CHICAGO FIRE 1, COLUMBUS CREW 0
COLUMBUS CREW HEAD COACH SIGI SCHMID
On the loss:
"Obviously, this was an important game. It was a pivotal game. I can't fault our guys for their effort; I thought their effort was good. I thought we created more on the run of the play, but at the end of the day, they got the goal. Obviously, it's big points today and it bounced their way, [Paulo] Wanchope finished his goal well and we're left wanting the points."
On losing two starters in the first 19 minutes of play:
"That certainly affects the game plan. Obviously, we don't expect to lose Guillermo [Barros Schelotto] 10 minutes in, and then we don't expect to lose Rusty [Pierce], so now we've got to burn two subs and we've lost the ability to bring in fresh legs in different positions, and that handcuffed us at that point."
On the team's playoff chances, moving forward:
"It's not easy. We've made it difficult for ourselves, but the one thing we're not going to do is give up, and mathematically, things are still there and the way this league is, in a week things can turn around. So, now it's a matter of us going to Kansas City and Toronto over the next two games, and every game is the same for us, whether home or away, we just have to get maximum points every time we step on the field, and hope that others start knocking each other off."
COLUMBUS CREW DEFENDER EZRA HENDRICKSON
On the Crew's playoff picture
:
"We have a six-game season, basically. There are 18 points out there, and we want to get as many as we can and see what happens with the rest of the teams. Right now it is all about us. It doesn't matter if we are at home; we're going for maximum points. Like I said, there are 18 points out there to get. Hopefully we can get 14 or 15, we'll be all right."
On tonight's game:
"We came out there in the five minutes after the break and had some chances, good chances. But they didn't happen for us. We put in some good effort tonight. We held [Wanchope] under wraps all night, but he got that one chance."
COLUMBUS CREW MIDFIELDER STEFANI MIGLIORANZI
On the game:
"We make our fortune, for sure. But today, in that one play where it counts, we didn't finish. There is no point in us getting down. There still are points for us to win and to make the playoffs. We are going to work to the bone to try and make it."
COLUMBUS CREW DEFENDER FRANKIE HEJDUK
On the Crew's playoff picture:
"There still are a lot of points to be had. I think we played well enough as a team and as a unit tonight to get a win. You have to think about this game a little bit tonight. Yes it hurts. It is a team that we wanted to beat tonight, a rival, Chicago. It's a home game. It's a game we needed to get three points on. In MLS, you need to win your home games. You can't get too down on yourself; there still are six games left. There still a lot of points to be had. In this league, anything can happen. Any team can beat any team on any given day."
CHICAGO FIRE HEAD COACH JUAN CARLOS OSORIO
On a big win over a conference rival:
"All week we worked very hard on the tactical side of things because we knew that today could be the decisive moment for us. I think it worked well for us today. We limited a very good team going forward to few chances and we waited patiently for our chance and when it came our way, Paulo [Wanchope] put it in very well."
On keeping his team focused during the delay:
"I told them that we have to keep warm and we have to keep moving and to be fair, the last five minutes [of the first half], they played better. For the second half, I said a few things at halftime that I would prefer not to repeat, but we had a good second half. We started very bright and I think in the end, it was a well-deserved three points for us."
CHICAGO FIRE FORWARD PAULO WANCHOPE
On the game:
"It feels great to get the win and we are improving. It was very important to win this game; it was like the final game."
On his goal:
"It was a great pass. It was a tough ball to deal with because it was difficult for the defender because the ball moved a lot. And then the only thing that I have to do is keep calm and score. I just tried to concentrate on where to put the ball and it was good for the team and good for me."
CHICAGO FIRE MIDFIELDER CHRIS ARMAS
On the Fire's mentality going into the game:
"We knew that it would be a tough game against a good team at home with the same on the line as we had. There still are a lot of points out there to gain. This is the first real chance for them to see us and we can get us a playoff spot. We treated it like a playoff mentality and a playoff game -- I know that they did. A couple of close calls, but I thought we earned the points tonight. There is starting to be a belief in this locker room that we can get into the playoffs and make a run."
