CHICAGO (May 28, 2023) – Chicago Fire FC II fell to Crown Legacy FC, 1-0, in the first ever matchup between the two sides. Following the match, Chicago Fire FC II Head Coach Ludovic Taillandier and defender Charlie Ostrem spoke to the media to discuss the result.
Chicago Fire FC II Head Coach Ludovic Taillandier
On his thoughts after tonight’s match and a strong initial 60 minutes…
“It looks a little bit like the last game. You feel you have control on the ball. The first half, we tried chances but we didn't finish those chances. But you know, again, that's the most difficult part of the game. That's why those guys are the most expensive ones. So, you know, to score it's not something easy to start with, but again, yes, we felt the first half being down 1-0 was pretty hard to swallow. And I felt we lost control of the ball, which I think that's where we really compete. Especially in this league, on the ball. We are pretty solid on those aspects of the game, then if you lose that, then it becomes a little more physical. And when we get to a physical game, I think they were just better than us. And you can see, as more of the game goes, the overall strength and speed makes a difference.”
On Omari Glasgow’s performance and his positioning throughout the game…
“We played 3-5-2, the two wingbacks, even Aceves in the first half was definitely a good target. And we tried to change this from the left side or so. Then the two wing backs definitely were able to find them in the first half, a little less in the second half. We’d have to analyze the video to understand why we lost the controller on the ball.”
On seeing Harold Osorio make the next step and creating the attack….
“Look, it's a physical game, and he’s already improved dramatically in terms of pace, the pace of his play, compared to the beginning. You can see the improvement. The guy is definitely responding to the program pretty well. He's able to transition more to attack, to defend. But yes, at some point in the game, he's losing a little bit. It's also physical. He was injured in the beginning and I think he's getting used to still having to transition from a player coming from another country and another culture. But he's adjusting pretty well. I mean, he's definitely one of the players that make a difference for us.”
On Charlie Ostrem’s performance in defense…
“He was a left center back to start with. We adjusted with Aceves and Javier coming down from the first team and it's important for us to give the time to the players that can help in the next few weeks on the first team. And Charlie was helping as a left center back and he did pretty well. It's not the perfect job because at the end of the first half, we wanted to control those last five minutes before the break a little better. But in general for a guy that's not a center back, he did pretty pretty well as a center back. And then after he slid back to something that was more his style as a wingback on the left. But in the second half, we were not able to find the wingbacks enough like we did in the first half.”
Chicago Fire FC II Defender Charlie Ostrem
On the constant pressure from Crown Legacy FC…
“It was my first game at center back this year and you know, it’s definitely an adjustment but it’s just about playing on the fly. It’s what a reserved team is and it’s disappointing. Giving up that goal at the end of the first half, we got to be better.”
On the versatility of being able to play center back…
“Yeah, I played it a bit last year. I went from striker in high school to left winger in college, into left back and now center back. It’s definitely a change but you know, it’s just a mental switch, like switching into how your attitude is, how you go into the game, and that can be difficult but as a professional you have to be able to do it.”
On the team’s struggles and steady incline…
“We got to start winning some games. I don’t know about this game, but the previous couple of games we’ve been playing well and we can’t get the results. That’s been really frustrating, it’s disappointing, but we just need to turn it around and we need to just find ways to win games ugly and suffer those hard moments and we’ll get through it.”
On the team’s learning of these games…
“Definitely. Yeah we’re learning and teams are going to sleep on us, but I think we’ll turn it around.”
On the confidence level of using skills in the game…
“It’s just like playground moves, you know with your friends messing around and sometimes it translates in the game, sometimes it doesn’t. But luckily today it went well for me.”
