Ana Tejeda
Q: How has your first week in Utah been and how was your first game?
A: Honestly, very happy to have met my teammates, all the staff and getting familiar with the facilities. They have welcomed me with open arms since day one. My first game was against a very difficult opponent, we played a good match apart from conceding that one goal. We have to keep building.
Q: In your first game you played the full 90 minutes, how are you feeling physically and how are you adapting to Utah?
A: The altitude is definitely very noticeable, I am quite tired. That was my first match in over a month, I feel like I got a good taste of the league. I gave all I had to the very last minute.
Q: You and Kate were tasked with defending Chawinga. You kept her off the scoresheet, how do you feel your partnership with Kate Del Fava went tonight and how do you feel playing alongside her?
A: In all honesty, very comfortable with her and Lo-Flo. For it being our first match, I feel that we communicated and understood each other very well. Little by little we will be building that chemistry and it will all be a little bit better.
Q: What did the coach say to you going into this first match, up against someone like Chawinga? What was the direction given to the backline tonight?
A: Overall, to be prepared to make the runs back towards our own goal and for those long balls we knew they’d throw at us. Putting a body on her before she started her runs in behind to make it more difficult for her. Covering space to all help each other out.
Q: How was it to be in front of the fans for the first time? How did you feel about the atmosphere, fans and everything going on around the game?
A: Very exciting, very different from when I lived in Spain. From the national anthem to the post-game fireworks. I think it awesome to be able to experience that, and obviously hope to be able to continue to experience this.
Q: How comfortable do you feel playing in a 3 back?
A: I am more used to playing with only 2 center backs, regardless I think we all adapted well. We worked on it during the week and I think it is a good formation to be more consistent in the back and have more security.
Q: It was a fast paced game, probably not the style you are used to seeing in Spain. How have you felt with your first few weeks in Utah and to a completely different league than you are used to?
A: What you just mentioned is one of the biggest reasons I decided to join this league. I think that is something that will help me grow as a footballer. I have noticed it quite a bit due to the altitude in Utah. With time I will start growing accustomed little by little and also get used to the league's strong tempo.
Q: The NWSL has a different format than most leagues in Europe by having a playoff format. What about that caught your attention to play here, as well as the US league being one of the best in the world?
A: I think that something unique about this league that you all saw today is that last place can compete with first place. I think that is very good for all the teams because you can always go out into any game knowing you can get 3 points. And knowing you can qualify for playoffs keeps you motivated throughout the whole season.
Macey Fraser
Q: Welcome. How was your first week or two here in Utah? What was your first game like?
A: Thank you. Yeah it's good to get a run and be on the field. Disappointed to not get the win but we keep moving forward.
Q: Talking about tonight specifically what were some things that Amy talked to you about going in. What were you trying to do and how do you feel you were able to do?
A: Amy just wanted me to get on the ball and obviously come on and make an impact with the team. I'm happy to get on the field but disappointed I couldn’t make an impact but keep moving.
Q: What is Amy hoping you will bring in terms of an addition to the squad. In terms of what you bring to the pitch. What has she communicated to you that she is really looking for out of you?
A: I think Amy just wants a midfielder that can come on and make an impact or start to make an impact, score goals. Be creative on the ball, have some composure.
Q: With your past, with what you bring to the Utah Royals when you go into a locker room like this, what is it that you can say to your new teammates? What is it you can kind of keep the momentum and the passion there? What can you add to the locker room experience too? What do you think your personality will be like with this team and this club?
A: Honestly, I'm not the loudest in the room. I kind of observe and have little conversations when I'm with people. So, yeah I'm not the one who's gonna yell at everyone. I'll just have chats with some people.
Q: The non football league part of your debut because it probably wasn’t long enough for you to really feel that comfortable from a football perspective. What did you think of the atmosphere of the stadium, the fans, like everything kind of around the game? You got a pretty warm reception as you came on. I don't know if you noticed that or not but what did you think about all that?
