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MONTREAL IMPACT MEDIA CONFERENCE

November 6, 2016

Mauro Biello

Harrison, New Jersey

Impact - 2, Red Bulls - 1

Q. That save that Evan Bush made, what did that do for your team?
MAURO BIELLO: Yeah, I think it was a key moment in the game. You know, Evan came up big there, and the momentum started to shift our way, and the longer this game went with them without scoring, the more it was going to tilt to our advantage, and that's what ended up happening in the second half. We got a break, Nacho -- what can I say? To me he's one of the best players in the league, and again, he showed it tonight. Big moment, big situation, scores two goals, and now we advance.

Q. With the break now, how do you keep the momentum going? And the stuff that happened with Didier, in a funny way has that helped the team kind of come together?
MAURO BIELLO: Yeah, I think in the end, I know there's the break coming up now, and we've got maybe 14 days between the next game. It's about resting, recovering for sure, and getting guys healthy at 100 percent because there's some guys there with some knocks that they're playing with, if we're able to do that, and then slowly ramp up the workload and get us ready for the next game.

I mean, with Didier, look, he came in, was a professional, did his job, made the difference. The team rallied around it, and now we're in the Conference Finals.

Q. What do you say to fans about going through this roller coaster ride?
MAURO BIELLO: I'd say, look, in the end, we know how hard it is to win games in this league and how hard it is to advance and how hard it is to win playoff games. Our fans have been there all year. We've had so many sellouts crowds this year. They've been behind us. The team went through a little bit of a bump, and we were able to come together again at the end and show the type of character we have and the talent we have in this team, and I'm so proud for the fans to be able to celebrate this moment with their team, because it is their team, and in the end, you play for your fans, and their support they give day in and day out is a reflection of the effort of my team tonight.

Q. Did you watch the penalty kick or did you look away?
MAURO BIELLO: I was pretty happy when he made that save. Look, this is the game. Sometimes we got that break and he makes that save, and I think it rallied the team after that.

Q. What did it mean personally to you to have Didier?
MAURO BIELLO: Well, what Didier did is exactly what I was hoping, to come into the game and bring that, and he plays the killer pass that eliminates the New York Red Bulls. In the end, Didier has won at every level, and to have him come in, it could only help this team.

Q. You're into an Eastern Conference Final, first time in franchise history. Just from your facial expression, you're very businesslike right now. How do you feel right now?
MAURO BIELLO: Yeah, look, in the end, I'm proud of my team. I'm proud of the way we played. I'm proud of the commitment that we put, and we knew it was going to be hard here. We knew that playing the Red Bulls, they're probably the best team in the league.

But I'm proud of them that they stuck to what we wanted to achieve, and in the end, it paid off, and now we move forward.

Q. What did you see as the Red Bulls' weaknesses and how did you exploit them?
MAURO BIELLO: Well, I think one of the things we wanted to exploit was to take advantage of our speed against their defense. They like to push the fullbacks up and leave their centerbacks in the back with Dax, and we wanted to take advantage of that on the break, and we did in today's game.

If we could liberate their press and make that extra pass at midfield, I think it would give them trouble in switching the point of attack. They're a good team on the ball. We were able to close down the middle. We thought if we closed down the middle, it would be hard for them. They'd have to go around us, and in the end, I think we frustrated them by doing so.

Q. Apparently there's some venues you haven't been able to win on the road at, and finally you did. What's it like to finally get a victory on the road here at Red Bull Arena, especially in the playoffs?
MAURO BIELLO: Yeah, it's a great feeling. I think we lost all seven games that we've played here in the past, and to come out of here in a crucial game and to win, this is fantastic. It's fantastic for my group, who now believes that we can take on any team in this league, and this is the momentum that we want. This is the cohesion that we want, and with this result, it'll help us move forward.

Q. You've lost the last seven games you've played here; does it feel like there's a sense of destiny about this Montreal team?
MAURO BIELLO: You know, this game is so unpredictable. As coaches, we try to put our players in the best conditions and try to prepare them for every scenario, and sometimes you can't. It's about making some plays, and today we were able to make those plays. Evan Bush comes up big and makes the play, Nacho puts it in with a great shot with his left foot, and in the end, I think in playoffs, you have to step up your game and be able to make those plays.

For us going forward now, whoever we meet, I don't know the score in that game, we need to continue to grow as a team because there's still things we need to do better if we want to win the MLS Cup, and it's about working hard and staying focused on what we can control.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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