SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES HEAD COACH MATIAS ALMEYDA
On goals set for the new season:
“The most challenging goal, which is to be competitive. By being a competitive team that can define the course of the season. In the meantime, we are happy and enjoying the week before our match. We’re looking forward to starting the season and I am personally thankful towards this organization and this league and style of soccer that allows me to continue learning. We are very enthusiastic.”
On lessons learned from the previous season to pass on to new players:
“Just from the experience of being in this league for one year, I can only say to him [Oswaldo Alanis] that this not an easy competition. The league is very competitive. Every striker you face is dangerous. They are technical and very physical. Luckily, the players we have know that we intend to continue developing. They aren’t joining my team for a vacation. They are here to fight for a spot and win.”
On his vision for Major League Soccer in the next 25 years:
“Hopefully there will be many more years to come. This league has every quality to be one of the best in the world. There are still some things to correct, which is normal. I think the league is taking the right path. I like it, and that is why I decided to coach here. For the youth, depending on their environment, we will see the direction we take with younger players. They all want to play soccer, but a lot depends on how they are treated in their environment and what is expected of them. There are roughly 300 million people here, right? How many youths want to play soccer? Millions. We need to consider the direction for this club in regard to youth players, and that will be inevitably be a long-term project. For that, it requires patience, support, organization and love for what we do.”
