Coach and Player Reaction to 1-0 Win at Red Bull Arena

LOS ANGELES GALAXY COACH DAVE SARACHAN

On the match:
When you’re on the road its pretty critical if you can get the first goal. It takes the wind out of their sails a little bit, takes the crowd out of it a little bit. I thought Edson (Buddle), besides the goal, had a great night. He was just a handful for them, he held up balls, and defensively as a collective 11 we did a great job of closing space. As the game went on I got a sense they were getting a little frustrated. We almost got the second goal, which we felt would have really put them out, but collectively it was a great effort from everyone tonight.

On Galaxy defender Omar Gonzalez:
He’s living the life. For young guys, its not so much the physical stuff, it’s the mental. So now he’s coming off a Tuesday experience starting for the U.S. National Team, a quick turnaround to get ready for a league game and for a young guy I thought he showed a lot of maturity to handle that and to stay in it for 90 minutes. And the guy next to him tonight was terrific, Gregg Berhalther. He keeps him going, so I thought the pairing was excellent.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY DEFENDER OMAR GONZALEZ

On Red Bulls defender Tim Ream:
Watching some video on him I think he’s a very good defender, and could definitely be someone the (United States) National Team coach can look at. There are a lot of young guys coming up now, so it’ll be interesting to see who will be the next in the back.

On defending with his partner Gregg Berhalter:
Tonight, me and Gregg were just talking about being really aggressive. I think that me and Gregg did really well to just get under their skin and make sure they didn’t get too many touches on the ball.

On Juan Pablo Angel and Thierry Henry:
They’re just both two smart players who can play really well off the ball. If you’re not careful they can just run behind you because they always play off your shoulder and play on the line. It’s really tough going against a forward like that. They’re just a different class, and I think the backline did well today.

LOS ANGELES GALAXY MIDFIELDER LANDON DONOVAN

On Red Bull Arena:
The stadium was fantastic. I like the way the seats are built, how close they are, and it just feels really intimate. It’s a good environment it, was fun to play in.

On the Red Bulls:
They were pretty good. They looked like they were maybe a little tired, I know they played a game mid-week. They’re not a bad team, but obviously it’s going to take them time to gel. You can’t throw in a few new players like that and expect it to just happen overnight. They’re going to be good, they’re going to be around. They’re going to be in the playoffs, and if they put together a few good performances they can do well.

On playing against multiple designated players:
It was great, we need that in our league. We want the opportunity to play in full stadiums and I guess now with (Thierry) Henry and (Rafa) Márquez here, they’re going to have a lot more fans. For us it makes the game a little more intense, a little more real, and it’s fun to play them.

On the addition of star players to the league:
It gives it immediate credibility. It makes the league better. You can see the difference in the skill level, the intelligence, the work rate, the positioning. You can tell when guys like Henry and Márquez are on the field. It brings something a little different, and it’s going to make our league better.
NEW YORK RED BULLS HEAD COACH HANS BACKE

On the match:
I liked this game. It was probably one of the most intense games for us this season. One turnover cost us a goal, but I’m still rather happy with our performance. We didn’t overplay possession, and we played rather relaxed, and still created a number of chances. Once again, it’s a good sign for us that we can compete and control possession against a team like the Galaxy. Sorry for the result, but our performance I’m happy with.

On Rafa Márquez and his turnover leading to the Los Angeles goal:
It’s happens in football today, if you’re in the middle of the park and make some mistakes or side passes, on the highest levels, you will pay a price. It’s difficult to say, he’s not fully fit. Perhaps he took too much time on the ball or tried to do something spectacular in a way. Unfortunate, but still we responded very well after being one down and still controlling the pitch.

RED BULLS MIDFIELDER JOEL LINDPERE

On the game:
Overall I can say we played well. Even 1-0 dow,n we chased them really good, created many chances and hit the crossbar. The goalie saved a couple of chances from the line. I think we had a good game, but lately we have been missing and haven’t scored goals. So I think this is a problem for us. It looks like we can play really good, but if you don’t score maybe we have to do something and change our game plan or I don’t know. Maybe it will just start one day.

On his thoughts of Rafa Márquez:
He’s a new player on the team and he also needs to get used to it (style of play). We have played many good games at home, but we don’t get penalties. We play at home and I don’t think we have earned those red cards or penalties for us. I think we should have it, but it’s the game. Marquez is a new player in the team. Of course he came from Spain so it’s a little different football.

On the play leading up to the Galaxy goal:
Maybe it was a free kick before the goal. Here they don’t give it as easy. I think in Spain it would have been a free kick. So it’s a little bit different here. I think we as a team and him as a player understood this and it was just an unlucky mistake.

NEW YORK RED BULLS FORWARD JUAN PABLO ANGEL

On the match:
I think it was a physical game. Without having that many chances, I think we still managed to hit the post. In the second half I had another one off a corner kick that came off the line, but apart from that there wasn’t that much for the strikers in general in the game.

On Rafa Márquez adjusting to the style of play in MLS:
It’ll be fine. Any player needs to be in a good form in order for him to perform and bring the best out of him. And the only way he’s going to do it is by playing games. We’ve got to have a little bit of patience with him, and also with (Thierry) Henry because people expect too much right from the very beginning. They are going to be absolutely fine, and I think they’re going to be very important for this team. Not just for the rest of the season, but for years to come.

NEW YORK RED BULLS MIDFIELDER RAFA MARQUEZ

On his performance:
I am not happy at all. I need more time to perform to be at my best level. We had many chances to tie the game, but we had no luck to achieve that.

On how much more time he needs to be at his best level:
It’s hard to know how long it’s going to take. But I will try to get to my best level as soon as possible.

On crowds at Chicago and Red Bull Arena:
I think the two crowds at the two stadiums were both incredible. We got a lot of support here and it really had taken me by surprise.