In the team’s final tune-up of the preseason, Lane United FC couldn’t stop scoring as they fired seven goals into the back of the net. Head Coach John Galas, midfielder Ethan Doud, and winger Guilherme Viserta spoke to us after the match.
HEAD COACH JOHN GALAS
On the team’s overall performance:
“Good. Never going to feel bad about seven goals.”
On the importance of friendly matches:
“[They’re] huge for us. It’s a huge opportunity for us to get guys to manage minutes, but also see some tendencies, see how they play in live competition. Training is one thing, but we have to compete, and outside competition is huge for us.”
On what to prepare for Sunday’s regular season match:
“We continue to build on the attacking side of the ball. Being a little bit more ruthless in the final third will help us when we play tougher competition, and these guys need to be mentally ready for that because it is a much different level.”
On any players that stood out during the game:
“I was pleased with everybody. We could point a finger at Ethan Doud coming in and getting two goals in 45 minutes. It’s just nice to see everybody starting to kind of find rhythm, and the relationships between players are developing, and we’re establishing a little bit more culture and what our standards and norms are.
MIDFIELDER ETHAN DOUD
On the team’s overall performance:
“I’ve just been here for a few days, so it was interesting just meeting everybody and seeing how they play. I thought we combined really well; better than I expected.”
On the importance of the friendly matches in terms of preparing for regular season:
“Being almost a completely new squad, I think having a few games to prepare ourselves for higher level competition is great, so they’re much needed games for us.”
On what to prepare for Sunday’s regular season opener:
“We’ve got to keep working on the chemistry and getting to know how each other plays. We’re all fairly new, so just the chemistry aspect of it.”
On any players that stood out during the game:
“Hugo [Rodriguez], the attacking mid, loves to dribble, good on the ball and Jalen [Belong], you could tell how badly he wanted to score.
WINGER GUILHERME VISERTA
On the team’s overall performance:
“I think we played pretty well, honestly. We scored a lot of goals. There are some guys that came in and did pretty well.”
On the importance of the friendly matches in terms of preparing for regular season:
“I think it’s important because we can meet each other and understand the way that everyone plays and connect more with each other, so it’s easier for us when the season actually starts.”
On what to improve upon for Sunday’s USL League Two match:
“I think we have to [apply] more pressure on the opponent, I think it’s important to always get better at this. We have been working pretty well on shifting the ball from one side to the other.”
On any players that stood out during the game:“I think the whole team honestly did pretty well. I especially liked Hugo’s [Rodriguez] performance. I think he runs a lot and Landon Sloan. For me, those two midfielders played pretty well, but the whole team deserves this win.”