U.S. Coach John Hackworth
On getting the win:
ôIt was our first game in the World Championship and we came away with three points, so we accomplished our goal. IÆm proud of the guysÆ effort today, but we can play much better and weÆre going to have to if we want to progress in this tournament. We did what we needed to get the win today though and now we are concentrating on our next match against Italy.ö
On North Korea:
ôThat is a good side. I think someone might think that North Korea hasnÆt been here before (so they might not be good), but that is a very good soccer team. Give credit to them for taking us to our limits today. WeÆve played games where we have to battle until the end and we did that today.ö
On their next match:
ôItaly is now our focus and we will turn our attention to them. WeÆre going to have to play better to get a result against Italy. I know weÆre capable of doing that. WeÆve played some very good soccer leading up to this tournament so weÆll go back, prepare for Italy and hopefully give them a very good match.ö
On what improvements heÆll work on before facing Italy:
ôEach opponent is going to provide some different challenges. I think we need to do a much better job of keeping the ball, finding our own rhythm, playing our own game and not getting into our opponentsÆ style of play, which is something we did a bit too much today. We have to do a little better job of winning balls in the air as we got beat on a number of headers we normally wouldnÆt lose. But itÆs just little stuff. ItÆs our first game. WeÆll go back to work, evaluate and come back stronger.ö
On if the players were nervous:
ôIÆd like to say no, but I think anytime you go into a World Championship and play in front of a crowd like today with a fantastic atmosphere it is very natural (to be nervous).ö
On what the team did best:
ôI think we capitalized on some opportunities, that was the best. We got some opportunistic goals and defended when we had to. We won the game and got three points, and thatÆs all that matters right now.ö
On goalkeeper Bryant Rueckner:
ôBryant Rueckner has my full confidence. HeÆs our No. 1 goalkeeper. ThereÆs no doubt about that. He can play better, just like everyone else on the team. HeÆs our man and I know he can play better.ö
U.S. Goalkeeper Bryant Rueckner
On if he was nervous:
ôJust a little bit. They put a lot of pressure on us, but we were able to get out well a few times and a few times we got shaky in the back and they took advantage of our mistakes.ö
On how the team played overall:
ôIt was our first game and our first game is usually a little shaky. We just need to get back to practice and work on what we didnÆt do right so in our next game against Italy we can do what we need to do.ö
U.S. Captain Ofori Sarkodie
On if they were surprised by the play of North Korea: ôOne thing that I was surprised about was their physical aspect. I think they surprised our midfield with how physical and tenacious they were, especially to winning second balls. That was a big part of their offense.ö
On the tense final moments of the match:
ôWe knew we couldnÆt let another goal in. We had made two mistakes and let two goals slip in, so we had the mindset to make up for them right now and get out of here with a win and three points. We were able to do that and weÆll have to use this as a learning tool for Italy.ö
U.S. Midfielder Ryan Soroka
On his opening goal:
ôIt was off a play we had been working on and I was at the back post and the ball fell to me. I just hit it and it went to the right spot, which was great.ö
On if they could have played better:
ôWe definitely should have found the midfield more, but we got the result and thatÆs what matters. It was the first game and we had nerves so it was bit difficult to get the ball moving well. But to get through this first game with a win is a lot off our backs.ö
On how heÆll celebrate the win:
ôIÆm just going to smile and enjoy it. Sit back and relax before tomorrow when weÆre back to work and getting ready for the next match.ö
U.S. Forward Preston Zimmerman
On his game-winning goal:
ôWe had practiced that corner kick in practice and the ball just kind of fell to me. I had a little bit of space and I just took a shot and it went in.ö
On if they were prepared for North Korea:
ôThe coaches did a great job of scouting the team and everything they did we knew about. We knew they weÆre going to be direct and their back four was going to pump the ball forward, and that's exactly what they did. Our reaction to it wasnÆt exactly the way we had planned on doing it. As a forward, we shouldnÆt have let them get free service forward. We knew what they were doing we just didnÆt execute as well as we could have.ö
U.S. Midfielder Kyle Nakazawa
On his goal off the indirect free kick:
''They were lined up. I just found my spot in the goal and placed it. I've been working on free kicks all week every chance I get I try to put it on target.''