A: Yeah, it's awesome. I love how big soccer is in America. It's awesome. I was actually so locked in I didn’t hear it. Just seeing all the fans in the stadium and just that they are all here and how many people come is really cool. It's what I play for to try and inspire young kids to get on the field and play sports. So, yeah it's awesome.
Q: I don’t want to ask too much tactically cause again you didn’t play a ton and what not. But from a midfield perspective when you're playing with three defenders versus the traditional four women backline set up. What’s kind of the biggest difference in the midfield kind of crowding the midfield?
A: I think our job doesn't really change too much. We just look to get on the ball and create triangles and be patient with it. Our job doesn’t really change.
Q: First of all, congratulations. How are you adapting?
A: Thank you. Yeah, good. I love it here. The mountains are beautiful.
Q: How many times have you corrected yourself saying football?
A: Too many times.
Q: How has it been coming from Wellington to a new environment? What are the main differences?
A: I think it's always hard coming into a new team mid-season. So it's just been trying to learn how this team does, what certain players want and just adapting. That's what I'm doing at the moment. Trying to figure everything out but it's good. I’ve got a warm welcome here.
Q: You’re joining the Football Ferns. How excited are you about that?
A: Yeah so excited to be back with the girls. I fly out tomorrow so can’t wait for that.
Amy Rodriguez
Q: Takeaways?
A: We held a very powerful, high-scoring team to one goal tonight. We kept Chawinga off the board, and I think KC provided a lot of challenges for us. I don't think you saw our best moments out there at times. A few giveaways where we shot ourselves in the foot. We put Mandy in some positions and asked for some big saves which she did tonight. She kept us in the game but per usual we are missing that final action. Final third attempts were low from us tonight and that's the next layer of our game. How can we now become a full-pitch team? A team that plays in all thirds and creates chances and gives us a chance to come back into the game.
Q: What made the decision to switch the formation and how did Ana Tejada perform?
A: We put ourselves in a 3-5-2 tonight with the intention of being protective against a high-power, high-scoring Kansas City team which obviously worked well for us. We slotted Ana Tejada into the center center-back role and she did excellent both in and out of possession. She did well tonight. It was her first time getting her feet wet in a Royals jersey. I was pleased with her performance and it's only going to go up from here.
Q: How did you direct the back line to defend Chawinga?
A: We were trying to avoid any attacking transitions from Kansas City, immediately getting pressure on the ball, denying the first pass forward, and good cover from everyone in behind. When we played the 3-5-2 we had a lot of players back there with the intention of protecting and attaching to Chawinga so that she wasn't able to hurt us in attacking transition. I still think that we shot ourselves in the foot giving the ball away too many times and giving them those opportunities which thankfully they didn't convert.
Q: Some passes didn’t make it out of the back. How do you combat that?
A: At halftime I shared with the group that the way we position ourselves in midfield and our awareness for what's behind us when we receive needs to be better. We saw a completely new midfield tonight. We added in another new player into our midfield with Macey who came in and did well and made an impact in the game immediately but it's that next layer, building through the thirds. We have Amandine to help us build through there and now it's just the next layer.
Q: Did you see the “ten” style center back in Ana Tejada?
A: I think Ana proved that she was a good distributor of the ball when we slid her up receiving as a “six” she was able to turn, half turn find the fastest forward, her poise, and her presence on the ball was very good for us tonight and we’re going to continue playing her. This is her first game, her first 90 minutes, and her first game in the NWSL with a completely new style of play than what she's used to seeing day in and day out. We’re hopefully going to go up and up from here.
Q: What is the locker room mentality?
A: Of course there's frustration because of the results but there's also a lot of positivity. We brought players who were going to be resilient. In the dark times and rough times they were going to rise above. I told them that this game defines character regardless of the result and before it has started. You saw the work ethic and you saw our team hold one of the highest scoring teams in our league to one goal against and there's something to be proud of there. The team is always going to continue working on their greediness and we’re also going to build the foundation of who we are and our style of play. I think there's a positive in knowing that we can only go up.
