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Loons Fall to Aston Villa in International Friendly

July 18, 2019 - Major League Soccer (MLS) - Minnesota United FC News Release


SAINT PAUL, Minn. - Making the quick trip across the pond, the Villans of Aston Villa downed Minnesota United 3-0 in an international friendly at Allianz Field. The visitors looked to start off their preseason tour with a win in front hundreds of faithful Villa fans who had made the trip to Saint Paul. Adrian Heath, made 11 changes to his side, naming a completely rotated starting XI to give the likes of Rasmus Schuller, Lawrence Olum, Brent Kallman and others some well-deserved minutes. In a frustrating 90 minutes for the Loons, the home side was unable to find the back of the net and wasn't as aggressive as Heath may have wanted.

"Who stood out? Not many. If any," said Head Coach Adrian Heath. "I know it was a second-string team and some of them haven't played much football but they're better than a lot of them showed this evening. I thought Lo [Olum] was maybe the pick of what it was because he did the job that we asked of him, and was brave enough to receive the ball under pressure and play forward. [We had] moments of lapses of concentration and the ball ends up in the back of the net or we've switched half, turned it over cheaply. Not been brave enough to play at times. And, it cost us."

After being promoted back to the English Premier League in May, Aston Villa was determined to make a statement in Saint Paul. As expected, Jack Grealish was one of the Villans' most dangerous players throughout the first half. The club's captain had a free role, floating throughout midfield, starting counterattacks and dropping deep to receive the ball. Grealish scored the lone goal in the first half when the Loons committed numbers forward in the 36th minute, leaving the home side exposed at the back. The 23-year-old midfielder spotted the numerical advantage and drove at the Minnesota backline. Cutting inside on his dangerous right foot, Grealish wrapped his foot around the ball and sent a curling shot from distance past the fingers of Bobby Shuttleworth.

While Aston Villa had much of the attacking play in the first half - holding an 11-3 advantage in shots at the break - the Loons had their share of chances. Collin Martin had a fabulous chance on goal in the 14th minute when Miguel Ibarra's lofted cross fell to the feet of the midfielder who was trailing the play. Martin took a snap shot from a tight angle but his shot whizzed just wide of the Aston Villa goal. In the 27th minute, Abu Danladi - coming off a groin injury - found space behind the Villa defense but his first touch took him away from goal. With not much to aim at, Danladi took a shot that went right into the hands of Aston Villa Goalkeeper Jed Steer. Frustrated and not creating nearly enough attacking opportunities, Minnesota went into the break a goal down.

The second half was almost parallel to the action of the first half, as Aston Villa created the lion's share of the attacking play and the Loons were left frustrated going forward. Second half substitutes, Ethan Finlay, Jan Gregus, Kevin Molino and Ally Ng'Anzi were some of the few bright spots on the night for the Loons. Within minutes of coming in, Gregus took a hold of the ball in midfield and played Ethan Finlay in behind the Aston Villa defense. The substitutions clearly gave the Loons a bit of an impetus going forward but in the end, they were unable to carve out a chance on goal in the second half.

"It's strange, because when the extra bits of quality came on in [Kevin] Molino and Jan [Gregus] and suddenly, we have a few little bits of combination in the middle of the park and play up," said Heath. "But, we certainly didn't trouble their back four enough this evening.

With 10 minutes left to play in the game, Aston Villa capitalized on two defensive mistakes from Minnesota to make the score 3-0. In the 82nd minute, Eric Miller caved under the high pressure of Aston Villa's Frederic Guilbert. The Villan defender won the ball from Miller and whipped in a cross on to the foot of Henri Lansbury who made no mistake in firing it home. Four minutes later, the visitors scored again when Andre Green swung a wonderful cross onto the head of Bikir Bjarnason, who steered his header past Bobby Shuttleworth to cap off a frustrating night for Minnesota United. Regardless of the result, Heath was thankful for the opportunity to host a Premier League side at Allianz Field.

"I think it's been a great few days for us with them here," said Heath. "They've been fantastic people to be around. Really like the coach and his staff. Great, well-mannered bunch of guys. So, it's been a pleasure having them in our building. And even though I was only there a short period of time, I hope they do really, really well because the Premier League needs a good Aston Villa."

The Loons return to MLS action this Saturday, July 20 at 9:00 p.m. CT as they travel to Utah for another significant Western Conference fixture against Real Salt Lake. The sides are separated by just four points heading into Saturday. Pregame coverage will begin at 8:30 p.m. CT on FOX Sports North+, streaming on FOX Sports GO and on MNUFC Radio on SKOR North.

