Trapp: “We’ve done a massive amount of work to be prepared”

By Inter Miami CF

July 3^rd, 2020

Inter Miami began training today at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex ahead of the July 8 matchup with in-state opponents Orlando City SC. The team arrived in Orlando Wednesday, July 1, leaving one full week of preparation in the bubble prior to kickoff.

The players are quickly adapting to life in the bubble and circumstances which will be their new normal for the foreseeable future as the team competes in the MLS is Back Tournament.

Trapp: “We’ve done a massive amount of work to be prepared”

“We have a great lounge that the guys can convene in socially distanced situations. There are video games, FIFA, all those sorts of games. And yesterday we had a nice time where we could kind of stretch our legs a little bit and go golfing,” said Wil Trapp. “It’s great not only for the mental side of this, but for team building as well.”

“We’re used to having roommates and having that little sense of community when we’re in a hotel and now obviously that’s not the case, so having a shared space for us as a team is vital. Not only for the mental health of being in this scenario, but also to see the love and support of our Club and then being able to convene in there as a team will build stronger ties for us.”

“Me and the guys have talked a lot about the tournament’s organization and the hotel’s amenities,” added Nico Figal. “We have games to go play, we went golfing; the truth is this is a tournament that is very well organized. We feel very protected and we’re looking forward to starting the first match.”

Despite the unusual circumstances, our players are laser focused on the most important thing: competing. Meaningful matches absent of fans, a one-site bubble and a tournament in the regular season; while this may all be new to the players it hasn’t hindered their drive.

“Our motivation will come from playing for this Club,” said Figal. “Each of our players has a lot of motivation and has a lot of expectation to start winning and represent this shirt. We know that it’s a Club that has aspirations for more, and we really want to represent it well and have a good tournament.”

“Yea there’s no fans in the stadium, but we know that our fans are watching us on TV. We know that they care immensely about this game,” said Trapp. “And even more so there’s a trophy at stake. As players and as a team you have to dredge up whatever motivation you can to focus on that always and I think we’ve done a really good job of that. I think our staff is really amazing at reminding us of why we’re here and what our objectives are.”

Their sights are set squarely on their first opponent Orlando City. The match will present the team with an opportunity to kick off the tournament and make a good first impression as MLS returns to action.

“Ultimately for us as our players, we finally get to do what we want to do and that’s play,” said Trapp. “One strength as a group we can draw upon is that every team is in the same boat. It’s all about the preparation work you did before you got here. I know that we’ve done a massive amount of work to be prepared. Ultimately when the game comes you have to be ready and there’s no excuses for any of the things going on outside of the field when the lights turn on.”

“We have never played against this rival, for us it's all new. We go in with big expectations and we’re eager to kick off the first game with a win. We aspire to have a good tournament and who knows, maybe even win the cup,” added Figal. “We have visualized a good performance, so we want to try to win the first match, take the three points and start the tournament in the best way.”

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