Inter Miami 2, Toronto FC 1
Q. Disappointing result, wanted to get your overall thoughts on the team's performance.
BOB BRADLEY: We gave up two very bad goals and so we had to really chase the game. We put so much into it. I thought in the second half, we continued to try to find different ways to get into the box, create chances. For me, there's a penalty in there. But not -- not sharp enough in some of those other moments, and you know, you put a lot of energy out trying to get back into the game.
Q. How much of a backbreaker was that second Miami goal before the half and the way it allowed them to sort of sit back?
BOB BRADLEY: Yes, because the response after the first goal, look, obviously Alex let's in a bad one. As a team, I thought we responded well, Lorenzo scores a really good goal. And then to give up, you know, the foul, and then the subsequent free kick, second phase, we didn't do a good job. We didn't need three guys over the ball.
So when they played the ball inside to Pozuelo, instead of having another guy there, then Ayo came on an out. And when the ball went to the back post, I believe to Lowe, Mimmo and Oso didn't do a good job of staying with the play for the ball that got headed back to Lassiter. From our standpoint, it's not a good time to make that foul and to give up that goal, and as we've discussed, we have to push really hard.
Physically, you never want to make excuses. But it's tough when you play mid week and then you travel here. Then, look, it's a hot Miami night. I thought guys put a lot into it on my end, the staff's end. There's decisions late as to whether or not we think somebody in the field is going to still make a play even though they are tired or we are going to bring somebody else on.
I still thought enough guys were on the verge of making a play that could get us to 2-2. After the first two subsequent, Deandre and with Achara. We didn't make others.
Q. It's my understanding that Jesus could not travel but he's not necessarily injured. Could you give us an update on his situation?
BOB BRADLEY: Yeah, simply put, I think physically, he's empty right now. I told him we have to get him back to where he has full energy, full capacity. I said let's leave you behind this game and give you a couple days to sort of recharge your battery and get going again beginning of the week.
Q. It's the second game in a row where you used 13 players and didn't make full use of your subs. Wanted to get your rationale and thinking behind that.
BOB BRADLEY: I just gave it to you. You size up in different moments. Lorenzo is tired, Fede; do I think that somebody that we can bring on in that moment is going to have a better chance to make a play than one of those two guys, going to the midfield, you ask yourself the same question with regard to Michael and Oso.
Now you go into the back line, I thought that Lukas and Christo had things covered in a good way. For sure Richie and Mimmo were tired. Richie still offers a different kind of threat coming forward. And Mimmo, you know, I still trust that through his positioning and his experience in his left foot that maybe he can make a play.
You know, those are tough decisions because you could easily say, yes, but we played midweek and now at a certain point these guys are very tired. We thought about different things. But after the first two, we still thought that we were pushing the game in a decent enough way and we left it to see if one of those guys on the field could make a play.
Q. After the New England game, we talked about the sharpness in the team. I thought we saw a little bit more of that tonight but is that something that a week before the game next will sort out for you?
BOB BRADLEY: Well, sharpness, you know, how many times did we create advantages and get around the box and we couldn't get the timing of the final play right; the ball, the touch, that kind of thing? That's sharpness.
I don't think that we've got everybody at their best level. We worked towards that. Again, there's different factors for different guys. I think as a team, our ideas, how we want to play in both games, there's very good moments.
You know, this is still a game where we control a lot of the game. Our ability to play from the back through the middle and get up into the attacking part of the field continues to go in a good direction. We didn't give up much in the way of chances tonight, but as I said right up front, two bad goals makes it a situation where we just have to really chase the game for basically 90-plus minutes.
Q. And just on that Insigne goal, should we get used to being wowed by some of the stuff these guys can create week in, week out?
BOB BRADLEY: Yeah, look, Lorenzo, when you get him into good positions, you know, he's capable of scoring goals like that. So yes, there's no doubt that that's a really good goal, a special goal that gets us back to 1-1.
But the bar gets held high for these guys. Lorenzo would still be the first one to look at some moments where he got the ball in good positions in the last two games, and couldn't quite at the end make the next play that might get us a big chance as well. I think the same would be true of Fede in some moments. Ayo got some balls with advantages tonight and just couldn't get the timing or the final part of a play.
So we got forward and got into decent positions, but still, if you look at the number of big chances we created out of those advantages, you would say, no, not enough.
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