Montreal Impact 4, Toronto FC 2
Q. Obviously a tough day, tough result. Wanted to get your thoughts on the performance, what you thought of the effort from the team.
MICHAEL BRADLEY: Yeah, I mean, look, it's a frustrating day. We never really gave ourselves a chance with the way we started the game. I mean, obviously we spoke a lot before the game about understanding that -- we knew we would be playing a team that's motivated for their first game this season. Obviously the fact that we have played two Champions League games means that, yeah, in some ways, we have a little bit of match rhythm under our belt. But that doesn't count for something when the whistle blows today.
Like I said, it's a frustrating day because for me, you know, we never really gave ourselves a chance in the game, and on a day like this, you know, with all the -- with all the factors that go into it where, you know, you find yourselves behind 1-0, a hundred seconds into the game and from there, you're chasing.
Q. I'm not sure any of those four goals -- happy to be conceded. If you could sum up what went wrong in general?
MICHAEL BRADLEY: Oh, we are not happy to concede any goals. So obviously, yeah, the frustration to give away four is big. Yeah, obviously, it's nothing new but you have to understand that when you play teams on certain days, they are going to be looking to take advantage of the fact that we want to play in their half and we want to be aggressive in how we play and also how we -- how we, you know, close down our ability to be good with the ball and to not -- to not give battles away. But then our ability to be -- our ability to put out fires and our ability to react and counter press quickly, all these things get put under the microscope. Obviously on a day like today, we are just not good enough. That's as simple a way to say it as there is.
Q. A lot has been thrown at Luke Singh in the last couple of weeks. What can you say about the young man and how he's risen to the challenge?
MICHAEL BRADLEY: He's done really well, really well. They have all continued to grow. They continue to come in every day with the right mentality. They continue to push themselves and listen. Yeah, listen to the -- listen to the coaching staff, listen to their teammates. They have personality, they are not afraid and so I think they have all taken big steps forward in the last, you know -- in the last few weeks, but really, the entire preseason and many of them going into the end of last season.
So you know, we are going to continue to push these guys and move them forward, and obviously Luke has done a really good job in the last few days being ready when he was called on, you know, and now for all of them, it's continuing to use the experiences in training, in games and continue to push themselves forward.
But we are really, really happy.
Q. Jahkeele picks up his first assist as a professional if I'm not mistaken tonight on Richie's late goal there. As a player who has been linked with some pretty big name clubs, what's your message to a guy like that and what have you seen from him in this preseason?
MICHAEL BRADLEY: Well, continuing with what I just said, all of these guys are doing a really good job. They have to just continue to come every day ready to work, ready to -- ready to commit to what we are doing, enjoy the -- enjoy the part about just being ready to go for it every single day. You know, to push themselves with how they train, to listen, to take in information, to not be afraid when they get their chances to show their personality.
So, you know, whether it's Jahkeele or Ralph or Noble, Luke, Jacob, Liam, go down the line, the message and encouragement for all of them is the same in that regard.
Q. An off-field question if I may. As you know, things are not going very well up here with COVID-19. I'm wondering if you've been able to get your family down to Florida, and if more of your teammates are looking to bring their loved ones down given what's happening north of the border?
MICHAEL BRADLEY: Yes, my family got down two days ago as I mentioned. Everybody's plan was slightly different. Had schools stayed open and had things been relatively normal there, the idea for my wife and kids was to be around there and to, you know, let the kids enjoy being in school every day, be with their friends, activities.
But obviously with the way things have played out over the last few weeks, we wanted to just, you know, use the opportunity to be together as a family again. So they were able to get down in the last day or two. And I think, again, everybody's situation is slightly different, but you know, when all said and done, I think a good number of guys will try to get their families down here at one point or another.
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