United head coach Ben Olsen
On overall thoughts of the game…
“Overall, it was a step in the right direction. It was good to see Lucho [Acosta] back out there and there were some good performances but still not enough good performances. You need good performances from everyone in this league to win games. That includes making plays in and around the box and we’re not doing that enough.”
On Luciano Acosta’s performance…
“It was good. I thought he and Ian [Harkes] played well. The game comes easy to Lucho [Acosta]…it makes sense to him and he makes everyone around him better.”
United defender Steven Birnbaum
On the two penalty decisions...
"I thought I got a touch on the first one, but I came across and then definitely touched him. The second one, I thought it was pretty good defense...Obviously, that cost us the game, both of them. It's tough."
On whether or not he was given an explanation...
"No, he didn't tell me anything--he didn't say anything. I thought we were shoulder-to-shoulder in the box and I thought I had a good angle on him, so I don't know what to say. I didn't think it was a penalty, but it is what it is."
On finishing the game without a goal...
"I think in the first half, we definitely played pretty well and had them on the back foot a little bit; we kept possession in their half, but didn't threaten enough at their goal."
United midfielder Patrick Nyarko
On the overall result...
"If it's not going your way, it's not going your way; it's difficult. Most of us have been around for a while. You know how it goes; these things can turn and swivel. You just can't abandon what you're about and what you believe in. I believe there are good pieces in this room and it's just a tough start. Similar to last year, we'd rather have a tough start than really when it counts. Obviously, we're not planning for this--we're not planning for a slow start, but it's happened. We've got to embrace it and keep moving forward...keep working and [the positives] will come. Lucho [Acosta] being back was great and hopefully his fitness improves and he can help us."
On Zack Steffen's performance...
"He made some good saves, but it's always hard to play against a team and come from behind. Once they take the lead, it's very hard, just because of how they play, but with that said, I think we all need to look in the mirror and say 'we can be better. Like I said, the only advantage we have going for us is it's still early, but we cannot keep saying that."
On finishing and creating chances...
"Finishing; that's another thing. If we're not creating, I would be a little worried, but we're creating a decent amount of chances, they're just not going in. Today, the goalkeeper made some unbelievable saves to keep us out, but those things will correct themselves. Frustrating? Yeah, but we're all professionals and we've got to fight on."
United defender Taylor Kemp
On the frustrations from the lack of scoring…
“It’s frustrating because you can’t win if you don’t score, but I do think this was a better performance from us as a group. Our possession and movement were better, but we obviously need to do better in the final third. The second penalty killed us. It’s not a good night when you lose, but overall I thought it was better from us. There’s still a lot that we need to improve on.”
Crew SC head coach Gregg Berhalter
On the performance...
“I was pleased. We talked before the game about collective effort. We talked about working together for a common goal, and that winning the game, and we saw that today. I was very pleased with them.”
On the formation...
“We’ve been working on it since preseason. We want to have an alternate system and we want to have a way to play against teams that are very good at serving balls into the penalty box, so we chose this way to play tonight.”
On Alex Crognale’s debut...
“He did more than hold his own: I think he played excellent and had a really good debut. In the first half, he was exposed a couple of times, but he came up big.”
On Zack Steffen’s shutout...
I thought Zack (Steffen) was outstanding. I said to the guys after the game that you need a goalkeeper to come up with saves at the right time, and that’s what he did. After the first goal, D.C. had a good opportunity and he came up big, so I was pleased with him.”
On an important 3 road points...
“It’s huge. We want to be a good road team and we want to be able to take our game to different cities and perform, and I think we did that tonight.”
Crew SC forward Ola Kamara
On creating opportunities and scoring...
“Running in the box makes opportunities. I had great passes come to me to get me there. I was taken down and [Higuain] had a penalty kick and took it well. Then in the second half, I got to take a penalty and it felt good.”
Crew SC goalkeeper Zack Steffen
On being able to play with former Maryland teammate Alex Crognale (Center back) again...
“It was great. Alex (Crognale) and I played at Maryland for two seasons. For him to get his debut and play in front of me again feels great.”
On getting his first shutout of the season...
“It always feels good as a goalie. It was a lot of hard work from the backline and the midfield and everybody in front of me. It felt great and was a good reward.”
