Midfield Quotations

As England manager I always felt we needed an extra man in midfield to retain the ball, but that was more as an attacking ploy to help create opportunities. It came from my experience playing international football in a 4-4-2 and spending half my time chasing the ball.

I often felt as a player in a 4-4-2, you end up being outnumbered in midfield and chasing the ball, so as a manager I liked wingbacks to push forward; it gives the midfield player on the ball three or four options.

I was pleased with the players in the autumn. What's important is the whole team's development. It's about understanding that if we can get a quick ball then the midfield combinations will have more time to work and expose the space we are trying to attack. I was pretty pleased with the way midfield went.

Nikki (Echeverria) is an animated player that will bring savvy and composure to the attack from either the center of midfield or up front.

If they weren't getting many passes from the midfield they should have tried to help out and recover the ball themselves.

If we can get some control through the midfield it will go a long way towards winning the game, ... You can't stop them all. They are going to get touches. They are good players. We will come up with a way we can attack them ourselves.

We made a lot of foolish turnovers in the first half. They're a great team, they're going to cause turnovers, but we've got to take care of the ball in midfield transition.

Mount Notre Dame is a big power and this is going to be our first major test, ... Our defense has been playing really well, but our midfield and attack passing have got to be better. We've got to communicate well and play together as a team.

Mount Notre Dame is a big power and this is going to be our first major test. Our defense has been playing really well, but our midfield and attack passing have got to be better. We've got to communicate well and play together as a team.

Lucas comes with a wealth of experience and will be slotted into a center midfield position. At 22 years of age, it will be great to have the leadership that he brings.

Selling him to Leeds, not seeing his potential as a midfield player, was my greatest mistake in football.

The only good thing that came out of the first half was the goal. The midfield never connected with the attack, thankfully we corrected that, allowing us to easily win in the second period.

We have signed Oscar to strengthen numbers in the crucial midfield area.

Kim is a real good person to have on the team because she is fun, but also knows when to take it serious, ... Leshia will play between the midfield and the attack. She is like a new player for us. We hope she can come back healthy.

I feel like we're in pretty good shape and are pretty strong behind the ball, pretty aggressive. Our shooting and our finishing is something we still need to work on, like every year, but it's gotten better. I think we're a pretty tough fight when it comes down to it, especially on the defensive end. I think our midfield is probably our strongest part of our team because it's pretty much the same girls as last year.

I don't think it is a really big change for me. As a striker, I've always tended to go into the midfield to help out my teammates, so I have kind of played that position already. Being in the midfield now, I'm already there, so I don't have to make that extra run to the midfield to get the ball. I always have loved the ball, and in midfield I get the ball a lot.

I expect a lot of long balls to James Quinn. They have a very busy midfield so I expect a difficult game. When we're talking about Wales, about Northern Ireland, it's a dream for those countries to beat England and we have to deal with that.

I felt like our midfield was the difference in the game. We just have a lot of experienced players like Drew Dunn there. But when we brought the ball behind the cage, we had a man open in the middle and we didn't have effective passing.

Barry Ferguson and Ian Murray were then pushing on from midfield and we thought at 2-2 with eleven against eleven there was only going to be one winner. But sadly we will never know.

We talked at halftime about a couple of things. First thing we fixed is that we weren't playing a physical game in the first half, and secondly we moved Matt Mikhail to midfield to get more possessions on the ball.

We marked up better in the midfield today.

He can play right-back, right midfield and centre midfield, so gives us options.

I am going to pack the midfield and see what happens.

He is a solid midfield player and is experienced. He'll add strength and depth to the squad.

He's a solid midfield player and is experienced.

He's been on the bench quite a bit this season, but I decided this was the time to throw him in. He played in central midfield and did well.

We're pretty balanced on the attack. We can go a little deeper. Our midfield is a little deeper than we have been in the past.

Kyle was very clever tonight, and he did some things with Jason at midfield to create some opportunities on goal.

Lindsey stepped up to the midfield and played real well.

Marcelo is a proven player in this league. His knowledge of our club and league, when combined with his ability, will give our midfield an added dimension.

Stephen McCarthy is another great addition out of the Dallas Texans. While he has a quiet personality off the field, his impact on the field is what impressed me the most. He has great presence in the midfield by winning balls but also in dividing them. His club team is proven to be among the best in the country and in my mind he is a big reason for their success.

Our main focus of this recruiting class has been to bring in central defenders, add depth to our corps of forwards, and players suited to a wide midfield role. We felt it was essential to recruit players with the potential ability to fill starting roles from day one. With this class, I think we have certainly accomplished that goal. We also have added two very versatile attacking players.

Our midfield and forwards were really playing well against Connally. Chad (Monk) was really a force to be reckoned with in that game.

Our midfield has always been a strength of our team, particularly the depth, ... We have plenty of players who can contribute again this year. Andrew Jacobson will return this season and Eric Ebert, who made great strides as a sophomore, looks to have a breakout year.

