Pre-game CF Montréal vs. NYRB press conference

Mathieu Choiniere

MC: I think for life to be able to see the level, to be able to play against the best players in the world. Even in the friendly matches we played against France and the Netherlands, it was something extraordinary that I think will help all of us in Canadian soccer to compare ourselves and continue to progress, because I don’t think we’re far off. And we can inspire a lot of people.

 

Q : ?

 

MC: Basically, he pointed out all these principles of play, how he wanted his team to play, and then at every practice, it was really fixed on that. And all I wanted to do was prove that I had the qualities to play in his team and help the team win. Exactly, this kind of tournament, this kind of match you have.

 

Q: Do you feel you’ve succeeded? You’ve solidified your place in the team? Is that what it was all about?

 

MC: I gave my all at every training session and was ready to play. I count too. It’s not just any country, it’s a big team, but I think all the players around me really helped me to have a good performance. And after that, the group also had a good performance, so that helped me to be good on the pitch.

 

Q: What do you bring back from this month and a half with the Canadian team? What do you bring back from that here at CF Montreal?

 

MC: I think the thing I’ve learned the most about international soccer is that it’s another level. But you don’t necessarily have to worry about not being able to stress out in a match like that. We have what it takes to play this kind of match. The people in Canada have what it takes. The players in Canada have the qualities to play this kind of match. You have to have confidence in yourself when you come to games like that.

 

Q: Yesterday, Jesse Marsch lamented the way Canada is being treated compared to some of the big soccer nations at the Copa America. Did you feel this treatment on the pitch too, this difference?

 

MC: I wasn’t really paying attention to that. I was paying more attention to what we were doing on the pitch, so I don’t really want to list the negative aspects of the competition.

 

Q: After a month like that, how are you feeling both mentally and physically?

 

MC: Great on both counts. Like I said, I think it’s an eye-opener. Playing competitions like this also gives you confidence when you play against countries like we did. So I arrive here physically, fresh, and mentally with even more resources.

 

Q: You played 90 minutes against the likes of Betancourt and Valverde against Uruguay. How do you feel about that?

 

MC: It’s crazy in soccer to go from “We’re going to play in Montreal” to “I’m going to play against Federico Valverde and the Betancourts”, or any of those people who play on the world’s greatest teams, and still be able to compete and put in a good performance. And I’m talking about the whole team too. So, as I said, we have to stay positive about this where soccer in Canada continues to grow. And I think there will be more and more young people who will feed off what Canada is doing to be even better in the competitions to come.

 

Q: What was it like to see Ismael Kone?

MC: To see Ismael Kone? We all know he has quality. He is an amazing player and, on the field, when he is at his best, he is a top-class player and I think he has the quality to reach the best club in the world and we all we all saw it in the in the tournament that at any moment he can do anything you want on the field. So yeah, he’s a young star and he’s going to keep grinding and he’s going to reach the top.

 

Q: For you personally, the national team reached a new level at the Copa America. Jesse is going to be looking to improve the team, to go out and find other talent, other young people over the next two years, how are you approaching the next two years to make sure you have your place and have an increased role too? That’s two years from now. What do you want to work on?  How do you see the next two years?

MC: As I’ve always approached my career, to give my all at every training session, at every match, to try to prove my qualities on the field as much as possible. And that’s it after that, to continue to play my club games to be as fast as possible and prove as much as possible to the coach.

 

Q: This is the fun part, and the not-so-fun part is that we’re entering the second half of the season. The transfer window is now open. How are you approaching this second half? Do you say to yourself: Okay, I’ll be here until the end of the year, or do you say: I’ll be here until the phone rings. Do you expect anything to move? The organization has said they want to keep you here for the long haul. There are some new developments. Have you had any discussions? Have you had any follow-up contract offers? What’s going on?

MC: No, all I have to say is, as I said before, I’m here in Montreal, I’m under contract here, and I’m going to continue to play my games. And if the coach calls on me, I’m going to be here all the time. But for now, I’m here and I’m going to give it my all.

 

Q: What does your agent say?

MC: Of course, I’m talking to my agent and those discussions will stay between the two of us.

 

Q: Could you see yourself playing for an MLS club or at the highest level against that team? Should you play in Europe?

MC: Of course. I’ve always said I wanted to go to Europe one day. That’s my dream. After that, I didn’t hide the fact that I have a contract here. So, like I said, it’s going to stay that way. But of course, I’ve dreamed so much of Europe and the Champions League and the highest level of soccer I could play in my life.

