Everybody's here to prove that they belong on the World Cup team. |
He plays very well against us every time, and he's a handful. He's one of the best forwards this league has ever seen, and he's going to do what he does. We need to not give him chances, and be aware, because he's a guy who can hang out for 30 minutes or 80 minutes, and then all of a sudden he gets that one chance and you're down 1-0. We need to focus on him the entire game. |
He's an explosive type of player who might fit in with this team. He's a local boy, so he knows how to get to practice. |
He's dealt with a lot in the last year and a half. Just seeing him score a goal was a special moment. |
He's dealt with a lot. To see him smile again after seeing him score a goal is a special moment. |
I bet a lot of people didn't think I would be back on the national team. |
I kept having to remind the guys that I had scored goals in this league before, ... They all thought it was the biggest deal in the world for me. |
I tell myself I'm going to give it one good run and make sure I don't regret anything. |
I think he had to grow up pretty quick. He hasn't gotten too many breaks. No one gave him anything once he came into the league. He's had to earn what he has now. I think he's doing a great job. I think he's on course. Keep in mind he's 16 years old. He needs time to develop. |
I think we're benefiting from having this team together for a couple of years now. Having a lot of those guys back, especially early, when other teams are still finding themselves, it's a thrill. We'll see what coach wants to do. We're a heavy offensive team. |
I think, fortunately, some of the mania has died down for him. That can help all parties. It takes a little of the pressure off him. The expectations coming in for him were unrealistic. The people who don't have any knowledge about soccer thought he'd come in and score 15 goals a season and be the best player in the league. It doesn't happen like that. It's a process. |
I'm trying to be realistic about this thing and I'm obviously a bubble player. Where I am on that bubble is up to Bruce. If people don't get healthy and he needs a guy who can play in several positions, he knows I can fill in those spots if he gets into injury trouble with the other guys. |
It always feels good to score the first one -- even though it took me nine months to get it, ... We just screwed up on the goal we gave up. Besides that, it was good soccer. We kept playing well and today, finally, we buried a team. That's what we have been missing. Once we had the lead, the question was, could we get that third goal, could we get that fourth goal? We did it. |
It's done as far as I'm concerned. Freddy maybe learned a lesson. He said some stuff, he got punished, and now it's done. |
It's going to be loud, it's going to be festive, it's going to be fun. When you look back at your career, these type of games are going to be remembered -- the trip, the fans, everyone against you. If you can win in a good atmosphere like that, it builds a lot of character for a team. I'm excited to see how we respond. We saw it in the Pumas game, so we got a taste of it, and we're champing at the bit to redeem ourselves. |