Ben Olsen & Erik Sviatchenko REACT to Houston Dynamo LOSS to Toronto at HOME

all right everyone got a head coach Ben Olsen here for you uh Ben just your thoughts on that result here at home no not the one we wanted that's for sure uh and again it's a little bit of a broken record sometimes when I'm up here and uh we played well we have a lot of chances uh great first half uh a little stagnant in the second half to get going but then you know second part of that first half we were uh we were sharp and and again created a ton more chances I don't know can I the um well here it is sorry um you know 18 shots is pretty good uh 71% of the ball's pretty good yeah look we can we can do all this stuff but we didn't make the play and they made the play so I I don't have much more than that other than we got to if we're going to be the team we want to be we have to be killers and and we have to be uh way more Cutthroat in the final third there's enough chances there uh to see that game out and we can't expect our defense to put out shutouts uh put up shutouts every game at home and so we can analyze the set piece obviously we got to continue to work on defensive set pieces but uh in the end we got to see out a few of those plays and and make our life easier on the defensive end all right in the room start with the hello Ben Chris here um prior to this time D had a beautiful head onhe record against um Toronto FC uh but today game as you said the first half was very good but the second half was a little bit different but the question I want to ask is in the first half damos seemed to play better on the ball on the ground towards goal but in the second half it's like playing more of long balls and the average height of the Toronto FC defense is like 6' 51 which Rao to the Dynamo attackers are kind of small so was that part of the second half pep talk no no it wasn't but you know when a team sits back that much and absorbs and continues to absorb it's there's really really fine spaces that sometimes you do have to serve a ball in and grab seconds and and and cause a little chaos so I think uh but you're not wrong in that there was uh some impatience in particular when they get the goal our our uh I I thought our our inability to take the extra pass wasn't good enough maybe in the second half and our just running off the ball was poor particularly wide uh just actions you know making more actions making our own luck uh more options in behind I thought could have been better but again there's enough there there's enough there's enough chances you saw the game so you know if when teams score in particular and they they make it very difficult for you and really shrink uh it's hard to connect a bunch of passes in and around the goal there a lot of numbers in there for him one last question um I noticed um there's a blessing Latif and Griffin when they play together I noticed um they don't seem to pass more to each other is is it what what do you want me to say to that no they don't pass the ball to each other like what do you mean they're just not con they're not connecting they're not connection I that's a better word I'll work on I'll work on them I I'll work on their connections so we'll keep working on them thank you sir all right we'll go there hey Ben um going a little bit on about the umu off the ball and not running well is it because it was the first game back after three weeks you think it's the fatigue or just the match Fitness no no it's not it has nothing to do with match Fitness we're fitter than them we had the ball for 71% of of the time I don't um you know I don't think that has anything to do with it um they were off the same amount of time so uh uh the the first half did we look Rusty I I I didn't think we looked Rusty I thought we were uh pretty damn good in the first half we just didn't score four or five really pretty good chances in the second half they tightened things up even more and it was harder to break them down uh and we had a few other good chances and we didn't score them and they had a set piece and uh they headed it and it deflected off one of our players backs and went in the corner maybe we needed that tonight and we didn't have it uh but again not good enough when it comes to seeing out plays and and being killers and that's uh that's when we've faltered this year that's been the case and so we'll get back and we'll work on a few things uh to continue to push this team uh forward but we're in an okay spot we got a tough schedule it's going only going to get harder uh but it's a challenge we're looking forward to like let's go and lastly my last question I know the Toronto was sitting back and you were looking I think you were frustrated now G the opportunity and you sent out uh sebus putting out two Strikers in the front it was just the moment just trying to get back in the game uh it felt like the team was more reactive with two Strikers that was it the urgency of getting back in the game or it was just uh them two connecting well up front well I don't know if they really connected well they they seus had an opp a very good opportunity didn't do well with uh and yeah it's to forwards we need to get balls in the Box uh late Griffin um sorry uh Brad comes in and gets some service we get a couple looks again it's uh just just trying to get some numbers in the box and they they don't okay if you're looking for me to do that if that's what you're probing at you know probably not that's I don't see that in the future uh but you never know hi coach today the the fans they were low right and how much more how much do you need how much does the team need them to come out as the next three games out of four will be here at home against tough opponents we need him it was a good crowd tonight and uh again it that makes it hurt a little bit more right uh where it's just uh again didn't send them home happy and that's what we'd like to do again some good stuff some uh enough chances and they they had uh there was there was a good energy in the building so we're going to need that going forward and then also we've seen it right that the team can come back really quickly you have said this schedule fluctuates so how how can the team do that you and your coaching staff you have mentioned it that you guys have had a meeting so how can you do that this week during practice to come back after this well this is what we do it's not the end of the world we lost the game and we'll get back and we'll work hard and we'll get ready for for La it's uh that's what we do we're not going to we're not going to fall apart we're not going to uh we're going to get back to work and again we're in an okay spot we we would like to uh certainly move forward we we we losing home games is uh unacceptable uh and but this is what it is we'll we'll move over and try to get better all everyone got Defender Eric fenko here Eric just your thoughts on that result there here one n loss at home uh yeah I'm I'm frustrated uh we it's not the same kind of record that we're putting on but we have had these kind of home games where we've been dominating but just didn't get the result that we have have hoped for for the game I think we had uh chances enough um created enough were dominated on the ball especially the first half they they I don't think they saw our goal as I remember um and then second half 53rd minute a set piece which has been our our issue in in some games where we just kind of uh switch us off and then they they have an opportunity and then they score