 

Q: It’s a team sport, but there’s also the individual business reality of seeing that you’re out there, but your CF Montreal teammates can’t see the pitch. You see it. It’s dynamic. Here, I assume you’re so close to Sam. I guess he’s a bit special. You’re super happy, but at the same time, you’re aware that it might not be the same reality next door.

MC: Yeah, of course I realize that. But I think we had a bond with Sam and with Joel, and we got on so well with everyone in the band. We were so united that one person’s happiness was everyone’s happiness, I think. That’s what made us so strong in our tournaments, where the solidarity in that group was incredible, and whether I was playing or not, I was happy for the team.

 

Q: From midfield. How did it go up until your penalty kick?

MC: It went well. Seriously, after 90 minutes in the legs, I think most of the stress had passed, so when I got to the penalty spot, well, it’s either a hit or a miss. It didn’t bother me that much. That was my mentality.

 

Q: We know you’re still in great shape. You’ve played, you’ve traveled. If the coach needed you for 90 minutes tomorrow, would you be okay?

MC: I told him I was available for him, no worries.

Laurent Courtois

LC: I congratulated him (Mathieu) as well as Joel, Sam and Ariel. It’s an extraordinary experience. I’m delighted. I think everyone was happy to see him as a starter too. The last match I haven’t been able to see yet, I hope to watch it out of curiosity. So, there you have it, in a way, it’s a bit of a victory for a lot of people at the same time, and not just Mathieu. So we were happy to hear a bit more about it this morning.

 

Q: You’ve had Jesse March here this morning and I don’t think you’ve had much time to talk this morning, but have you had time to talk since his appointment about maybe the best way to train young players to bring to the national team? Have you had that kind of discussion?

LC:  So, we’ve exchanged a little bit by text, and I preferred to leave him alone in the preparation and congratulate him after the match, not before. I don’t like that. And then we promised each other that we’d find a moment when I could try to learn a little from him, when he’s succeeded in getting a whole group around him in just a few days, a few weeks – it’s extraordinary. And it’s not the first time, so I’ve got a lot to learn from him. I hope we’ll have a moment to settle down.

 

Q: It was said that you were one of the teams most affected by absences during international tournaments. Now that the picture is complete. What’s your assessment of how things have gone in the absence of these executives?

LC: Well, yeah, as I keep saying, maybe if we’d had fewer injuries and had more players present, we’d have had a few more points. But I’m so much more certain about the state of my group, my club, my staff and myself, without having to deal with these little, shall we say, episodes that I wouldn’t change a thing. I tackle them, the difficulties, the tricks. It’s allowed me, and not just myself, to make an in-depth analysis of what we want and don’t want, and to learn because I’ve also made a few mistakes, and that’s it. So, I’m very happy, I’m exactly where I wanted to be.

 

Q: Do you know if Mathieu is motivated to stay and continue to give everything he can for you in the context of this transfer request?

LC: Mathieu will be there. He wants to break everything for himself. He has huge ambitions, he wants to play in Europe eventually, but here he wants to, he wants to give everything for his club. And I need Mathieu because he can play in so many positions. Not only because of his verticality but also because of the mentality and spirit we want to have here. So, Mathieu is indispensable to me.

 

 

 

Q: How do you manage when there is a player whose name is out there with transfer rumors?

LC:  I do my part, which is to mentalize him and get the best out of him on the field. Mathieu always gives his best whether it’s in the locker room or on the field. Now the player wants to get something to feel more valued, and at the end of the day, we’re all the same right? So, you just want to be valued for what you give, and he gives a lot.

 

Q: So, on the topic of the player’s coming back. I know you’re saying you wouldn’t change a thing with everything you’ve learned. But are you still telling yourself like “finally! I have everyone”

LC: Of course! A little bit of both for sure. But really, whether it was because of my own deficiencies or qualities, I was able to look in the mirror (and analyze) the stuff that I think I can be good at the stuff that I need to improve a lot. Same thing with the player’s same thing with the locker room with the staff with the process with the communication up and down. So there are so many layers to this job that I’m learning right now and of course. I’m happy to have everybody healthy and all together, and hopefully, we can slowly build from all the little weird moments. But a lot of teams made adjustments, too. A lot of teams are fearing us in a way for some aspects or know that they can capitalize on us. So, everybody is evolving, so it’s not going to be easy because everybody is back, but it’s going to be more precise to the stuff that we want to do for sure.

 

Q: Before they left, Samuel and Mathieu played quite regularly in the center of the pitch and a lot together. Is it automatically up to them to take up these positions tomorrow, or has Samuel not played for a month and a half?

LC: Yes, they’ll play tomorrow.

