Colorado Rapids returned to winning ways by defeating Vancouver Whitecaps FC 2-0 at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park on Saturday night.
Marlon Hairston scored the first and set up the second for Dominique Badji as Pablo Mastroeni’s men banished memories of last Saturday’s 5-1 defeat at New York City FC.
This was the Rapids’ ninth home win of the MLS season and took their overall record to 11-3-8. They are now three points adrift of Supporters’ Shield leaders FC Dallas with two games in hand.
Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni
On coming back from the loss last week…
Everyone has doubts as human beings when you get beat up that good regardless of the sport. I think the focus and concentration this week was very similar to those first couple of performances in the year. It was the best week of work that we’ve had all year. So, this result today is a culmination of that. The concentration today was fabulous, the belief in the group is fabulous, the conviction to stay the course and not stop for 90 minutes was tremendous.
I thought it was our most professional performance of the year. We weren’t naïve defensively. They’re a very good attacking team and we really gave up very little tonight. From Tim Howard to Kevin Doyle and everyone in between, it was probably one of the best performances of the year.
On [Sébastien] Le Toux’s debut…
He’s a player that comes in and gives 100%. He won some balls defensively in good spots to break forward. He got in the box quite a few times, we just couldn’t find him. He’s a very good player. He fits right in to the way we want to play, the mentality and his experience. I thought that was a very good shift that he put in for his first time wearing a Rapids jersey.
On [Marlon] Hairston’s performance…
I think he’s a young player that’s obviously had some ups and downs over the course of the last couple of years. He’s wanting to assume a lot of the responsibility that it takes to play at this level. What I mean by that is, a guy that comes in to work every day to try to improve his craft. A lot of times young players think it’s going to come naturally. What you’re seeing is a young man that’s growing in to his own game, growing in to this league. An impact player on both sides of the ball, and he’s definitely a player now that, I’ll guarantee you, opposing coaches are talking about when they talk about the Colorado Rapids.
On the opposition and how their style affects the Rapids…
All week I reiterated, it’s not what happens to you, it’s how you respond. The same in this game. When you lose the ball, don’t worry about it, there’s got to be a reaction. It’s got to be a positive reaction that inspires your teammates.
I think tonight, the focal point of our game against Vancouver was the way we pressed. In the early stages of the game, we were able to impose ourselves on them through that. They set up as a really attacking team with some very good technicians, and when they don’t have a lot of the ball, it asks a lot of questions of them defensively. I think that was a big proponent to everything we did tonight. This game is bigger than the results say. For us, it’s a statement to everyone in that locker room that if we continue to work in this fashion, believe in ourselves and fight, we will get to where we want to go.
Forward Shkëlzen Gashi
On his thoughts on the match…
First, I would like to [give a] big compliment to the team. It was a great performance because last game we lost 5-1 against a good team in New York City. We were in the locker room today before the game and we said that we wanted to make a reaction. Let’s fight for 90 minutes for all the fans in the stadium who believe in this team. I’m proud for this performance for everybody.
On playing in a more central role…
For me, it’s important that I have a good conversation with the coach. He said to me, play number 10, I said, no problem I’ve played this a lot of times in my football career. I think today it’s also important that we had good communication on the field. You feel that everyone wanted to win.
On Marlon [Hairston’s] performance…
It’s good for him because, for every player, it’s good that they can score and have a good performance. We need everyone, we have a lot of good players on the team. Today, also big compliments to Sébastien [Le Toux]. He came inside and made good movements. I’m very happy for everybody and I think this is a good team spirit for everyone. This is the mentality of the team. We are always together and we fight for 90 minutes.
On if he wants to continue playing as number 10…
For me, when I play, I want to help everybody. I want to make everybody better. I’m just an easy player and I’m happy I can play with these players because everyone is a good guy. For me, it’s not a problem if I’m a striker, number 10, 11, 7, I just want to play and give my performance for the team.
Midfielder Marlon Hairston
On the spirit to bounce back from the defeat…
Today, we just came with the same mindset that we’ve had at home thus far this season. We definitely wanted to bounce back from our performance last weekend. We felt like we let each other down.
It was great to come out tonight and make up for it. Next week we’ve got another tough game in LA on the road, so we definitely knew we needed this result tonight.
On his recent form…
My confidence is high right now because of my teammates. The coaching staff has helped me out tremendously the last couple of months. Right now, I just want to continue to get better, continue to create chances for this team. The Western Conference is tight so we need as many results as we can possibly get.
On the importance of this game going into the weekend…
We’ve won once against LA and tied the last game away. It’s a tough environment. They’re a great group and they’re right on our heels right now. Right now, the preparations for the team is to come in healthy. Our trainers have done a great job. We’ve got to go in, prepare, put a great week of training in and we’ll be ready for the game next weekend.