CHICAGO FIRE MEDIA CONFERENCE

May 25, 2022

Wyatt Omsberg

Press Conference

Q. Wyatt, you started all 13 league matches this season; what's something that you've learned about yourself as a professional getting so many minutes this year?

WYATT OMSBERG: Yeah, I mean, good question. I'm not really sure. I think maybe just a little bit of consistency is what I've learned. I haven't played a ton in years past, so I think consistency was a question. I'd come in for a game or two here and there, and that was always a little bit tough because you couldn't get much momentum. Yeah, just consistency, and hopefully I can keep playing.

Q. I want your opinion about the last few games for the Chicago Fire where you kind of started a good season the first seven games for the Fire and you were getting points away, tying points at home and away. Between the seventh games and the 13th game, the team has become winless. What do you think has happened to the team besides the red cards and the injuries?

WYATT OMSBERG: Yeah, I mean, the red cards and injuries have certainly hurt us, and I don't think we've been able to put out the same lineup in a couple games in a row in quite some time.

I think we've been in pretty much every single game. Other than Atlanta, we've been close in every single game. So I think it's just doing the little things, like for instance, in Red Bull we gave up a goal with a minute left in extra time. Against Cincinnati we score to tie it and then they come right back and score again.

I think it's just doing the little things right that we haven't been doing. At the beginning of the season we were just really strong, mentally switched on the whole time, and I think we've maybe gotten a little bit away from that, but I think there's still a lot of positives for us, we've just got to do those little things right, make sure we're tidy in both boxes, and hopefully we can get back on track this weekend.

Q. My other question is about how you knew, for instance, Mueller and Jairo Torres in the team, like when he's practicing, and how do you see them as helping the Fire?

WYATT OMSBERG: I think they're going to be a huge help for us. I think they already have come in and injected a lot of energy, pace, quality in the final third. They're both players that can take guys on one v one, and they bring something different in the final third. So I think they're going to help us a lot, and they're just starting to get settled, so I think everyone is excited about once they get fully comfortable and they can get rolling, everyone is excited about what they're going to bring.

I think as a team, we're just hoping that we can score some more goals, and yeah, I think they're going to be a big part of that.

Q. Can you tell us what it's been like training and playing with Shaqiri?

WYATT OMSBERG: Yeah, I mean, we get that question a lot, but he's -- you see his quality. Every single day, he'll pretty much do something every day that's like, wow, this guy is -- you know his quality. He's a different level.

I think he just brings a ton of experience to us as a group, and everyone tries to learn from him. He's played at some of the top clubs in the world, some of the biggest games in the world. We just try and learn from him.

I think everyone kind of feeds off of his energy and the quality that he brings that raises everyone else's level.

Q. Kind of off topic from soccer, but when tragic events like the school shooting in Texas or the mass shooting in Buffalo that happened a week ago, what kind of conversations does the team have together, and what kind of talks do you guys have when such things happen, especially educating players who might be new to the country for example?

WYATT OMSBERG: Yeah, we've talked about it in groups, especially as Americans, like at some point enough is enough. It's just gotten to the point where every couple of weeks or every month or whatever, stuff like this happens, and it's senseless. It's tragic. There's just frustration, I think.

I think probably some of the other players don't really get it because I don't know how much of this kind of thing happens in other country, but it happens too much in America. Something needs to be done. As everyone is talking about, something needs to be done to change what's happening. It's obviously tragic, and our thoughts, our prayers, all our condolences go out to everyone affected by both of those events.