10-Man Loons Notch Gritty 1-0 Win over Whitecaps

May 5, 2018 - Major League Soccer (MLS)
Minnesota United FC News Release

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - In an afternoon match at TCF Bank Stadium, Minnesota United FC welcomed Vancouver Whitecaps FC, looking for its second win in a row. The early back and forth found the teams deadlocked and scoreless at the half, but a red card for Mason Toye in the 50th minute forced adjustments that let the Loons take a 1-0 lead and hold it under intense pressure from a physical Whitecaps side.

"I thought it was a monumental effort considering how long we played with a man down," said Head Coach Adrian Heath. "[Vancouver is] probably the biggest team in the league. I thought the players, every single one of them, put themselves on the line so many times. Overall I am incredibly proud of the players. It was a really big result for us and hopefully we keep this momentum going."

The first 10 minutes of the match featured punches and counterpunches, with Minnesota earning its first corner kick quickly in the second minute, giving recent addition midfielder Alexi Gomez the chance to take his first corner from the right side. Vancouver got its first corner just four minutes later and goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth turned aside two decent chances, the first by forward Anthony Blondell and the second a header by defender Kendall Waston on the ensuing corner kick.

The Whitecaps' size posed a formidable challenge throughout the match and they played physical and aggressive as the Loons looked to take advantage of their speed and creativity, primarily from midfielders Darwin Quintero and Gomez. The link-ups between those two and Ibson showed a level of creativity that bodes well for the future as the newcomers settle into the side.

By the 30-minute mark, Minnesota's offense had slowed down a bit as they worked the ball around in an effort to stretch the Vancouver defense. Their patience paid dividends in the 34th minute when a Gomez cross forced a tough save from goalkeeper Stefan Marinovic he couldn't quite corral. The ball ping-ponged around in front of goal but no Minnesota United player was there to jump on it.

As the teams headed to the half, it was Minnesota with the possession advantage, 59% to 41%, but Vancouver way out ahead in terms of shots, nine to two. Given the Loons' propensity for stepping it up in the second half, though, heading to the break level at nil-nil was an encouraging first half result.

Just five minutes into the second half, the complexion of the match changed markedly when Mason Toye was shown a red card and sent off. Gomez was prowling along the left side looking for an opportunity to cross while Toye set up in the box with Waston behind him. Just before he made his move, Toye elbowed Waston and sent him to the ground, forcing MNUFC to adjust to playing a man down for the remaining 40 minutes.

"The hard part is when you have Darwin, who wants to play with the ball of the time and he doesn't have the outlet to go in behind," said Heath. "Everything that you play is short and you invite people to come and pressure more. I thought some of our play and (Miguel Ibarra) and Alexi Gomez had a great start. They put some great balls into the box and looked dangerous on the counterattack."

Forced to play out of their own half, the Loons settled back, looking for opportunities to lay a little jujitsu on the Whitecaps and use their aggression against them. In the 60th minute, Quintero found himself in the middle of the pitch with a lot of space to work with and he drove the ball forward before finding Gomez in space down the left wing. His cross found midfielder Miguel Ibarra on the right wing, who cut across for a sharp angled shot on goal that Marinovic got a hand on, but couldn't control. Ibarra chased down the resulting rebound and buried it for his first goal of the year and a 1-0 lead for the Loons.

"We switched the field and I see Alexi [Gomez] go one-on-one," said Ibarra. "[The coaches] have been telling me since the season started, 'Make sure you get to the back post.' I had already done that against Portland Timbers which was called back. My instinct was don't be offside on this one. The goalkeeper made a great save on the first one, but I just needed to bottle it up."

"I think the competition for places is the biggest motivation," said Heath when asked about Ibarra's performance this year, which includes three match-winning assists and now a match-winning goal. "If you can't get a game it generally livens everybody up. He has waited patiently for his chance and he has taken it. He will keep his place if he keeps playing like that. But we are getting more and more competition for places. That is the nature of what it is for. That is why you have a strong squad - to make sure that if you are in the team you have to play well to keep your place. He's doing that at this moment."

