Christian Lattanzio speaks to the media on having a very good preseason, reacts to newest nickname, player updates, and creating as many chances as possible ahead of Charlotte FC’s 2023 home opener vs. New England Revolution.
What do you feel like is the biggest Difference in the way the team plays When you took over for them last year to What you've seen in this preseason I think that the the biggest difference Is that hopefully the guys are a little Bit more clearer with the principle of Play that uh we are working towards Last year Especially when you take kova during the Season there is always an element of Adaptation even though I knew the boys Really well they knew me but in a Different role and they were trained to Play certain situations certain Principles of play differently and so to Adapt for the boys is not always easy And it takes a little bit of time this Is a this is how you are human beings we Learn and we develop so hopefully with Time and with the pre-season behind us The biggest difference is that there Should be clearer about what we want to Achieve with the ball and without the Ball How easy or difficult I mean you guys Got immediate results last year one you Took over but how easy or difficult was It to get buy-in from the squad in terms Of this drastic change and making sure That you get that kind of reciprocation From the rest of the squad I always felt Uh a good vibe of working with the guys It was uh even as an assistant I I love
The group of players and I said that Many times And uh so that put me under a lot of Pressure especially from myself because I see that the boys They try to accommodate my ideas and uh And they were trying And so I could not complain about Uh anything that they were trying to do Sometimes things work well sometimes Obviously there is there is questioning Like it should be But most of the times I felt really at Ease to work with the boys and uh And again this year the same uh With the very good uh coaching staff Group That push pushes the boys on a daily Basis and the boys respond so I have to Say that I'm really really happy with Them Thank you Thank you All right uh Carol Good morning Christian there's a there's A nickname floating around for you too Have you heard it yet no but I was Wondering what is yours oh I'm boring Woody call you Carol and I was expecting Something something new now I guess it Like mama you know at home so that's Something but the one I'm hearing from You is laddy daddy how about that Yeah from one of your female fans so
Okay there you go I really don't know what to say well I Guess we'll use it every once in a while If we need to lighten the mood after a Loss or something so Um I think after a loss I'm gonna be Destroyed not the lyrical okay after a Big win five goal Victory we'll pull out The laddy Daddy okay Um so um I know Willie Peter didn't ask You this so I'll go ahead um I know You're not going to want to tell us your Lineup but with a a guy like Tui Loma Um given the position he plays his Experience what you guys need are you Tempted to run him out there for 90 Minutes at this point this early Uh bill Um the good thing about Bill is that he Knows the the league he was already Trained with portal and Portland is a Team that me personally I've always Admired since I was in New York City They managed to play Uh a football that makes it difficult For the opposition and uh I respect that And I think that everybody that is Praying especially by Geo now even Before with caliporter but with Geo now I think that they have this solidity That I've always liked and admired And so he comes from that culture he was Training and the great thing is about Bill that he came and he's uh he adopted
He's another one all the guys that they Are here he seems like a cliche because I said it for rent I said for us but it Looks like that they've been here for I Don't know five years because they Arrived they adapt Quickly they become You know favorite within the group I Think and Bill also as a is a great Personality which I realize you can Speak French unfortunately with the Marseillaise accent You know when you work for nice you know Marseille support that they don't make Any discount for you So but it's okay I'm just joking I think It's uh Marseille is a great club and is a great Team you know always a challenge to play Against them but uh Bill uh you know Also the fact that he can speak French And the immediately Uh that created an extra layer of You know closeness with the proximity With a deal with Malanda So is certainly in the contention Certainly the contention in trained and He didn't look out of place at all it Looks like that he was with us since Pre-season since the beginning of Pre-season build okay and also can you Give us any shed any light on what's Going on with uh mellow Mavinia received the uh it was like a
Chest injury that we are monitoring uh Nothing major I believe but it's Something that we need to get the green Light from the doctors and we take every Injury to our players very seriously as You know and so we don't want to leave Uh it's a very very long season we have To make sure that the boys when they do The recovery moment from injuries they Are looked after uh in the best possible Way hundred percent so this reason uh I I have to wait from what the doctor said To me uh Vini is with us in the meeting Outside on the pitch even though it Didn't take part in training yet but But I think it's not going to be Something that will keep him out for Long the only thing that I can say that We need to keep monitoring him and Respect what the doctor said to us but Again nothing major did he take a knock To the chest Yeah I think I think so I think he took A knock to the chest but uh Um again I saw him he went to see the Doc and the first the first news we got Back he was very positive but there is a A certain Procedure that we need to respect Thank you you're welcome Hey how are you today Good morning good morning good you good Good uh I don't have any nicknames uh Yeah you think you don't I didn't think