Lineups

Minnesota United FC Starting XI: GK Bobby Shuttleworth; D Carter Manley, Brent Kallman, Wyatt Omsberg, Eric Miller; M Lawrence Olum (Gregus 72'), Collin Martin (Molino 72'), Rasmus Schuller; F Miguel Ibarra (Ng'Anzi 72'), Mason Toye (Finlay 68'), Abu Danladi

Aston Villa Starting XI: GK Jed Steer; D Matt Targett, James Bree, Kortney Hause, Ezri Konsa; M Conor Hourihan, Callum O'Hare, Jack Grealish; F Jota, Anwar El Ghazi, Wesley Moraes

AVFC Second Half XI: GK Lovre Kalinic; D Neil Taylor, Frederic Guilbert, James Chester, Tyrone Mings; M John McGinn, Henri Lansbury, Bikir Bjarnason, Keinan Davis, Andre Green; F Scott Hogan

Game Events

Goals

36' - Grealish - AVFC

82' - Lansbury - AVFC

86' - Bjarnason - AVFC

Discipline

75' - Ng'Anzi (YC) - MIN

MINNESOTA UNITED QUOTES SHEET

MINNESOTA UNITED HEAD COACH ADRIAN HEATH

On which of his players stood out and impressed him ...

"Who stood out? Not many. If any. Dissapointed. I know it was a second-string team and some of them haven't played much football but they're better than a lot of them showed this evening. I thought Lo [Olum] was maybe the pick of what it was because he did the job that we asked of him, and was brave enough to receive the ball under pressure and play forward. So, I know we're better for it because some of them haven't played for an awful long time. Or haven't played enough. But, I think that showed. But, the moments of lapses of concentration, the ball ends up in the back of the net or we've switched half, turned it over cheaply. Not been brave enough to play at times. And, it cost us."

On if some of the guys haven't played very much, why they didn't bring it tonight ...

"I don't know. Don't know. Whether it was the occasion, it was too much for some. Which has sometimes happened. You know, you want to do so well that you actually, you're afraid to play properly because you don't want to make a mistake. But when you play safe, invariably, you play square and backwards. The amount of times that the ball ended up at Bobby Shuttleworth's feet when we could play forward, and be brave to play, was too much."

On if the non-dressers in their street clothes trained earlier in the day ...

"Yes."

On what he made of the Aston Villa team ...

"Well, it's the first game, isn't it? For them? The fact that they could put virtually two teams on, they'll be a lot better for that. It was probably a great game for them, because we were certainly not as aggressive as I would have liked, and certainly, maybe, put them under as much pressure as I would have liked. But, I think it's been a great few days for us with them here. They've been fantastic people to be around. Really like the coach and his staff. Great, well-mannered bunch of guys. So, it's been a pleasure having them in our building. And even though I was only there a short period of time, I hope they do really, really well because the Premier League needs a good Aston Villa."

On if he asked Dean Smith for any advice or tips ...

"No, not really. I just said I hope that you've got everything out of the trip that you wanted, and he said yes, we have. So, you know, this is early days for them. We've been up the training ground. They've been doing two-a-days, three-a-days, so you know, they're probably tried as well. I know what that first game is always like, preseason. But, as I say, I hope it's been a good trip for them. They'll always be welcomed back again. Maybe we can build on this and host them."

On who stood out from Aston Villa tonight ...

"Honestly, I liked the midfield guys. Obviously [John] McGinn. Obviously, Jack [Grealish] has got great quality, he showed that with a little drop of his shoulder and the goal. They've got a lot of pace now. You know, they've got guys who are still to come in. So, I'm sure they're going to be competitive. As I say, I've got a lot of time for their coach and their staff. I'm sure they'll be incredibly well prepared. And I know what Villa Park is like when it's full and bouncing. So, it's going to be an intimidating place for people to go there. I just hope they have the season that they hope for."

On what he thought about Ally Ng'anzi ...

"I thought he did okay - the kid - when he came on. You know, 18 years of age, and I thought he did well. I thought he showed some of the things that one or two of those didn't. Wanted to peak, get on the ball, wanted to show that this was a really big opportunity for him. So, yeah, I thought he did well. It's strange, because when the extra bits of quality come on in [Kevin] Molino and suddenly, we have a few little bits of combination in the middle of the park and play up. But, we certainly didn't trouble their back four enough this evening."

On how they discovered Ally Ng'anzi and if Ian Fuller's trip to Africa was the reason ...

"I think its people that we've known down the past and tipped us off about him and said, listen, there's a kid here. And for what it cost us to get him here - which was virtually nothing - you know. And we've put him down in Madison. So, you know, we'll start to bring him back and probably progress it more as their season ends. See if we can get him here more time."

On veteran players like Bobby Shuttleworth and Rasmus Schuller and if he's had talks with them about their lack of playing time and their role ...

"No. It's, you know. I keep saying this and you know it. If we're going to get better, we have to incrementally bring in more players into the squad. More competition. And when that happens, you know that sometimes there's a danger that you might lose your spot. And I'm sure that they've... And the one thing particular about the two guys you've just mentioned, are just really good professionals. They come in and do their work and train. They're both experienced enough to know what the situation is like. We, hopefully, are going to announce a player tomorrow or the day after. Now we've just brought in Robin Lod. And there's still time for us to do more work in the window, which is what we want to do."

On the 72 minutes that Miguel Ibarra played tonight and if there was any special reason for giving him so many minutes ...

"No, we just wanted to give him some football because he only got on at the weekend late. So, we're trying to manage the minutes for everybody so they're fresh for what's the most important thing, which is our game on Saturday."

