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MLS CUP

November 20, 2009

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

THE MODERATOR: Good morning, everyone. Welcome to Quest Field in Seattle for MLS Cup 2009. As everybody knows, Nick Rimando won the MLS Cup in 2004 with D.C. United. This is his second trip here. Kyle Beckerman is making his Cup debut after 10 years in the league, over two years now as captain for Real Salt Lake.
I'll turn it over to Nick and Kyle for a few brief comments to let us know their general thoughts about being here this weekend.
NICK RIMANDO: Obviously we're real excited to be here. We've proven we're a good team, that we should be here for the final. Obviously it's going to be a good game Sunday.
They're bringing a lot of good players on their team. Obviously the two that stand out are Donovan and Beckham. You also have to throw in Buddle and Dema in there and Magee. It's not just those two players that we're looking at. So we're looking for a good game on Sunday.
KYLE BECKERMAN: We came here to win. We think we can win. We don't really care who we're playing, who's on the team. It should be fun.
THE MODERATOR: We'll take questions.

Q. Could both of you talk about the evolution of the league from the time you got here till now, where it has to go from here.
NICK RIMANDO: Yeah, I think it has to continue to grow. Franchises like Seattle obviously are great for the league. If we continue to have franchises like this, fans like Seattle has, you know, you look at Real Salt Lake with the stadium we have now, I think it's growing great.
When I came into the league, it started out slow. We didn't know exactly where the league was going to go. Now it's blossomed. Hopefully it's going to continue to grow.
KYLE BECKERMAN: Yeah, I agree with him. I think it's getting bigger and bigger every year. There's a bunch of franchises now. It's part of the city, part of their culture now. It's just gonna continue to get that way.

Q. Did you ever wonder if it was going to get that far?
NICK RIMANDO: Yeah, of course. I mean, when I was in Miami, obviously our team disbanded. There's no more team there. When teams disappear, you obviously have thoughts of what's going to become of the league.
But then when you throw Toronto in there, see success there, obviously the Sounders, things look great.

Q. Nick, your experience from five years ago in the final, how do you think that's helped you prepare for this game? Do you remember certain things about that game that kind of stand out that are different than a regular-season game or an ordinary playoff game?
NICK RIMANDO: As much as it's a final game, you want to go into that game as it's just another game. You can't put too much pressure on yourself. You can't put too much pressure on your teammates. We got to go in there and relax.
As of 2004, if I remember anything, I think it's just holding the Cup up at the end. There's no real moment in that game. You know, we're a different team. It's a different year. There's a lot of differences between both of our teams.
This will be special if we do bring the Cup back to Salt Lake City.

Q. Kyle, can you talk a little bit about what it's like to share midfield with Will Johnson, who probably runs every single second of a match?
KYLE BECKERMAN: No, Will probably runs enough for three games in one. But, yeah, he covers so much ground out there, tackles hard, good passer, has a really strong shot. Yeah, I enjoy playing with him.

Q. Nick, you said you deserved to be in the finals. Everyone agrees over the three playoff games, you deserve to be in. What does it say about a league, is it good or bad that a team can be below .500 and still be in a position to win a championship?
NICK RIMANDO: It's a good thing. If it wasn't a good thing, we wouldn't be here.
Obviously, when you get to the playoffs, the truth be told, you know, records don't mean anything anymore. If you get there, you can do something. That's exactly what this team did. We got to the playoffs and we opened some eyes. There's still people that don't believe in us. We're a team that believes, and that's why we're here.

Q. Is it a glass half full that you were able to turn it on when it mattered? Where was this team for a lot of the regular season?
NICK RIMANDO: We were inconsistent during the regular season, and I think that's where we got in trouble on the road, not playing consistent soccer. At the end of the season, we ended up playing really, really good soccer. We got a rhythm. That brought a lot of confidence in our team.
KYLE BECKERMAN: I think we were actually really consistent: We won at home and we lost on the road (laughter).
You know, they say it's a bad road record, but what do you want us to do? Do you want us to lose at home, win more on the road? Do you want us to be .500 but not make the playoffs?

Q. But you got on the road in the playoffs and you won.
KYLE BECKERMAN: Right.
NICK RIMANDO: We got rhythm. We got rhythm at the right time. We won the games we needed to get here, so...
THE MODERATOR: I would also say .500 means more when there's only two possible results in a game as opposed to three, but that's just me.