About names so I also thought that I Didn't have any but Some people when they see me play they Call me Pele but I didn't make that up Hahaha Okay but uh yeah how much of an impact Has a player like Westwood made on the Team so far with his set pieces and Passes and stuff like that Yeah and actually Has made a big impact that the football Part that you are referring to the set Piece is the passing is part of His ability as a player but first and Foremost he made an impact as a man in The changing room he's a guy that uh Uh very experienced uh has been a very Very good Pro in what it is maybe the Best league in the world at the moment And there was a constant presence in That league for many years being captain Of the teams also in which he played Which tells you and to be a captain in Premier League is not easy I can I can Assure you that unless you have certain Characteristics so he has made a big Impact he's quite an humble guy very Intelligent Is not flashy at all so he wants to he's One of those guys that arrives and he Goes under the radar maybe not here Because he's a Maybe not here because he's uh he comes With this reputation of from premier
League but he's a guy that normally you Know you notice his presence constantly On a daily basis which uh what I like Consistency in our play is not just you Know to do well or to be happy one day In the changing room the next day your Moody he's a guy that uh he's a guy that Uh Made a big impact for that is consistent And always uh trading at the high Standards demand uh eye standards from The players but in a nice way with a lot Of uh you know it's very warm he's a Very warm person and obviously he's got All the characteristics technically and Tactically that you were referring and And even more than that because he's our Worker as well He's not just a guy that can pass the Ball and they can he runs a lot as well All right that's it for me thank you so Much you're welcome All right I think I see Jess Hi Christian when you look back at Preseason as a whole what stands out to You as your most positive attributes as A team Um We had the a very good precision and There are different moments that I can Refer to obviously the games they're Always a big moment because you can see The work that you are doing if it's uh Actually happening or not or in how we
They how the boys understand what we are Trying to do and they put it in practice Uh but I have to say that the I really Love this preseason You know Considering I want to put on brackets What happened with uh obviously with Anton this is something that Is going to be always with us and as I Said many times Anthony is my special Assistant and on a daily basis I Refer to him and I have my internal Dialogue with him But the boys it was a very eventful Pre-season but the on a daily basis They've been great they have been great And so every day at least every day There is an highlight On how they Were you know working how they were Coming together uh how they were Training how they played the games I Really enjoyed how they play each game And I could see a progression in them Sometimes the results didn't reflect Uh what they actually produced And even though we had the quite Positive results in in the home but I Think that Even and that's a testament of how well They've done that even when they were Winning few times or even drawing uh Against you know good oppositions very
Good opposition or winning they came out Not happy So that's for me is a testament of how They are but also rightly because they Always produced they always produce Chances in every game you play in every In every half and so to come out of the Pitch that you have a Fairly positive result and to be not Happy that tells uh that tells me that They are in a good place Absolutely and just And just how brilliant is that for you As a team to play in front of an Incredible crowd as your first game Yeah this is really good this is really Good just is a great uh he's a great Motivator for us but uh Every game here is great it's not just The first one obviously the first one he Said the tone at least for the Supporters that they want to go back and And to leave this party atmosphere that They created we want just to provide Fuel for them And we want to we want them to really be Proud of the team how the the boys Played with energy with intensity with Quality This is our aim to make our crowd really Happy and uh I'm proud this is uh this Is our aim always and to have them Around for the first game is Just Special for us