Our midfield will be steady. Some of those players will be on the field the whole game. Up front we are going to go with two or three lines to keep them fresh. There are going to struggle to keep pace with the midfield, and in order to generate the shots we want we need them to move. Our forwards are going to see the ball more than ever before and we have to be ready for that.

Our defense was incredibly tough and the midfield obviously dominated play. This is one of the biggest wins of my coaching career in light of what I hope to accomplish with this team.

Kristin has a courageous mentality. She is not afraid to take on opponents one-on-one and engage physically. Her role on the team could be in the midfield or in the frontline as a wide player.

Kristin has a toughness and tenacity to her game, which makes her an option for us in the center of the field in either the midfield or the backline. Her calmness on the ball will serve her well in either position. If she is able to step in and show the same toughness for us, she will have an opportunity to see significant minutes.

Jeff plays more of a defensive midfield spot for us, so he doesn't usually get the opportunity to score. But he moved up on a corner kick and scored.

Natalie is another excellent athlete from the state of Indiana. Natalie has a bright future with the Hoosiers. Her strength in the midfield to distribute over distances and win tough battles with opponents will make her a competitor from day one. Natalie is a soccer junkie who loves to play soccer and compete. She is a fine addition to the 2006 class.

Melissa is a very versatile player. She has a great game sense and a great defensive presence on the field. She has proven she can play back and midfield and is ready for this level. One of the best things about Melissa is that she really enjoys to compete. She has a tremendous amount of passion for the game and I believe she will make a significant contribution as a freshman.

I thought Mark Wilson did very well tonight. He worked very hard in midfield and it's nice to get the first one -- he didn't know much about it -- but he was in a great spot in there closing him down. I'm very, very pleased for him.

I think that it's still progressing. I was pleased with the players in the autumn. In the three games we set a benchmark and it's important that we build on that. The importance is the whole team development. It's about playing with speed of ball and understanding. If we can get quick ball then the midfield combinations will have more time to work and expose the space that we're trying to attack. I was pretty pleased with the way the midfield went.

I think the game will probably be won and lost in the midfield and we will try and expose their midfielders with our pace,

Lauren is a gifted and skillful soccer player with a remarkable defensive mentality. Her experience and versatility will enable her to play in our midfield or in the backline.

It is an excellent deal for us because Pedro gives us more options in midfield and brings with him experience in European competition.

Rio can play that holding midfield position for England - the kid is good enough to do it. Sven should be looking at Rio to do that in the World Cup because I think he is awesome. He can play centre-half, right-back, anywhere.

Owen J Roberts is a strong, strong team. They dominated the midfield and caused a lot of defensive pressure on our part and a lot of offensive pressure on theirs.

Our strength is really in the midfield. We have talent and depth, especially in the center of the field. I think you're going to see an interesting tandem in the midfield with those two. Nico is proven and I think Jeremy is proven.

I was told to play in a forward midfield position just off John Hartson,

I think our midfield is probably going to be the strongest part of our game.

Kelly is a very versatile player who can play midfield or forward. She has tremendous drive and determination.

It has been difficult for David. He has had a lot of injuries and was coming to the end of his contract here. We have a lot of options in midfield and it was a case of looking at the balance of the squad and seeing what we need for next year.

I thought anxiety set in today, but we nullified their midfield and made it hard for them to play, and I thought we did a good job here today.

I thought we had a great performance and got a great result in a foreign country. We changed our system ... and flooded the midfield to try to spring our forwards wide. It allowed us to attack and defend effectively.

We'll have a strong midfield with Paulo and Andrew. They know the game, they know the team, they know what I want on the field and they can run it. We're going to need them to score, too.

Watson worked out with us this summer and I have scouted him at New Mexico. I think he is an extremely versatile guy who can play in the midfield on both sides and even defensively in the midfield. The impression we got from him last summer was important because he played with and competed with our guys.

We have to have better pressure on the ball and win 50-50 balls. There was no transition, everything was getting jammed in the middle. If we can generate some midfield pressure and get some transition, our forwards know what to do.

I was pleased; our midfield play was much better. Sandpoint's jayvees are strong. These kids are the same ones that go to state every year and win when they're varsity.

We get a goal and we want another one, so we don't like giving up the ball. We're really good at blocking the flow up field by marking. If the ball gets past our forwards, the midfield is waiting. It play moves past them, we have the best defense in the world waiting.

We gave up a goal in the first minute but we didn't panic. We controlled the midfield and got the goal. We had some chances and when you don't take them when you play a good team this is what happens.

We have been told that Stephen is not for sale and we'll now have to look to make progress on other midfield targets.

We've got some young kids but their talented and fully capable of contributing. Our defense is very solid and our midfield is strong. Our biggest problem might be staying healthy because we're thin and maybe putting the ball in the back of the net.

We have a lot of options -- Hargreaves is one and came on very well against France. You could put in Nicky Butt and change the midfield around a little bit, so we will see.

We've got some big names on this team that get a lot of recognition, but Schumacher has been great for us. She pretty much controlled the midfield today and she was a big reason we didn't give anything up defensively.