Q. First training session here today at Quest Field. What, if any, adjustments do you have to make to this surface, that it's usually pretty wet up here?
NICK RIMANDO: For the goalkeeper, it's a nightmare really. You really have to adjust, look at the skipping balls. Especially when it's a beautiful day like today, you got to look at the wet surface and kind of adjust to it. I think the defenders, as well. You got to follow every play out.
We'd like to get back here again tomorrow and kind of get used to it as much as we can.
KYLE BECKERMAN: I don't know. It definitely has a fast feel to it. But hopefully a lot of us actually have some experience on it from Rice-Eccles back in Salt Lake. We did pretty well last year, so hopefully we can take some of that and bring it here.

Q. You have played here at this field before. Talk about the atmosphere in the stadium, what you expect it to be like on Sunday.
KYLE BECKERMAN: Yeah, it was amazing the time we came and played the Sounders. Watching it on TV, the playoff game, any game they've had on TV has been outstanding. They really come and support their team well. It has a real European atmosphere. So I'm hoping it will be something like that.
Hopefully all the Sounders' fans will get on our side for the game. We were actually hoping that L.A. would have beaten Seattle so maybe they would have got on our side.
But it will be a good atmosphere. We're hoping it will be a packed house. Everybody wants to play in front of that.
NICK RIMANDO: He said it all. Seattle has great fans here. To play here in front of 40 plus thousand people is going to be, you know, a great experience. But, you know, I experienced it the first game here, even before the Sounders were here, when D.C. United played Real Madrid in the stadium. The fans came out for that. We knew it was going to be something special when a team did come here.

Q. Kyle, obviously two really talented midfields. You've been excelling in the midfield over the course of the playoffs. How do you stack up against L.A.? What do you need to continue to do?
KYLE BECKERMAN: I think we stack up well. Main thing, when we get our passing going, the diamond seems to work and open up teams. Especially when you play against a flat four, like they play, if you can get that diamond moving with the ball, it causes a real problem to the other team, you can get behind that midfield. So that's what we're really going to try to do, really connect some passes in the midfield, get everybody touches on it, get them moving around, trying to chase the ball, and as soon as we get them chasing, try and get in behind them and get it to our forwards' feet.

Q. Beckham and Donovan tend to float over the field, how does that complicate you on the defensive side?
KYLE BECKERMAN: We'll keep an eye on Donovan. I think that's a big thing. He'll come to the midfield a lot. We'll have to communicate a lot. He's a forward.
With Beckham, I think when he moves around and stuff, it will help us out when we win the ball. We're going to go and attack the space he just left. Mainly his roaming is going deep in defense to get the ball. That's fine with us.

Q. Beckham is most dangerous when he gets into space and positions. Have you been working particularly on not giving him space?
KYLE BECKERMAN: No, no, not at all. I mean, I think we're going to just try and dominate the midfield and then push him out. It seems like when it gets tough in there, he goes back and gets the ball off the back four to get that space.
Our main concern is going to be when he goes back there, keep organized, then deal with the head ball that comes in, if it's a long ball. But main thing, if we're doing our thing, if we're working the ball well, controlling it, then his free kicks, his long passes won't affect us.

Q. Do you think ultimately this game is a clash between a team that's built around some key individuals and yourselves who have much more of a team spirit?
KYLE BECKERMAN: Well, you know, the media keeps saying that a lot, that they're a team of stars. Well, Donovan, star, and Beckham is a star. But they also have some other good players on their team that are, you know, similar to guys that we have.
So I don't know. I wish it was 11 versus 2, that would be a nice matchup (smiling). Yeah, I mean, they got some names, some game-changers.

Q. Kyle, you have a former teammate playing for L.A. in Dema Kovalenko. Talk about what he brings to the table, the intensity he has.
KYLE BECKERMAN: Yeah, he's on the borderline crazy out there (laughter). He's really intense. He likes to get in tackles. He likes to fight. He likes everything about a fight. So he really brings that competitiveness to his game every day in practice and on the field as well.
We know he's going to be up for the game. We'll just try and, you know, match that. If we can match that, then hopefully our soccer will come out.

Q. In terms of perception, how do you compare in terms of prestige Supporters' Shield versus MLS Cup? As a player, which would be more satisfying to achieve?
KYLE BECKERMAN: It seems like in American sports, it's all about the playoffs. You win in the MLS Cup, it's a bigger deal in America. In other countries, it would be different.
This is definitely bigger. But I think it's a great honor to be the Supporters' Shield as well, but it's not really taken as highly as MLS Cup.
NICK RIMANDO: No, yeah, same. I think for me, MLS Cup is more in the spotlight. I think MLS Cup for me is the number one thing to achieve. In the beginning of the season, that's what we wanted to get. We obviously want to be the number one team in the regular season, but at the end of the day, when you're the champion, it's raising that MLS Cup.
THE MODERATOR: Guys, thank you for your time today.

End of FastScripts

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