We thank you Is that Steve next I see I believe I'm ready to go if you are if you don't Know a question We spoke after the Birmingham game and I Was just wondering if the defensive Lapses agadello alone at the far post For the goal at the end of the first Half and then the through ball to the The kid who was just on trial with Birmingham was that a topic of Conversation and training this week yeah Yeah it was The wars and uh Because uh we played The first goal we play soft And it can be kind of Can be understandable That the boys are training up and we Play actually everything started that We're at the ball we had to throw in and We played really soft thinking the the Half is over so we play the ball and There was a little this kind of Disconnection That happened uh that I didn't like Because We said many times that the game is over When the referee blow the whistle not Before sometimes you have to play 95 Minutes sometimes 100 as we saw in the World Cup And so until because it looked like that We go in the changing room and the last
Thing always is the thing fresh to the Memory so we played a great festive Where we should score Maybe at least four because Camilla had A great chance as well and we had other Ones And then we go and the LA the last and Then the boys are going in the change Room are really angry and they said that To them that let's get it out of the way As the first thing we're going to talk About because that cannot overshadow the Good First staff that you produced going Really early in the game three in a lap And producing chance of the chance but This tells you how fragile a team The balance of each team football team Can be even if we look at Liverpool last Year there was the the quintessence of The you know the team that everybody's Taking as an example and then the year After for whatever reason things can go Differently you know and and we are Talking about one of the top maybe five Clubs in the world so that is always uh A big mon a big Reminder for us that we need to play Every single minute At least Focus it's difficult to play Every single action at your Are your best but you have to put focus In what you do because the minute you Put the guard down you get punished and
It happens again in the second half Where we made Four big mistakes in a row for the Second goal but again you know we we Started talking that but we created 22 Chances And the Birmingham created Five this is The numbers of the game so we created 22 Chances and the result is 32 so that Tells you that You know I don't want to be here and Talk about uh you know only the the Receiving end because on the opposite on The opposite side we produce 22 chances That is really difficult and Birmingham Legion for me is a good team Uh is it might not be an MLS team but It's a good team with very good players That they were very good in MLS starting With abudelo the play also for the National team so we have we have to Respect that and also respect the fact That the boys created 22 chances against Such an opposition so uh but you're Right Steve that we need to analyze uh What we need to improve that's for sure And we spoke about that in In Frank terms I can tell you that Yeah I thought that you might and you Also mentioned the somewhat more towards The psychology of this team Understanding that They can score three goals but they Could also score four five and six to
Have that mentality to keep the pressure On to keep the hammer down you know and Score every you know convert more of Those 22 opportunities that they had Yeah I mean it's not always easy yeah It's not uh we know that to create Chances and to score goals is not the Same but uh the the the most important Thing for me in a team is to create Chances and obviously to minimize the One that you concede Um this is the the the growl of each uh Of each football coach is a very Difficult formula you know you want to Maximize your attacking play you Minimize Uh the attack in play of the opposition But our boys do a good job of creating Chances of playing with the intensity And energy I just want them to get more For more reward for the work that they Do and I don't want to be arrogant to Say that we are going to score three Four five every game but to create Chances yes and I want them to when we Create to convert more and to be really Focused on stopping the opposition from From taking advantage of us being high On the pitch and try to create chances Because as we saw even last year we can See some goals in control attack that Can happen And this is the other side of the coin But I am prepared to take the risk as
Long as we as long as we create chances Do you feel that hunger is there for Them to go you know to for not just Converting the chances but also going For the clean sheet because if they Never score you'll never lose No no sure sure uh no the anger is there I can tell you that Steve that the Players are really focused really Focused uh but uh you know theoretically Is always easy To comment and to say you know if you Create a lot and not concede at least And I am from a country that defensively We are really drilled since we are young About the importance of not conceding And so for me this is important but Uh but to not to concede and to create Uh is really hard so at some point there Has to be a balance of risk and I prefer More to play you know creating and then Sometimes take risks at the back because Uh I think that this is the identity That we want to have here to play Attractive football and to try to create As many chances as possible Great we'll take it out so thank you There you go thank you thank you all Right last two for this will be Antonio And then I believe I see Caleb Hi Christian good morning good to talk To you again good morning Antonio when You watch film from New England what Impresses you the most from them
