Jean-Éric Moursou makes his first start as Rising closed out its three-match home stand
Phoenix Rising’s defense held for 90-plus minutes, but couldn’t overcome a last-minute penalty kick as the club fell to New Mexico United 1-0 on October 4 at Phoenix Rising Stadium. Following the match, Head Coach Pa-Modou Kah and defender Rafael Czichos spoke with local media about the match, an improved intensity and the recent play of recent acquisition Jean-Éric Moursou.
HEAD COACH PA-MODOU KAH
His thoughts on the match…
“It was a great performance from the boys. They were magnificent. They worked both sides of the ball, very organized… It was a proper playoff game, and we had two opportunities where we could have done better. First, the one breakaway in the first half, and the second one with (Ihsan) Sacko… Unfortunately, we didn’t take them.”
On playing the team’s biggest rival…
“The boys knew and understand what was at stake, and I think they did very well. I was very proud of them, in the performance. How we started the game, how we stayed in the game, and how we played the game with a full intensity. Football is just about little moments.”
On not letting the big picture impact daily routines…
“You always stay in the moment. There’s no use in looking at what others do. We’ve got to keep focused on ourselves, we’ve got to keep trusting in the process, because we can only control what we can control. We cannot control all the teams or the outcomes… Tomorrow, we have 24 hours of disappointment. Monday, we get back to work.”
On Jean-Éric Moursou’s first start…
“He was unbelievable. He’s very good with anticipation, very good on the ball, moving the play well, and he’s going to get better from here. I was very happy with his performance, I think it was a great performance, given the circumstances also being in a derby game, it’s not easy. But for him to step in and look like he’s been there from the get-go, that makes me very proud. And I’m looking forward to seeing more of those performances from him, because he has it.”
Defender Rafael Czichos
Overall thought on the match…
“It’s tough. It was not a very beautiful game for the people in the stadium, but it was our rival who came to Phoenix, and I think they’ve been playing a pretty good season. We knew it was going to be a tough game, and we wanted to rise the intensity compared to the last few weeks, and I think that’s what we did today— we were fighting.”
On the debut of Moursou…
“He’s exactly the player we need in this situation. We just talked about being aggressive and playing with high intensity, and this is what he does all the time, every day. When you watch our practice and when you see him every day on the field, this guy is always (plays) like 120%, and it hurts to play against him… He was very important for us today.”