 

Q: You weren’t there at the World Cup in 2022 when Sam didn’t play. It was a different context because it was at the end of the campaign. I think mentally it was a hard blow. Then the rest or the in-between season did some good. Did you have any discussions with him just to see him? Joel, too? Maybe it’s a little less about Mathieu, but in what state of mind?

LC: They want to go, they’re hungry, they want to go. After that, I know that yesterday he woke up, he didn’t even know where he was, he didn’t know which city, which room, so it’s not going to be easy. They’re not going to be in top form, but they’ve got a lot of desire, a lot of heart. And they’re fit, so let’s get on with it.

 

 

 

 

 

Q: The team still hasn’t won on the road since the Dallas and Miami games at the start of the season. Where’s a little something you had in the team back then that you’ve lost that you’d like to get back that when it says that?

LC: Yeah, well, I don’t know, in Philadelphia we managed to find a way to put ourselves out there. We did the things we wanted to do, and we managed to take the lead. Then we got a stupid red card. Then we showed a lot of character to go and get the equaliser. So, it’s really this notion of alternating between doing the same thing at the same time and doing it well, and then minimizing things that I find a little hard to explain are individual absences where you think that the player at that moment is taking and boom and he’s not at the level you expected or that he himself thought he was. So, how does that affect the others? But in any case, there’s a mental notion where you see in the past, we’ve had the impression that as soon as something bad started to happen, it was a cascade of several things that would follow and tie us down. So, I hope that now we’re at a different stage of maturity and that we won’t do that again. But we’re going to see with New York. It’s still complicated to manage. Well, we’ll see, but we think we’re getting more mature.

 

Q: Tom Pearce, can you tell us what you see as interesting in his profile and how soon he’ll be able to start helping the team?

 

LC: He’s a long way off in terms of fitness, but his experience and quality on his left foot, whether in the short or long game, and his ability to box-to-box on crosses, will be interesting in the medium and long term. For the short term, he’s still a little short.

 

Q: Saturday is Toronto, a big match. The last time you played against them, it was complicated. How focused are you on this match versus what you want to say about your relationships this week? Are you going to go all out for the game?

 

LC: A bit of both. It’s still, even if everyone is back, it’s still a time when some people have played a lot of games, others not at all, Others are looking for chemistry between them and continuity.  So it’s going to be another match where I don’t know how many times I’ve been able to do two similar line-ups game after game, so that’s not going to be the case this time either, nor against Toronto, so a bit of all that. But the guys are hungry and we all want to get going.

 

Q: So, is that one of the big things you’ve learned this year? Coaching MLS Next Pro There isn’t the same sequence of matches. The reality of the MLS or the arrival of the Leagues Cup is that it’s even more congested because it’s one of the big things you’ve discovered about managing a group with three games in a week.

 

LC: Yeah. You pretend, it’s okay, it’ll be fine. But then, when the present arrives and the internationals leave at the same time as you’ve got ten injured, you start to scratch your head a bit. But it’s really been a challenge for me at this level. And above all, you’re so frustrated because you want to work, but you don’t have the time. There’s physical and mental management, you know. So you have to think about the other match. But when you make your line-up for this match, you have to anticipate the other one. So it was a real headache. But there you go, you learn, you move on, and then it’s the League Cup and international matches. I said to myself, “Oh yeah, it’s a lot of things”

 

Q: You mentioned players who were perhaps overdoing the hero syndrome in the second half against Atlanta. In concrete terms, what’s overdoing it? What kind of behavior would you like to see from others without singling out one player in particular?

 

LC: There are two aspects. There’s the collective aspect, where when we ask for more maturity and preparation, it’s that thing where I get the impression that we stop playing forward a little. We’re a little too careful, and as soon as we talk about going a little faster and being a little more provocative and testing a little more, we end up with the second half at NYFC, where you get transition after transition, and as soon as we address that afterwards, it becomes one of the last home games, or before the last one, where there were crosses and service positions that we don’t quite understand. And so we keep working, talking about when we want to connect that extra pass and when we just want to serve. Because you’ve got players who are capable of doing things in the box on serve, and so it’s that lack of discernment that’s the last game. That’s what got me a bit. It’s the ego. Now that it feels good, there’s one less player, and we can win. I’ve got to make myself visible. And I’ve got the pass I want, the run, and the shot I want. But we’re at a point in our season where it’s the team that counts, and all the fans who’ve been coming for games and games and games when we haven’t necessarily given back. And now we’ve got the chance to win by three or four goals and we’re not doing it, because you might feel like you want to do well, but in the end, you do badly and, well, there you go. There are some young players who I expect to have a lot more hearts, and there’s a bit too much ego at the moment.