NEW YORK RED BULLS MEDIA CONFERENCE

March 18, 2023

Gerhard Struber

Press Conference

New York Red Bulls 2, Columbus 1

GERHARD STRUBER: First of all, we are very happy today. I think the whole week, we invest extremely in scoring moments in the training sessions, also about some special speeches that we give not too much impression of a problem in this direction. We find the right balance and in the end, again show us, I believe it's tough with Columbus. They caught us on a good level with many, many players, and what made it not easy, especially with the mistake in the first half, the one we were behind, and then we don't lose the belief.

This was in the end I think the most important thing with the mental side with my boys stay close together and pretty special, you can see in the second half was great. There was a conviction to play our football, the typical game. In the end, I think we break the ball from Columbus with our power, with of course more power behind and with good passes behind the pockets behind the last line and especially with the runs.

Yeah, I am very, very happy also that in the end Luquinhas is back, super touch, cross ball, second post and -- inaudible -- the ball was in the net in the end. A big win for us today. But also we can see some improvements what we have to do the next time that we find a little bit more control. But also I would say Columbus was on a good level today and it was not easy to create the win.

Q. Can you speak to Dante, his movement off the ball going for that back post? What have you seen in training, and what he's going to bring and how he's going to be able to fit in? It seemed like he had a good understanding of where John Tolkin wanted to put that ball.

GERHARD STRUBER: Yeah, I think he's in this direction football smart. We can see that his mechanisms in the off sideline, he directs some players in different directions and have their good moves, has good mobility and in the end, he knows in which position he can come and score moments.

Of course, there were good moments in training and also we know a little bit more from him right now where is exactly his strength. This is not so much from my side. I know him exactly but this is more that the team come in touch with him and realize more and more in which direction he wants the ball, in which direction he can help the group.

Yeah, I think also, John Tolkin his play was very sexy and this makes the live much easier to score.

Q. Could you also speak on the performance of Dylan Nealis tonight and what you saw out of him?

GERHARD STRUBER: Yeah, I think very impressed. I think it was not so easy for him to control the situation, especially when they overload the right areas, and he has good decisions today and also in moments he's very reliable and also forward actions I think on a good level. Very stable performance. Yeah, I think this is what I expect from him, and he did a good job.

Q. Talking about Luquinhas, he's a target no matter what opponent it is or who he faces, but he was able to get on the score sheet to level the match. Your thoughts about his play tonight?

GERHARD STRUBER: Yeah, I think Luquinhas is so important that he finds a little bit more back in the last third, in the final phase on the field that he feels freedom; and he comes back in his tripling monster moments; that he has in the end the conviction to be the Brazilian -- inaudible -- what we want from him.

In this direction, yeah, he was not always comprehensive enough in the last few months, and today, one more time, I think he worked so hard against, he risked everything and also in on ball moments you can see how important he is for us and also I think with the scoring moment, this was a little bit luck but he was also in a good position to score.

He was not outside -- he was inside in the end and this makes much more the chance to score. It was also important that we had in the end, much more player in the opponent's box, and this is the chance much higher to score. Yeah, I am very, very happy with him today with his performance.

Q. I know we spoke earlier in the week. How happy are you that two of your players scored for this game?

GERHARD STRUBER: Very happy.

Q. Can you talk about this team's resiliency, last week, came back to tie it up, get a draw and today, you got three points from being from behind. Could you just talk about that as a whole?

GERHARD STRUBER: Yeah, I think this is one of the most important thing that the whole team has a resiliency and we have a mindset with a never-give-up mode, and especially today, the boys showed me that. We come back again after critical moments and after a moment that we realize a goal against us.

But these are moments that bring a group further in the process, and I think it's not always easy to see from outside, from my vantage as a head coach. But at the same time wins like that gives everyone a big push and gives everyone a big belief how strong we can be if we have in the end the right power and the right speed together and the right dynamic and the tactical understanding to be on the same page.

Today I think, yeah, one more time this helped us to grow. We have a young group of players but these are moments that the players realize more and more how important is it to have the concept, the mental concept in the brain, never give up, and today, one more time we can see how we managed it.

Q. Cory Burke was dynamic and all over the field despite the fact that he was a little out of sorts. As a follow-up question, I understand that Lewis Morgan was not in the selection for the team. What is his status going on the road versus Charlotte?

GERHARD STRUBER: Yeah, I'm very happy with Cory Burke today, with which effort he shows in the game. The whole game time he was very, very ambition to save balls, to be in pressing moments. Yeah, on the field, makes it very critical -- in the end, he was very important to break it down from Columbus, with his runs, with his saves, how he make his lay-offs, how he win balls. I am very, very happy with him.

But of course, we lose him now in the national team and the same with Cristian Casseres, goes with his team to Turkey. I think it's a big travel for him and a big journey. Also, Steven Sserwadda is away from us, he leaves soon, but we have a good roster. We have one or other player that he get the chance.

In Charlotte, it's also not an easy one there. I think it's a big challenge to create the next great performance and to realize some points. This is, of course, the goal.

The situation with Lewis Morgan, we are not sure at the moment how he goes in the next few days. Of course we will meet him and he's one of the very, very important players in our group. He has score-ability, he has speed and he has in the end a top understanding from that what we want on the field. We hope he is back soon but I cannot promise right now.