and from there on again we we tried and tried and tried but uh yeah as I said 71.6% possession weren't enough uh because I still think we had a lot of shots uh blocked there were really really really kind of they gave everything they were blocking every everything and and and shout out to them they they did uh well in the defense sort of frustrating uh evening s David up here up here hi Eric today the fans we're loud how much more how much do y'all need them as the next three games out of four will be here at home now I actually I I I could hear that there was a difference uh also in the warm-ups before there was more people so I I feel like we're going the right way and and as you say we have uh I think in the last 10 games we have six of them I think at home uh this one was the first and uh they they were behind us for sure and the last sequences with the set pieces they were loud and we we need that kind of for every game uh and of course we we are unhappy that we couldn't kind of give uh give that win that we had all hoped for tonight uh but uh the next games are coming now uh next week we go away to lafc and as remember last year we had two good games against them before we got to the to the conference final so hopefully we'll see some of the the good performances that we had last season against them and then the top four right does tonight's result as the players does this put more pressure on you on further like those three games does this put more pressure pressure on the club tonight's result it it was a important uh game um but but we still have everything our own hands um six five home games now doesn't need to be kind of a a soft sleeping pillow that just because we have home games we we will win we need we need more than than we saw today everything was good but it was just not good enough in the sense of of getting the goals so uh everything is fine at the moment uh We we played a game that was uh nine out of 10 we would win today didn't succeed um so I'm still very very confident that we will we will make the playoffs but uh we want to get higher we don't we don't want to be at seventh or or eighth and Ninth to get that wild card we want to go up as you said top four and that requires U I would say at least um four or five wins um within the last nine games hi Eric uh just a quick question about the the defense today I mean it was an unfortunate goal from a setpiece you mentioned it the team has struggled throughout the season with setpiece goals uh what is something that you would like to you know talk to the players what is something that you want to motivate to the guys that there's still time to make adjustments yeah the funny thing is uh that we we trained the last two weeks uh so meticulous on on set pieces how to defend them and how to be a bit more um kind of hard in the Duss and and and grab people and help each other out and and we we need those moments to be critical and especially like we just came out of second half 45 minutes and it's 53 minutes and they score a goal and and in my kind of recollection there have been too many of these situation either very late in the game or just like within the first 15 minutes of second half and that's something that we we need to be able to kind of be better at feel those moments um and and of course it would be nice not to give away set pieces but that's football sometimes um so we have looked into it the last two weeks within data where are we located in the league um and we need to improve uh but it's up to to every individual within that kind of specific role to to lift their level uh and if we do that we can avoid getting those goals against this and and after the goal it seemed like you guys were doing everything within your power to to get that equalizer and and you mentioned that a lot of shots were blocked including some of yours what was going on through your head as you were kind of forced a little higher onto the pitch and and kind of seeing the defense getting higher and higher no it's it's frustrating uh we get into those spots uh a lot of us um and and like the last many games I've I've had a higher position the way that we play allows me to go up and I've developed that in my game so I'm more of a threat uh especially when we build up with three instead of just being a Defender staying back I can I can help out and and I'm doing my best to to help out and some of it uh works really well and some of it I need to improve on uh so yeah it was annoying that that the the shot that I think would have gone in was blocked uh in the second half and the first half was a good save uh but yeah we had we had chances and it's it's annoying to see those uh information that I have here on the screen that it didn't lead to at least a a shut out and from there on we can go but to lose a game at home against Toronto that was struggling for yeah 90 minutes it's it's hard else in the room y right there hi Eric um so lafc is coming next play next game here and how different is for you to play against stars like ug Lis I mean uh Denis W or Oliver giru how different is for you no it's always exciting um this league is growing in the sense of getting better players every single transfer window and and we as kind of fellow colleagues of this league it's always nice to see that that those kind of uh Superstars choose to go to MLS um and they still have a lot to offer uh it's not a retirement League at all we have players running around uh that are incredible I just saw was it Andre Gomez from RSL going to rent for $12 million or something like that so it proves that MLS is very kind of um it's a great place to develop and not just kind of retire uh even though the some of the players that you mentioned are are older but they're still still very impactful so uh it's going to be a challenge but uh as I referenced here we had two really really good games against them last season um and we'll look to to do the same else in yep front hey Eric hi so these games seem to be kind of repeating themselves where y'all dominate the game or play better than the opponent how is the defense handling all the pressure that is being put on y'all to maintain scoreless because the offense is struggling to score those goals how are y'all maintaining y'all's composure on the backline back there h no it's it's a very important job for us to keep that kind of concentration and and I think we did that for for the whole game it was not much that was slipped up uh I I think we have the the fourth best defense maybe or up S and the same as last season so of course we are very very good defense across the entire two conferences but it is tough when you have 71% of possession um included Us in the defense that are working with the offense uh and then kind of having that thought that we're struggling at the moment but then again we saw other games where we just just kind of smooth boom we score one two and then it's done kind of against TOA we scored four goals two of them were disallowed so it's frustrating of course having that kind of put on you but it's a high pressure game football and and and we need to be always kind of on on our toes um and and yeah I I enjoy that part of the game that you always focused you you need to be on your aame in every single situation um and if you make a foul or a mistake of course it's going to be put on us um but but we need to take that responsibility in in order to help the offense feeling that kind of confidence that they can go and and we'll sort whatever that's uh for us