MLS Cup: Notes from Sporting Kansas City press conference - ProSoccerTalk

KANSAS CITY – Most of the media members pulling into town arrived Wednesday or Thursday, so the MLS Cup event schedule more or less began today.

First up was a press conference with members of both teams. Real Salt Lake was delayed out of Utah (weather and all), but Sporting Kansas City was in place and right on time. A few notes out of SKC’s session:

No frost on the field this time

The temperature at Sporting Park will set an MLS Cup record for cold, and easily so. But the field should be fine … and we’ll see none of the frost that made the field a bit treacherous toward the end of Sporting KC’s (similarly frigid) Eastern Conference final series clincher over Houston. Or so says Vermes.

Vermes explained that was all about a facility crew miscommunication. SOP on MLS grounds is to water the field, to increase ball speed. But the message somehow got lost that watering the field wasn’t a good idea with sub-freezing temperatures.

“There was a little bit of a frost toward the end of the game that started to come onto the field,” Vermes said. “That’s not going to happen this time around.”

He reminded the room (jam-packed with media) that Sporting Park is equipped with an underground heating system, so a frozen ground should not be an issue.

As for the cold temps and how it might affect the players? Nielsen talked about how cold he was during the win over Houston. And he’s from Denmark!

But Zusi just kind of shrugged: “Cold is cold,” he said. “When you’re moving around, it’s no big deal.”

Claudio Bieler will appear in the SKC 18

It’s a little weird that Vermes would need to be asked about Claudio Bieler’s role Saturday – seeing as he is a Designated Player and all. But it’s a very legit question considering how the Argentine striker’s playing time has virtually disappeared over the last two months. (And considering that he didn’t even travel for SKC’s first playoff match.)

Vermes said Bieler would be in the 18-man game roster. Past that … ? The manager said he hasn’t decided on a starting 11.

Vermes went on to say nice things about how Bieler has adapted to the league and has scored important goals, and about how his late-summer injury coincided with some other strikers getting healthy, etc. But, clearly, something has gone wrong here. Otherwise, we’re not talking or asking about this.

Nielsen on a championship, and what it means

SKC players clearly respect their veteran captain, goalkeeper Jimmy Nielsen (pictured above). So perhaps they will heed his words.

Nielsen told a quick story about winning a championship in Denmark when he was quite young – and about being quite sure more would regularly tumble in. Since then, he’s one just a U.S. Open Cup, which he cited proudly, but which he clearly places below a league crown on the achievement scale.

“Fifteen years later, I’m still standing on one real championship,” Nielsen said. “I’m sure that Saturday I would appreciate a championship a lot more than I did 15 years ago. Now I know how hard it is to win a championship.”

Teams training Friday

Both teams will train Friday at approximately the same time as kickoff on Saturday (3 p.m. locally). Real Salt Lake (which trained in Utah prior to chartering in Thursday evening) will practice at at Sporting Park. SKC will train at its usual facility at Swope Park, on the south side of the city.

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