The Whitecaps responded by doubling down on their size up front, replacing the 6-foot-1-inch Anthony Blondell with the 6-foot-3-inch Kei Kamara, as well as Nicolas Mezquida with Yordy Reyna. As the Whitecaps' attack piled forward, the Loons played it safe and packed men into the box. Kamara got two decent looks almost back to back in the 74th and 75th minutes, one a point blank strike that sailed over the crossbar and the other a header that did the same.

Those close calls were enough to get Heath to change the shape to a more protective 5-3-1 by bringing in defenders Wyatt Omsberg and Collin Martin for Gomez and Ibarra. Once the bus was parallel parked in front of the Loons' goal, the match became reminiscent of Minnesota United's loss to Atlanta when they were down a man, but with the shoe on the other foot. Defender Eric Miller, playing in his first match with MNUFC after coming over from Colorado in a last-minute trade for Sam Nicholson earlier this week, acquitted himself well even though he was forced from the match with some cramping in the 82nd minute.

"It's been super, super hectic," said the Minnesota native about his return this week. "I told a couple people the other day: It's nice when you get traded and that night you can sleep in your parents' house. It makes things a little bit easier. And then honestly, there's so much stuff to do that playing soccer is the easiest part. It's easy to just come out here to play with the guys. It's a super talented group with a lot of quality, so it's super easy to come here and do my job."

Shuttleworth kept the clean sheet and saved MNUFC two points with a beauty of a save in the 83rdminute. Midfielder Brek Shea - who came on for Bernie Ibini-Isei - curled a pretty shot from the right side that was absolutely headed for the upper left corner of the goal, but Shuttleworth stabbed it away to preserve the shutout and a 1-0 Loons win.

"Bobby came up with an incredible save," said Heath. "It was two or three feet outside the post, so it is going in the top corner. For him to get his hand on it was incredible save. He has done that the last couple weeks when we needed him."

Minnesota United next heads to California to face expansion side LAFC at the recently opened Banc of California Stadium in a midweek match on Wednesday, May 9 at 9:00 p.m. CT. Pre-match coverage begins at 8:30 p.m. on FOX Sports North and MNUFC Radio on 1500 ESPN.

Lineups

Minnesota United FC Starting XI: GK Bobby Shuttleworth; D Eric Miller (Carter Manley 82'), Michael Boxall, Francisco Calvo, Jerome Thiesson; M Ibson, Rasmus Schuller, Miguel Ibarra (Wyatt Omsberg 77'), Alexi Gomez (Collin Martin 77'), Darwin Quintero; F Mason Toye

MIN Unused Subs: GK Matt Lampson; M Harrison Heath, Frantz Pangop, Maximiano

Vancouver Whitecaps FC Starting XI: GK Stefan Marinovic; D Sean Franklin, Kendall Waston, Jose Aja, Brett Levis; M Bernie Ibini (Brek Shea 70'), Felipe, Nicolas Mezquida (Yordy Reyna 63'), Aly Ghazal, Alphonso Davies; F Anthony Blondell (Kei Kamara 63')

VAN Unused Subs: GK Brian Rowe; D Jakob Newerski; M Efrain Juarez, Russell Teibert

Match Events

Goals

60' - Ibarra - MIN

Discipline

20' - Ghazal (YC) - VAN

26' - Quintero (YC) - MIN

50' - Toye (RC) - MIN

66' - Aja (YC) - VAN

90+1' - Shuttleworth (YC) - MIN

Attendance: 19,642

MINNESOTA UNITED QUOTES SHEET

MNUFC HEAD COACH ADRIAN HEATH

On the team's resolve against Vancouver Whitecaps FC ...

I thought it was a monumental effort considering how long we played with a man down. The team that we played, they're probably the biggest team in the league. I thought the players, every single one of them, put themselves on the line so many times. We went through it ourselves against Atlanta here. It's difficult when everybody packs it in. I was really pleased with some of our first half play. I thought some of our attacking play and combination play was excellent. And then Bobby [Shuttleworth] came up with an incredible save. It was two or three feet outside the post, so it is going in the top corner. For him to get his hand on it was incredible save. He has done that the last couple weeks when we needed him. Overall, I am incredibly proud of the players. It was a really big result for us and hopefully we keep this momentum going.

