Quote Sheet: MBFC 0-2 PHX
Cardinale Stadium; Seaside, California
Saturday, July 29, 2023
Sporting Director & Head Coach Frank Yallop
On initial takeaways from the match:
“It was a really disappointing night for us. If there’s ever a game to try and win, it was tonight, to propel us to try and make the playoffs and move forward from our bad run. We didn’t really create a ton of chances and then to be honest I felt we gave them two goals. If you take the goals out of it, which you can’t, we played some decent football. But in the end it’s won and lost in two boxes. If you can’t defend properly the other team is going to score and if you can’t create a good chance then you’re not going to score. That was our story tonight. Our confidence looks low, and we look a little flat. We’re not sure of ourselves, which I’m not happy about. It’s a difficult one to try and change, because players have to get confidence in themselves. It was not a good night for us.”
On turning things around:
“We have to lift the guys spirits. Listen, nobody didn’t try hard on the team and they are trying their best to get a result. In sports, especially soccer, it’s won or lost in one or two goals or moments, and right now we are not being as dangerous and clinical as we should be. It seems like any good attack that comes from the opposing team they seem to get a good attempt at goal and usually score. Our general football has been okay, but both boxes are everything and right now we are not getting it right.”
On Baca’s impact in future matches:
“It seems like we need someone in the engine room, which is in the middle of the field, to dictate the pace of the game and be active and positive. Some of the players were a little bit defeated before the end of the game, and that’s not right. It’s up to me to change that, but I can’t do a lot from the sidelines. I can do a lot during the week, and I felt this week we built up well to the game. We had a good game plan and I thought the system would go okay, but we just didn’t execute it in the right manner to get a result in this game.”
Forward Alex Dixon
On the match:
“It was a tough night, we shot ourselves in the foot on both of the goals. It’s kind of how it is right now. We just have to keep on believing and get back to work this week and get a better result next week against Sacramento.”
On the near opportunities:
“Yeah, I feel we were knocking on the door the whole first half, their keeper made a couple good saves. In the second half we had the penalty and a couple more good chances, but it’s just not falling right now.”
On bouncing back next week:
“We have 12 games left, so we are still in a good spot. You win three or four games and you are right back to third or fourth place, whatever it’s going to be. So we just have to take it one game at a time and get back to work on Monday and have a good showing against Sacramento on Saturday.”
