The Big Picture
Colorado Rapids 2 (1-3-1, 4 pts) fell on the road to Portland Timbers2 (1-1-3, 7 pts), 2-0, surrendering a goal in each half on Sunday at Providence Park in Portland, Oregon. It marked the first regular-season win of the year for Timbers2. Highlighting the day for the Colorado side was recent signing and forward Facundo Núñez making his first start for the club.
Notable:
- Facundo Núñez made his first start for Rapids 2. The forward, who made his MLSNP debut last week, recorded 62 minutes against Portland.
- (F) Wayne Frederick and (D) Jackson Travis, who logged minutes in Saturday’s first-team road shutout over San Jose, earned starts against Portland. Travis played 46 minutes, while Frederick played 75.
Postgame Media Availability:
Select postgame quotes transcribed below.
COLORADO RAPIDS 2 HEAD COACH ERIK BUSHEY
On what the areas of focus are moving forward:
“We’re still working on, as crazy as it might sound, getting used to one another and playing and feeling as though we are a team. So you might expect to be in a better position in that way by now, but that's just part of the work that we have to do. We’re not waiting for a bit of luck. We're looking in different ways that we can create some luck for ourselves. We did well coming out the back. It was easier for us to advance the ball, but we weren't dangerous enough. Last week, even though we conceded goals, I wanted to keep the focus on what we could do with the ball, continuing to show up, continuing to be hungry to get it and to keep playing. Today I still refer to the attacking side and think we have to be more dangerous in terms of trying to get behind our opponent. So tactically speaking, this is a big, big piece. How can we be dangerous? How can we threaten the opponent? How can we get in behind? Because that's where goals begin to be created.”
On what he’s seen from Facundo Núñez:
“He’s come in and he's had to jump straight into matches. This is where his learning and training has really begun, which isn't necessarily a bad thing if you're the player. There's nothing more enjoyable than playing. It was nice to get him his first start today. And like the team, I think he'll have a lot to build on. He’s a durable young man. He's built well. He can dish it out, he can take it. And I do believe that he's got a lot to offer if we can get him in the right places and in front of goal.”
COLORADO RAPIDS 2 DEFENDER NATE JONES
On the match:
“Today was a tough one. I think that going into the game, we obviously wanted to win. We want to put on performance, and I think we played really well in the first half. I think we had a lot of combinations and building out that was pretty good, and I thought we pressed well… Going into the locker room, I thought we were feeling pretty strong. The second half was kind of a gut punch. There wasn't something there. I don't know what's been going on. It's just been kind of the same thing every single week. I think we just have to fight harder, honestly.”
On what the backline’s performance:
“I think we rotated well and communicated. I think that's one thing we've been working on a lot during practice, which is shifting together and doing that continually throughout the entire game and then guiding the sixes. I think that we could have done better in the in the build-out phase and definitely transitioning quicker after we lost the ball.”
