Fernando Clavijo
Fernando Clavijo
Fernando Caetano Clavijo Cedrésis a retired American soccer defender and former head coach of the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. He played three seasons in the American Soccer League, two in the North American Soccer League and ten in the Major Indoor Soccer League. He earned 61 caps with the United States men's national soccer team and 8 with the U.S. National Futsal Team. He later coached both indoor and outdoor teams as well as at the national team...
adjust ball best game guys kept needed players time tonight
I think tonight was probably our best game of the year. We kept the ball very well and we were solid. We have 22 new players and the guys needed time to adjust to each other.
ahead expect four games loss physical points pressure resources sunday tough
I think L.A. is under a lot of pressure right now. They have a lot of resources on that team, but they're only four points ahead of us, with (the Rapids having) two games in hand. They had a tough loss on Sunday and I expect it to be a very emotional, very physical game.
best control games national player prepared pressure seen
We didn't put enough pressure on the crosses. We could never control it. We let them have it too easy. Ching had one of the best games I've ever seen him play. He is an outstanding young player who has been in and out of the national team. We weren't prepared for that kind of speed.
allow believe bit game gave knowing last match played point
I believe we match (up) very well because they like to play and allow (opponents) to play. That last game we played them gave us a little bit of confidence, knowing we can come with the point from there. But at the same time, we need to win.
cannot game home
The significance of this game for us is that it's a home game and we cannot give up points.
came complain game guys hard harder knew ourselves worked
We knew this game was going to be hard and we made it a little harder on ourselves today. Overall, all the guys came up, worked hard and I can't complain for that.
definitely games result
I definitely think we are going to get better. Sometimes you get the result and sometimes you don't. We have 31 games left.
game matter san
It doesn't matter who we play. You have to play them all to get there. San Jose, when they play at Spartan Stadium, that's a completely different game so they may be a little more difficult.
coming credit game giving roller stepping whoever
That was our first (MLS) game in 17 days, but little by little, things are coming together. We have minimized our mistakes. It has been a roller coaster, but I'm giving credit to whoever is stepping in.
behind game plan possible second slow steps
The game plan was very clear. We just could not find any momentum. We need to set a pace. In the second half, they are going to try to slow it down as much as possible and we need to do something about this. We need a little more intensity. You know, I mean, we were just two steps behind on everything else.
beat free good hard kick knew open played took
I think we played hard. We didn't come out with the points. When you play D.C. you know it is going to be hard. It was hard when we played them at home. We beat them. We knew it was going to be hard and took a really good free kick to open up the goals.
field good inside mind outside players regular soccer sure together
I think this year, the players have interacted not only outside the field, but inside the field. We have good soccer players who have a good mind for the game. They executed together and we have to make sure they put it out during the regular season.
ahead goal jump
Our first goal was to make the playoffs. Now, realistically, we can jump L.A. Our goal right now is just to get ahead of them.
beginning goal great kept playing satisfying turn
Overall, I thought it was a great performance. The most satisfying thing for me was the attitude. They scored a goal and we kept playing hard. I don't know if, at the beginning of the year, we would have been able to turn around those things.