Many things solidity that they have uh Quality of the players that they have in In no position they have a roast that is Full of quality in in every position It's not by chance that they I think run Away with the MLS Support the shield just uh two years ago Let's not forget that And most of the place that they were There they are still there so The quality of the team is In this league is second to none But uh we also You know we are we are thinking how we Can upset the structure and how to be To play our game we want to play We Respect them but at the same time we Want to play our game and we don't want To Uh to talk too much about the opposition Because the risk is that you lose a Little bit uh side of your identity so The opposition we we pay the attention To them we spoke about them defensively Offensively we talk about the individual Players that they have but at the same Time they have to focus on our game Right um you talked about Counter-attacks have you done something Different on defensive transitions to Stop considering those chances that you Mentioned yeah we have been working on That and uh And there are different ways that you
Can do that with proactive defending When you are high with how you manage When you are in a bit block and how you Have to defend when you are in the last Third So we have done the work the boys did The work really well on that during the Week uh they understood we watch video We watch what uh we should have done Better against uh Birmingham Legion and Uh you know it's always like that Antonio you work on something and then What you haven't worked because you kind Of work on every single thing in the Week there is just not enough time So but when you focus on something Immediately what you have in Focus get Forgotten a little bit but this is Always in each And not just in football but I I spoke With all with other coaches and Obviously in our sport in different Sport and this seems to be the case so Uh but we've refreshed many things this Week and last one for me uh your Fallbacks in your system play in a very Unique way uh we have seen that from Last season you know you send them a Little bit closer to the center of the Field rather than playing super wide is That to create your Wingers more space Or have just an extra passing option Maybe in the Midfield what what are you Expecting from your fullbacks in this
Model Foreign In our model of the game I said uh to The boys and I repeated this to some of You in the Press is that every for me Everybody is important Really important but to build the play So even the goalie And then everybody's important we defend Also the the number nines and the number Tens so everybody and the Wingers so the The full box they play a crucial role Because they have to Help us to build but also to give Solidity in transitions Because sometimes if you have them very Wide if you lose the ball while you are Building that can happen they might be In a position in an awkward position to Defend So we need to be able at the same time To build and not to not to be too open Um But use them in a way that That can serve a purpose and I think That they are pretty clear Um And that they I think we are lucky to Have our full box that they are Pretty smart guys and they understand How to position themselves but obviously They also need to defend that when it Comes to the moment they have to be able To defend crosses uh 1v1s and so both
Perfect thanks a lot Christian thank you Antonio all right last one to chaos A question uh my nickname's company Kayla by the way ah okay why Because I do a little bit everything I just got one question for you Um how does playing in front of the fans And this time in front of Anton motivate The group Um Yeah Anton is a constant motivation for Us we mention him often I mentioned him Often to the boys Remind the name How he would have thought of certain Things even when we do certain things Silly It would have been the first one to Laugh or sometimes get in Excited or angry if we don't do things Anton He's a guy that uh Always I remember He wants to do things he wants to do Things always Well at the first time and sometimes I Said Anton come on you have to give time And in that you want it to be like he Said now but I'm a fraction is so so Sometimes When things don't go the way I said do You imagine what Anton would have said And the boys they always have a smile It's a way of keeping him with us
Because it's a constant presence for us And it's a positive presence as well Again the the funds uh for us are a big Motivation And we are And we are uh blessed to have them it's Uh it's a great it's a great Community Here in Charlotte Uh they and I can see that the passion For football here is really surprised me And but it was more down my ignorance Than anything else but I didn't expect that I expect that there Was some you know some support but not To this this extent and The boys really love to play in front of The supporters I think they said it they Said it publicly they say it privately I Know they mentioned that to me even in You know in Conversation over a coffee or something I know that they really enjoy to play in Front of our supporters Great thank you so much Thank you thanks thank you guys thank You Christian and just real quick take An update uh we're over 60 000 for Saturday so Um we will see you guys all there on Saturday evening see you guys Bye Lottie Daddy
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