You don't make wholesale changes with your midfield that worked for you and won a championship overnight. But Landon is the type of player that is versatile. If it's not working for us in the midfield with Paulo and Pete I can put (Donovan) there. We might start with him there next week.

We have looked at players over the course of January and obviously decisions will be based on this. We need midfield cover, that is absolutely essential. It's important too that we plan with players who will be capable of doing a given job on a given day.

We had a number of choices but Rowan's efforts in the finals for Claremont over the last two games have been outstanding, so his ability to play up forward or through the midfield gives us a lot of options.

We let down a little bit when we got scored on, ... Ordinarily, when someone scores against us, we get the ball out of the net and we're back down midfield in less than five seconds, so that our opponent doesn't have the lingering edge that they scored. We want to take the game back right at them.

To the critical eye, Jesse and Chris do so much. To the casual observer, they're not flashy, but the distance they cover in the midfield is mind-boggling. They're both very experienced, and their partnership makes it very hard on teams.

We've very lucky that John is a complete player. He can play an attacking role in the midfield and he can play more of a defensive role.

We've got Gideon in the midfield and we want him to touch the ball as much as possible. He really likes to get his teammates into the game, but he's got a strong foot on him and I need him to shoot more.

We've got good flexibility in our midfield and with our forwards. He's played there last year and this year, so you know, we'll see how it goes.

We're looking for everybody who plays in the midfield and the front line to get shots on goal and hopefully score some.

We brought in a number of players at midfield and attack because that was our primary focus, we're very excited about this class.

We're a young team that lost three big players, so we have a ways to go. Our midfield play was missing, and that's something we have to correct. We have a tough schedule at the start of the season, so it's not going to get any easier.

We start a lot form Tom's feet at center back. Stefan takes over at the midfield and controls things from that point on. He's more or less the distribution source for everything. And Jon and Steve are just really solid workhorses in the midfield. They could play in every minute of every game and through overtime. They're just real fit specimens.

Coventry have made an enquiry about him because of all the midfield players I've got,

Craig Regis played really well for us in the backfield and in midfield Corey Tucker played well also, ... We played much better over the last 60 minutes of the game. We're going to build on that.

When I was six years old people were talking about the midfield as the key area of the pitch.

When I talk about the mentality and how we play and how we're organized, all of that has to work so that now in the midfield we are harder to play against. It's not enough to think that we're good with the ball and that alone will win every game. We want to continue to be good with the ball but that must work now collectively.

You ask any of the coaches in the Bay or Pioneer League, they all know her. They all know she's our bread and butter in the midfield in our defense.

The defense played really well. The midfield also did a great job of controlling the ball. I'm real pleased with the effort.

The story of the game was how many times we turned the ball over in the midfield and create bad situations for ourselves. You just can't keep making those kinds of mistakes, giveaways, and we seemed to do that a lot.

The system was very important to play against them. The way we competed on the sides and in the midfield was the key to beating them.

We moved the ball very well tonight, I'm very pleased. Midfield and defense really did their job tonight. They didn't allow Belmont to mount much of an offense at all.

We've played like that the whole season. We put one or two in the back of the net and the midfield slows down and starts defending more. It's how we play.

We also have Loki Crichton in the mix so it doesn't take a mathematician to work out they won't all fit. But we will look at mixing it up a bit and possibly play Mils in the midfield at times. We'll just have to wait and see.

Story of the game was how many times can we turn the ball over in the midfield and created bad situations for ourselves defensively.

Without Mike out there, everyone was staying back too much. We lost control of the midfield and couldn't get the ball to our offensive players." ()

One common theme in the midfield is they're all incredibly hard-working players.

Despite its youth, this group demonstrated uncanny poise in the fall. With the losses we suffered not just on attack but at midfield as well that poise will be crucial to our offensive success this season.

Deb, on the other hand, is one of our most versatile players. She played midfield for her first two years here at ISU, played as a defenseman last year and now is switching back. Once again, she has done a great job with the transition process.

Colgate exposed a lot of our weaknesses. We were expecting to beat them pretty handily, and they showed us that we need to work on our midfield transition. But it's nothing that we can't fix in practice.

I've always thought Geoff was a hard worker, someone who makes it difficult for defenders because of his physical presence. But he has got other strings to his bow. His actual link-up play is very good. He sees midfield runners coming up to join him and he has got a nice touch on the ball where he brings people into the game.

At youth team level, I always played in central midfield alongside Kevin Thomson and I used to get well up the park and score quite a lot of goals,

They provided a lot of field position for the defense by getting them inside the 10 a couple of times, and for the offense by getting the ball close to midfield a couple of times.

They take a different look all the time. There's times when there are four in the back but an outside back has pushed into the midfield so now there's only three. There's time when there's three in the back and one of the wide midfielders is pulled deep and it looks like four. It's not the most important thing in terms of our organization and our understanding of the field.

They shut down any offense near the goal and Jennifer was just brilliant. Our midfield play was also incredible.

Sam thinks he's ready for it and from what I've seen I'd agree. He is in the first team now and learning the game but he can play at right back or in midfield which is the sort of versatility that you want.