Steve Sampson
On the Iran match: “I think that it is important that people know the players and coaches are trying to make this a sporting event and not a political event.”
On the 3-6-1 formation: “Regardless of what system we play in, the attitudes [of the players] have to be different. We have to start very quickly, impose ourselves very quickly and play to win. We have to play a much more physical game than we did against Germany…we have to take more risks.”
On the Iran game: “It’s a great opportunity to bring the two countries together. The last thing we want is to have poor relations with any country and maybe through sport we can accomplish this. But that’s not our priority. We want to beat them.”
On Brazil’s Ronaldo: “I think he is very special. He is an exceptional talent. In my opinion he is the best player in the world. He has great explosiveness with great control of the ball. With every aspect of the game, he has great precision. He has ability that few players in the world will ever have.”
Alexi Lalas
On his responsibility to the team: “Everyone has a different responsibility. Regardless if I’m on the field or off. I have a job to get our team playing to their full ability.”
On the Iran team and game: “The fact that they qualified says a lot about what kind of team they are. They have some great players playing internationally and are playing very well now. It’s a special opportunity to put any problems aside and come together as two countries and play the game of soccer.”
On the quality of team play: “We definitely know we can play much better. For a lot of us, the Iran game is about redeeming ourselves in front of the world.”
Eric Wynalda
On the political implications of the Iran game: “I think all of us understand the implications of this game. It’s a wonderful opportunity to get these two countries together on the field. We are very excited about it and we are very confident.”
On the nerves of the U.S. team: “The jitters are gone. There is nothing to be nervous about anymore. We are going to come out hard and be aggressive offensively.
Ernie Stewart
On the Iran match: “I don’t believe that the feeling this is a political game lives within the team. We are just concerned with getting the points [to advance].”
On the Iran hostage crisis: “I knew there was a situation, but I was going to a Dutch school at the time and my mind wasn’t focused on it.”
On the Iran game: “We are going to go into this game and hopefully win. I am going to shake hands and change shirts, and I hope that will be a symbol to both nations of how it should be.”
On the Iranian team: “I saw them play both games against Australia. Their ability to come back in certain games is one of the things we have to focus on. They have tremendous heart and great passion for the game.”
On the Germany match: “We know what we did wrong. We came out with too much respect for Germany, a certain amount was right, as they are three-time world champions, but we had too much.”
Marcelo Balboa
On the Iran match: “I don’t look at it from a political point. It’s another game and we need to go out and get our points. The important thing for us is to go back and play like we used to play.”
Thomas Dooley
On team changes for the Iran game: “Of course we’ve talked about changes against Iran. We have to create many more chances to score. I believe we will win.”
On whether inexperience was a factor versus Germany: “Experience had nothing to do with it, we just had too much respect for the Germans. They prepared very well for us and it showed.”
On the Iran game: “We have to win against Iran. We can’t play for a tie. There is a lot of pressure and the pressure is on us. We have to beat Iran and Yugoslavia.
On FIFA’s new rule about not being allowed to trade shirts on the field: “What is the point of that? Everyone knows that we fight for 90 minutes and exchanging jerseys is about fair play. I want to give people the idea that we are not enemies. We are here to play soccer. We don’t want to discuss what happened 20 years ago or what we [US and Iran] should do in the future. We want to win against Iran and Yugoslavia and that’s it.”