On the red card issued to Mason Toye ...

I have not seen it. I will have to see it again. They did not show a replay in the stadium.

On readjusting after the red card ...

The hard part is when you have Darwin [Quintero], who wants to play with the ball all of the time and he doesn't have the outlet to go in behind. Everything that you play is short and you invite people to come and pressure more. I thought some of our play and [Miguel Ibarra] and Alexi Gómez had a great start. They put some great balls into the box and looked dangerous on the counterattack. They put in a great shift when we needed them when we were defending like we did. Because of their sheer size we changed the shape and went to a 5-3-1 and said if you can get it wide but we will try to defend the box. We did that terrifically. Had we not changed there, I think they still would have got enough to balls into the box and just by sheer size they would have gotten something. It turned out OK in the end.

On the effects of Toye's suspension ...

Obviously with [Abu] Danladi and Christian [Ramirez's] situations it is not ideal. But we will be in tomorrow and we'll assess from there and decide what we want to do.

On the message to Toye ...

He's silly, a silly boy. I don't know if he is doing it or what he is doing, but if he has he could have cost his teammates. He will learn his lesson. If two or three people are fit maybe he doesn't play the next game and he loses his spot. So, it's silly. If he elbowed him, he deserved to get the red card and if he did we will have a chat about that.

On Miguel Ibarra ...

I thought his effort was incredible again today. To make the effort to get to the back post like he did with a man down was terrific. It was a good first effort and he followed it up, which was great. It was great play from both wide men. Alexi put a great ball across the six-yard box. He invited Miggy to get there and he got there. Really pleased with him. I don't think there is anybody today that we can be disappointed with.

On what has changed for Ibarra ...

I think the competition for places is the biggest motivation for any coach. If you can't get a game it generally livens everybody up. He has waited patiently for his chance and he has taken it. He will keep his place if he keeps playing like that. But we are getting more and more competition for places. That is the nature of what it is for. That is why you have a strong squad - to make sure that if you are in the team you have to play well to keep your place. He's doing that at this moment.

On Eric Miller's debut performance ...

I was really pleased with Eric. He is what he is. He is steady, does not do anything crazy or silly, knows his role, knows what his role is for the team and he will get better for that. Obviously, it is his first one. He will probably think he's had a stroke in the morning when he wakes up. He'll be better for the game, for the 90 minutes, because it is his first one.

On Francisco Calvo and his performance ...

He wears his heart on his sleeve. He has been a little bit disappointed with himself. He's made a couple mistakes that have cost us at times. I thought him defending the goal today was exceptional. When look at it, [Kendall] Waston is up there, [Anthony] Blondell is in there, Kei Kamara is in there and Brek Shea. I think the smallest one of them is 6'4" and they were putting good quality deliveries into the box. Our center backs were magnificent and put on an incredibly display on today of defending the goal. And being in the right spots to defend the goal.

On the backline's state of mind prior to the match ...

After the warmup the staff was really pleased with the way they had warmed up and thought there was a lot of confidence and determination in the group. That is coming from them sensing we are getting better. The squad is getting stronger and we need to build on that. Obviously, we are in a little bit of a hole at the moment in terms of injuries. Were we talking about this four weeks ago saying how well everything was going we would have no injuries, no muscular injuries, and then four weeks later we have 11 people down. But it has been a great day.

On getting the first clean sheet of the season ...

Shutouts are always good. Trust me, I should know. It is something every team strives for. You have a chance. How many times have you heard me say this season if we keep conceding two quick goals we aren't going to win too many games? I did say to the team at half time that I felt if we could keep a clean sheet we would win the game.

On Bobby Shuttleworth's performance in goal ...

He has come up massive with two big saves the last two weeks. That is the sign of a goalkeeper that you need - when he saves you a couple of points or he wins you a game. He saved us two points today.

On how Darwin Quintero has re-shaped the attack ...

The most important thing is that we know if we can get him the ball in and around the final third he has incredible vision, a great first touch and makes things happen. All of our best combination play in the first half all came through him. He was involved in all of it, whether it be out on the right or the left. He has been a terrific pickup for us. I think that once everybody is fit and well and we know how to use him and he knows what he's working with, what the strengths of the other players are, I think he will be a great piece for us.