On how he thinks Carter Manley played tonight ...

"Okay. Alright. He worked hard."

On if the team got out of the game healthy ...

"It looks like it. Yeah. Everybody has come through, which is good."

On what he thought about Wesley Moraes up front for Aston Villa ...

"We actually, we've seen quite a lot of him, because we were scouting another player from his team. In Belgium. So, he's a big kid. A handful. He's going to be a handful. He's got good movements. I think he's going to be good. And, it's great to see so many Villa fans, as well, here today. You know, I think they've enjoyed it, but it was good to see them. Obviously, they're all excited about the new year."

MINNESOTA UNITED GOALKEEPER BOBBY SHUTTLEWORTH

On getting back out to play...

"Yeah it was nice, this year has been frustrating so far. I've been injured for six weeks. It's nice to play a game in the new stadium, get back out there and get ninety minutes."

On playing in front of daughter...

"Yeah it was crazy, it's been a lot really quickly. Just trying to get this whole dad thing down, you know. It's cool to have her come and be there."

On remembering a game having the ball at feet that often...

"I'm not sure to be honest it's pre-season for them and its ninety-eight degrees out here and 100 percent humidity. I think the pace of the game was obviously not very high and the movements were very sparse at times. I think a lot of guys ended up playing backwards you know open it back to me and I just tried to keep it moving."

On coming back to play a full game ...

"Just that, for me, since I haven't played since February you know every goalkeeper there's a lot of intricate movements even when you don't make a save or you're not involved with the ball. There's times when I'm playing and I find myself in a place where I shouldn't normally be and that stuff just comes with repetition of games and playing so it's good to get those movements down under my belt."

On Grealish's goal...

"Yeah he cut inside and I mean he does that for them a lot, natural movement for him, it's a good finish. Like I said it was a good finish, get them kind of around the post and close back in, he knows what he's doing. He's scored a lot of goals like that."

On where he sees his future...

"I like it here in Minnesota and, obviously, I want to play games and I don't think I'm at point in my career where I want to be number two. I'm here to push Vito and Dayne as much as I can and if I'm not going to play here ultimately I'm going to have to take it somewhere else where I can play, that's not ready in my mind to take a backseat and be a number two."

MINNESOTA UNITED FORWARD MASON TOYE

On if he feels physically more prepared for this season having been able to hit the weights and play against Bundesliga and Premier League center backs...

"Yeah, I do feel a little bit more prepared, but this offseason I feel like will be an even bigger offseason for me in terms of getting bigger, stronger, and faster because I feel that I can still go up a level in terms of athleticism. Those guys were still a little bit more athletic than I was, but it was really cool being able to test myself against guys that play in the Premier League, one of the best leagues in the world. It was really fun, I almost got a chance but one got a little bit away from me. But yeah, overall I really enjoyed myself today."

On how he'd describe the quality he went up against tonight...

"Bigger, faster, stronger, more clean, more clinical. That's just the way the Premier League is, it's the way leagues are when you go up a level. Everyone's going to be bigger, faster, stronger, and more clinical, and that's what they showed tonight. We were able to do a pretty good job in like the first 65 minutes of the game, but then the game kind of got away from us a bit. I don't think the result showed our performance, I think it was about a 1-0 game probably, maybe even a 1-1 game if we got more shots on goal. Overall I think we did pretty well, but it's always tough against teams like that."

On where his head was at coming into this game knowing it was another opportunity to make an impression...

"I wanted to work hard, be aggressive, not back down at anything, and I think we did a pretty good job at that. I think we did a pretty good job at not letting them rest the ball and make it tough for them. I still think I could've done a little bit better and maybe get myself a couple more chances and get the other guys a couple more chances as well, but overall I thought I did pretty good."

On if the crosses that were off target tonight were due to guys playing together that don't usually play a lot of minutes together...

"I guess yeah. Whenever you throw a group of guys together that haven't played together throughout the season, there's going to be miscues. So there were a couple of times where I was in a spot and they thought it was going to be a different spot and vice versa. So yeah, it's just tough because the chemistry's not there, not playing with each other day in and day out and week in and week out."

On the through ball he received from Rasmus [Schuller]...

"We made eye-contact, I made a run between the center backs, he played a really good ball, and it just got away from me. He just put a little bit too much on it. It was a great ball, but I just wasn't able to get there. On a different day, the ball slows up a little bit, I have a one on one chance, and I fancy myself in that situation."

On if Adrian was right in saying the team had a bit of a timid performance tonight...

"Yeah, I think we definitely could've been more aggressive. It's always tough because you're just like, this is a Premier League team, and most of us watch those games on Saturdays, so you're always going to be a little bit nervous. There were some people that were a little bit timid and weren't being as aggressive as they could've, so I agree to an extent. But I thought everybody went out and worked hard, we showed ourselves well, but again it's tough playing against competition like this."

On how he feels physically with how many games he's been playing lately...

"I'm feeling great. I've only started one game, and even in that game I only went 80, so I feel good. I'm a young dude so I should be able to go. There are some guys that have played way more than me, so I'm fine and I'm ready to go."


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