As the Union prepares for its away trip to D.C. United, head coach Bradley Carnell held his press conference on Thursday. In it, he discussed the team’s state, the pressure from Inter Miami, their preparation for another away trip, considering how their last away meetings have gone, and, of course, the Supporters’ Shield.
Considering the recent games and the upcoming FIFA international window, Carnell was asked about his assessment of his Union's situation at the moment. His response showed how much the team was willing to live in the moment to avoid being held back by their past or overwhelmed by their future.
Carnell shares his thoughts ahead of Union's away trip to DC
“We’re not putting too much focus on that,” he said. “We know what we have to do. We know the job at hand. We know that we responded, and we had a good game against New England, and the clean sheet was really important. I think that it just put a lot of belief and confidence back into the team by securing the clean sheet, and more importantly, also securing the three points.”- Union head coach, Bradley Carnell
A look at the Eastern Conference table shows how threatened the Union are by a fierce Miami side with two games in hand, who could snatch the Supporters’ Shield from their grip if they win their remaining games. But Carnell’s response to this shows a rather unperturbed man, who’s more focused on things within his control than issues beyond him.
“The mood is for sure playing for something to win, and not trying to protect something to lose, which then creates a bit of freedom. If I all of a sudden now change the narrative from how I started this season, and have a fearful approach and a fear of failure, we’re all doomed to fail. This is the thing, for us, it’s about keeping true to who we are as a team, as a squad.”- Union head coach, Bradley Carnell
“Regardless of how many games are left, regardless of who’s behind us, we know where we are,” Carnell added. "As a group, it’s very important for us to acknowledge that and embrace that. But I’ve never felt a sense of anxiety in the team, and I think that’s been what’s so special about the group. For us, there’s three games left, and these boys are in an amazing spot to end the year with something special, and we can’t think of something special without doing the work in front of us, and the work in front of us this week has been focused, concentrated, and confident.”- Union head coach, Bradley Carnell
Carnell was also asked if the Union's appraoch to the New England game could be replicated in the coming match against D.C United, seeing they’re in a similar situation with their recent coaching changes. In response, he analyzed both situations very differently, especially with his team having a different mindset in the buildup to this game, looking to extend a win rather than bounce back from a defeat.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJY5sP9PGNs
“I think the focus was on us against New England, about the job we had to do, and about the job we had to do to bounce back and to get that trip out West behind us. And that’s already been our two weeks. We feel we’re in a way different space right now. We feel that we dominated, dictated the game against a team who was fighting for their lives to have a sniff at a playoff chance if they had got the results.”- Union head coach, Bradley Carnell
With D.C. United, the story is much different. Although sitting 14th on the Eastern Conference table, Carnell feels the Union shouldn’t underestime them at all, and going as far as raining accolades on DC's new boss for a job well done so far.
“Now, it’s a little bit different as well. Rene comes in, does a great job. They’ve got results in their last four out of five games, made a push against Miami,” he admitted.- Union head coach, Bradley Carnell
“So, they do have the quality, and like I said in the last interview here a week ago, every team has quality, every team has DP 10s and nines, and great midfielders that can create. Then, it’s about us again. What’re we doing to mitigate that? What’re the chances we’ve been taking? We know Benteke is a threat in many, many different areas, and this is part of the process to stop him, stop the supply, and make sure we get on the front foot and dominate the game how we want to.”- Union head coach: Bradley Carnell
When asked about his team selection for the coming game, especially with his forward line, which has witnessed many changes this season, Carnell's response showed that his decision was contingent on other factors that would take some time to figure out.
“We’ll see who’s available. There’s a couple of things to think about and we’ll make those choices in the next couple of hours.”- Union head coach: Bradley Carnell
The team is coming off a 1-0 home win over the New England Revolution and will be looking to build on that when they travel to Audi Field on Saturday to face D.C. United.
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