The New York Red Bulls were defeated 1-0 on Saturday night. This fact is amazing considering that Red Bull coach Hans Backe told Ives Galarcep that he saw "only one team on the pitch."
Backe, clearly playing the role of sore loser, said there was "only one team on the pitch" presumably out of frustration at the defensive posture taken by the Union for much of the game. It's really a silly thing for a long time veteran of the soccer world like Backe to say. For one, it really does look like sour grapes, but also this is hardly the first time he's seen an opposing team approach a game with a defensive mindset. It's a perfectly acceptable tactic and one one that Backe has undoubtedly employed and been a part of himself in his career.
Plus, it really does belie the facts of the game. There's no doubt that the Red Bulls controlled possession in the first half and the Union were playing cautious. However, the second half was much more even and it's not like Backe's team was particularly dynamic or created many chances. Union goalie Faryd Mondragon needed to make only save on the night (he was helped by the post twice to be fair).
Plus, the Union did make positive attacking changes in the second half that directly led to the winning goal.
Reporters asked Union coach Peter Nowak what he thought of Backe's comments. His response was classic, "You can complete a thousand passes but if you don't score it doesn't matter."
"What's difference between winning 1-0 and 5-0?" he continued, "You getting 6 points for that?"