On how he feels going into Wednesday with injuries ...

We will re-assess about what we are going to do. We have an abundance of players in midfield and I would think we would make one or two changes for the game. We don't get back until late Thursday and have another big game on Saturday. We will have a better idea after training tomorrow of how everybody feels and how we are. We will probably take every fit player to LA and then we'll see where we are from there.

On if he believes the current form at home is sustainable ...

Yes, I do. Even last year I thought it was sustainable and we're a better team than we were this time last year.

MNUFC MIDFIELDER MIGUEL IBARRA

On his goal ...

I think it started from our half. We were able to get it out from there. We switched the field and I see Alexi [Gómez] go one-on-one. [The coaches] have been telling me since the season started, make sure you get to the back post. I had already done that against Portland Timbers, which was called back. My instinct was don't be offside on this one. The goalkeeper made a great save on the first one, but I just needed to bottle it up.

On playing with Alexi Gómez ...

This is probably the first time I have seen him play a game. I mean, you can just tell already that he's great. You give him the ball one-vs.-one and he's good technically. He's got a left foot that's just going to put the ball into the area where you can finish. He's going to help us out a lot on offense.

On the team's resolve to defend for 40 minutes with a man down ...

I think we were just committed. Make sure we don't give them any easy outlets to get in and make sure to force them out. And just make sure we're man-marking inside the box, because that's been a big problem. I think we did a great job at it today. I mean our defenders ... I don't think anything was going to go in today. Bobby came up big. That was big for us.

On the emotions of this game after being on the opposite side of the result against Atlanta ...

It was a really emotional game. We wanted the win real bad. We've been saying we want three points here at home every time we play. I think just getting those three points was big for us.

On if he is getting into a groove or just maintaining his form ...

No, I think I'm getting better every game. I mean, my confidence right now is really up there. I know I didn't have a good year last year. So, starting in the offseason I was just making sure I worked. Christian [Ramirez] really helped get really fit in the offseason. So, doing that in California and coming back early and making sure I was fit. And now the hard work is paying off.

On the responsibility that's fallen to him due to injuries ...

There's a lot. But I'm pretty sure we're going to have people to step up. We have confidence in every single one of them. Right now, we're short at forward but hopefully one of them gets healthy and is ready for the next game.

MNUFC DEFENDER ERIC MILLER

On playing his first game in his home state ...

Yeah, super exciting to come home and play. And then obviously, win. More importantly. Super exciting to win a game. Huge three points. I think in the past, this team hasn't won a lot of games like that, which is good. Obviously in Colorado, I'm pretty used to going in the bunker sometimes, digging in. So that was something that was good comfort for me, to just be able to do that here. Bring that to the Loons.

On what the week was like for him after he found out about the trade ...

It's been super, super hectic. I told a couple people the other day. It's nice when you get traded, that night, you can sleep in your parents' house. It makes things a little bit easier. And then honestly, there's so much stuff to do and there's so much logistical planning you gotta do that playing soccer is the easiest part. It's easy to just come out here to play with the guys. It's a super talented group with a lot of quality, so it's super easy to come here and do my job.

On major adjustments moving to Minnesota in comparison to Colorado ...

Yeah, for sure. And obviously I had some injuries in Colorado, so it wasn't like full-on training for a long time. The good thing is I was training at altitude. They play a dynamic style there, so I was fit from that. And then I just think the adrenaline got me through. But honestly, it's a good group of guys that make it easy to play with them. So, I was trying just not to mess up and let those guys do their thing.

On his matchup against Brek Shea ...

It's always tough when a national team guy or a former national team guy comes in and plays against you. But, I thought for the most part I did alright. He's a super dynamic guy, so he's going to get service, he's going to do his thing. Just try to win the ball as much as possible and do what you can.

On cramping up and being subbed ...

Yeah, just a little calf cramp. It was a little hot out there today. I forgot how hot it gets here during the summer.

On his family and friends at the match ...

