it to New York and should end the game with three points."
On the team's mindset entering the match:
"Our guys called this the new season tonight. And so we know that in a season, you don't make the playoffs and win championships in one game. This was one 3-point result that moves up just a little bit ahead and we know there's a lot of work to do. So we are literally looking at it one game at a time, the challenge now is getting our guys ready to turn right around. One step at a time."
On defender Dasan Robinson's play:
"Dasan had a very solid night. He's a good young defender, he has good solid instincts, and I thought physically it was a perfect match up, quite frankly, because they have two big strong forwards. He held his own."
On Chris Armas' influence on the game:
"We've talked about this game. Chris has been carrying a knock and we weren't sure; he was a game time decision tonight to be frank. We were thrilled he was able to get through-he hadn't trained the last couple of days. We knew he probably wouldn't go 90 minutes and then at halftime we talked to Chris and he felt he could go another 15 minutes so that was the decision."
CHICAGO FIRE CAPTAIN CHRIS ARMAS
On his goal:
"I don't really remember how it started the play, I just kind of snuck in behind the backs. Didn't get that much on it maybe Tony was leaning and maybe got a hand on it, came off his hand and thankfully rolled into the net."
On the game:
"Fortunately had kind of a second opportunity here for a real opener for the fans. It was a must-win for us. If we don't win, we really started having doubts around here. We haven't really wavered our confidence. We still try to play we try to do the right things. We work relentlessly at practice at things. We're really working ourselves hard. Hopefully here, this is the first of more good games."
CHICAGO FIRE DEFENDER GONZALO SEGARES
On the Fire collecting its first home win:
"The monkey is off [our backs]. The second game here we get a victory and we don't have to worry about that in our heads. The fans, the people... everybody that came today made it important for us to get a victory."
On how important victories at home are for the Fire:
"We're behind the stretch where we had to play away. We didn't do as well as we wanted and now that we're at home we need to win. We're getting better. We're working hard to get better. The older guys are helping the younger ones more. It makes it easier for everybody. We're scoring and that's what we needed."
CHICAGO FIRE MIDFIELDER DIEGO GUTIERREZ
On getting back on the field after his hamstring injury:
"It feels great to be back with the team. The medical staff has done a good job at getting aggressive in treating this injury, to give me a realistic chance to come back sooner rather than later. I felt extremely good tonight."
On the TOYOTA PARK Grand Opening:
"It was special. I've been here since this whole thing started. I've been one of the dreamers and I've wanted to see the fans packed into this stadium and supporting the club. It was very special for us and I'm glad we could cap it off with three points."
Thoughts on the match:
"We weren't spectacular, but we looked very organized. It was a team effort from top to bottom. I think it's something that we can build on. We'll see next week."
NEW YORK RED BULLS HEAD COACH MO JOHNSTON
On his team's play:
"It was very disappointing. I felt the first half was the worse we've played since the start of the year. We kept losing the ball at midfield and on the left hand side of the field."
Does the impact of losing Seth Stammler early in the game affect the team:
"Yes, it does, but those are quality players sitting on the bench. They can be [what you need] come in and help. Tonight we had two performers-obviously Tony [Meola] and obviously [Edson] Buddle."
On the play of Marvell Wynne:
"He did OK. I plan to see him getting more down the flanks and getting more quality balls in the box, which we didn't get. But tonight we didn't possess the ball and in terms of Danny [O'Rourke] and [Mark] Lisi, Youri [Djorkaeff], we didn't do that. We didn't move the ball quickly. We spoke of it. We spoke of Thiago, obviously breaking through. And were very lame in terms of stepping out and closing down with the shots."
NEW YORK RED BULLS GOALKEEPER TONY MEOLA
On tonight's match:
"We didn't keep the ball. We did about as poor a job you can do having the ball. We defended for 90 minutes. We never put the brakes on a little bit and held the ball, got out of it all."
On how playing defense for 90 minutes makes you vulnerable to breakdowns:
"Yes, there's no question. You see that more when you have the ball rather than when you're chasing it. Our three guys in the back, for me, did a great job battling through the game. We must give them a little bit of help keeping the ball sometimes and be able to relieve some of the pressure. Something that's been a problem for us, but really hasn't been a problem on the road, we've done a pretty good job on the road staying in games. But tonight, we were out of it from early on."
