LOS ANGELES GALAXY 3, REAL SALT LAKE 2
REAL SALT LAKE HEAD COACH JOHN ELLINGER
On the momentum of the game:
"There were great momentum breakers. You know guys are going to make mistakes. Eddie's (Pope) mistake with Landon (Donovan) changed the first half."
On the play of Landon Donovan:
"Landon is a solid player. We knew that. We had to know where he was for a full 90 minutes. If you lose track of him, he is going to make you pay. He is a guy who you look at his shots on goal versus his percentage of goals scored, it's pretty close. He is probably the best in U.S. soccer history, probably the best in the league. With Landon, he can just change the game."
On the play in the first half:
"We came out in the first few minutes with the passion that we wanted, and we got the goal. It was actually a good goal, and then the first half changed for sure. Then we still had trouble in the first half too with dealing with their set pieces which they've been pretty strong with. We got a little better with that in the second half."
On RSL's performance:
"As a coach you are disappointed with some of the performances. In their attack, they get their defenders into the attack. It takes work from your forwards to do that, and we just didn't get that kind of effort. There is no sense putting guys on the field that aren't going to work. We are not going to get through this if we don't work. We need an honest effort every game, especially at home. It's criminal that we didn't get that kind of effort at home with some of the guys."
On the officiating and Jason Kreis' yellow card:
"I don't particularly think the referee had one of his better games. I felt there were a lot of calls that were 50/50 and could have gone either way. There are a lot of people in this league who flop in the box quite often and never get punished for it. From where we were sitting and even from the replay, you couldn't see what kind of a call it was for us, but maybe you saw it. For us we couldn't tell. As a referee in this kind of a game, a 3-2 game, take somebody like a Jason Kreis and give him a warning, but don't pull out the card."
REAL SALT LAKE MIDFIELDER MEHDI BALLOUCHY
On the loss to Los Angeles:
"I think it has been happening for the past three games; we are up and then we give up an easy goal, and they end up scoring again. I think it has been hard for us, and that's one of the points we need to talk about as a team."
On being a second-half substitute:
"I think first of all the conditions are really hard. It's already 80 degrees and the turf makes it hotter than what it looks. It is easier to watch it than play it. That is why I had a better advantage coming in later because I was rested. I knew I had my 20 minutes and I just decided that I would give my all because it doesn't matter if I get tired, because I don't have to play for another 60 or 70 minutes."
REAL SALT LAKE CHRIS KLEIN
On the first half:
"We have so much momentum going our way with a goal for our side and then we turn around and give it up. It kills us and it really electrifies them."
On the pressure on the field:
"When they have time and space in the center of the midfield to pick their heads up and turn and run at our guys that is a problem. I thought we lacked pressure in the first half; I thought we had it in the second half. I thought besides that we maybe had one or two break downs in the second half where they got pretty good chances, but for the most part I thought we had a pretty good effort in the second half."
On the losing streak:
"All along we said that it was tough to start three on the road. And now we are 0-1-1 at home, so at some point we have to throw all the excuses out the window, and we have to just come out and play. Let's be honest: the first victory is tough. When you have hit a streak where you have lost or tied and haven't gotten that win, the first victory is tough. I imagine after that they come a little easier."
REAL SALT LAKE DEFENDER EDDIE POPE
On the momentum of the game:
"We started out good and then made a mistake; we gave back a goal right after we scored. That just kills the team. We sort of got our momentum back a little bit. As soon as we lost the momentum we couldn't get it back. Then in the second half we started pushing a little bit more, and we pulled one goal back, and we couldn't finish it up in the end."
On the substitutions in the second half:
"The change in the lineup in the second half, it helped a little bit. Chris Brown is good with the ball; he is a good defender. And then you put Atiba Harris up top to be a big presence, and I thought he did that pretty well. We got some chances right at the beginning of the second half, and we almost created a goal as well."
On the coaching staff:
"We are only five games in, and I think our coaching staff is doing a good job, and we as players have to do our jobs. They can't really do anymore. The training sessions are good; they are nice and tough. Now it is time for us, as players, to pull together to come together to figure out how to get it done on the field, because the coaches can't really do any more."
LOS ANGELES GALAXY HEAD COACH STEVE SAMPSON
On the play of his team:
"I think we improved; we're still far from where we need to be, but I think we improved. I think [Steve] Cronin played quite well today. This is his first league win. Kyle Veris, his debut, played well in the back, so the young players who had to play well did. I thought they're now finding Landon a lot easier now; they guys are giving him the ball in more dangerous situations, and I thought that we have had trouble closing out games, and to close out and win it was positive."
On Landon Donovan's play:
"He didn't see enough of the ball, and I think we would bypass him all too often. We would be in too much of a rush to go to goal from the middle third of the field. He settles us and he finds the right option. Today I think he playmaked better than I have seen him in a long time, and was very dangerous toward goal at the same time."
LOS ANGELES GALAXY MIDFIELDER LANDON DONOVAN
On giving up the goals:
"We made just a couple mistakes, and it seems more often than not, you make a mistake, and they make you pay for it. I think our result was good. In the past, we gave up that goal, away, and we are going to struggle. I thought we did a good job to get back in the game with a little help from Eddie Pope, but I think our mentality was a lot better."
On his goal:
"The ball I saw Carey Talley winding up to play it across, and I figured if I could at least get to him, you never know; you might have a chance. On the turf, it is tough. It took a little bounce up on him, and I put my foot out kind of hoping and sure enough, it just bounced in front of me, and my second touch was good, and the finish was fairly easy after."