A pretty decent amount. It was super nice. So, Cassie, my fiancé was supposed to fly home for the - she was actually already in Minnesota, just unintentionally, before I got traded - and then she was supposed to fly home today, this morning, but her - my future father-in-law - ended up flying last night and then he drove 12 hours through the night to get back here for the game. So, it's super special to be able to have those kinds of people around you and have that support system.

On the environment at TCF Bank Stadium ...

It's great, man. What a supporters' section. It's just great. It's honestly a pretty good place to play here for being a football stadium. It gets pretty loud. Especially that second half, when we were under for a little while, the Supporters section was able to cheer us on and give us that extra push that we needed.

On if he heard the supporters chanting "he's one of our own" ...

I did not here that. But that's pretty cool.

On if there are any guys in the locker room who have warmed up to him right away ...

It's actually super nice. Brent [Kallman], played forever with him, played with Ethan [Finlay]. I played a little bit with [Alex] Kapp at Creighton. And then there's just some other random guys throughout the league who I've played with. [Marc] Burch, Collen Warner. I played a lot of youth national team stuff with Collin Martin. So, it's been, for the most part, a pretty easy transition. It's a great locker room. The guys are super welcoming.

On how wild this match was as his very first with his hometown club ...

Pretty wild, for sure. Obviously going down a man is always tough. But obviously the last two years in Colorado, we've been a team that kind of just sat in and defended a lot. So, it's something I'm unfortunately pretty used to at this point in time. But I think all the guys, Bobby was great today. The rest of the guys in the back line were really good. So, like I said, it just made my job really easy. Francisco is a really, really easy guy to play next to. Super high-level guy. And I thought Alexi was good too, just getting back and getting at [Sean] Franklin. I mean, those guys just made it easy for me for the most part.

MNUFC DEFENDER FRANCISCO CALVO

On the first clean sheet of the season ...

Thank God, first of all. I think he's there for the team. I think we did really well. We defended the area fantastic. And it's not just the back four, it's the whole team. Well, we know that if we have the clean sheet we're going to get some points.

On Shuttleworth's performance in goal ...

That's why he is there. We have another fantastic keeper, which is Matt Lampson, but Bobby is having two huge games. Today, he was to me the best player on the field. That's why he is there. Adrian has the confidence in him and he shows every time we need him, he's always saving the team.

On his emotions at the end and what was going through his head when the whistle blew ...

My son, my son. I mean, my son is my life. So, I just remembered him right away when I finished the game and I was really excited. And I just give the jersey to a kid.

MNUFC DEFENDER MICHAEL BOXALL

On if it's satisfying to get a win over his former team ...

Not really, that was such a long time ago. So much of the personnel has changed, it's a completely different organization from when I played with them in their expansion year.

On his mentality playing against a dynamic Vancouver team ...

We know they like to be direct and attack teams from the counter. The first few minutes we gave them a bit more than we should have. We let them get in behind a bit too easily. They had more of the ball in the second half when we were a man down. They do have some big targets. Wyatt [Omsberg] was amazing when he came on and Calvo won more than his fair share of balls in the air -- got to give a lot of credit to those guys. Obviously, Bobby was standing on his head for a couple of those saves. That's what we expect from him as we see it every day in training.

On the mentality of the defense ...

We felt like we have been doing so much of the right things. When we have conceded goals, as a unit, we have played better than we did today. This clean sheet perhaps validates the performances from the past weeks where we may have deserved a clean sheet but haven't quite got one. We gave them too many chances at goal and that's something we still need to work on.

On defending centrally against Alphonso Davies ...

It felt fairly comfortable. Obviously, Alphonso is a great young player who is going big places. He is a handful one-on-one, but Jerry [Thiesson] did well against him in the first half. Limited his chances, he didn't get in any dangerous crosses.

MNUFC FORWARD MASON TOYE

On his red card ...

I was getting held and grabbed a little bit, but that's just a part of the game. I made a bad decision, I threw an elbow and I got a red card for it. It's just a learning experience now for me and I just have to say a big thank you to the whole team. I put them in a really tough spot and they were able to pull a win out. So, that's what we should be talking about today. I made a silly decision and we had to pay for it. But, yeah.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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