PORTLAND, Ore. ā New York City FCās undefeated start to 2018 came to an abrupt end against the Portland Timbers Sunday, and their managerās postgame reactions were similarly terse.
āToday we played against a team who prepared the game well, who were well-organized,ā NYCFC head coach Patrick Vieira said after his team's 3-0 setback. āWe had the possession, but it was difficult for us to find the space. They made it real difficult for us and they score the goals in the period where it was difficult for us. All the credit to Portland.ā
While Vieira was willing to concede his teamās struggles in defending the Timbersā transition game, he declined to discuss reports connecting him to the impending managerial vacancy at English powerhouse Arsenal, where he starred at the height of his own playing career from 1996 to 2005.
āI just want to talk about the game,ā Vieira responded to a question regarding Arsene Wenger, and he offered similar replies to another about whether rumors of his candidacy to succeed Arsenalās longtime manager ā who announced on Friday that that he will depart the London club at seasonās end ā had a hand in NYCFCās first loss.
āI don't have any comment to make. I just want to talk about today's game and nothing else.ā
Patrick Vieira Post-Match Press Conference
Posted by New York City FC on Sunday, April 22, 2018
Sundayās setback marked the first time the Frenchman's team was shut out since Sept. 9 of last year, a 1-0 home loss to these same Timbers.
"We were punished in moments where we made little mistakes and itās the first time weāve really been punished as a team," said NYCFC goalkeeper Sean Johnson. "I donāt think itās really a big step backwards for us. Itās moreso a wakeup call."
Even on game-related topics, Vieira gave limited information. When asked for the thought process behind keeping Yangel Herrera and Jesus Medina out of the starting 11, Vieira replied, āI don't have to go into details of why I make decisions.ā
Vieira was a bit more expansive in his compliments to the home sideās supporters and the āreally toughā atmosphere they created at Providence Park.
āYou have the home fans making that noise, it always give the extra to the home teams, and the support that they had was very good today. And I understand why they are quite strong at home,ā he said.
āIt was a day where we didnāt find the way to perform, but I still believe that we have a good team and we have been doing so [much] good stuff since the start of the season,ā Vieira said. āBut of course the game today shows today we still have a lot of work to be done.ā