Hear
“Costa Rica has great players, we hope they come out to propose and play. Let it not be like against Brazil, where they only tried to defend themselves. He had a very strong rival in front of him who surely made him submit,” the Colombian had said. Miguel Borja, as if he wanted to demand another attitude from Gustavo Alfaro, Coach of the Central Americans, for Friday’s duel with the coffee growers for the second date of group D of the America Cup. The Argentine coach responded at the press conference: “Entering into that battle of defensive or offensive, no… At this point in my life, I choose the battles I want to fight.”
The man from Rafaela appealed to his analysis and popular phrases in the world to counter the statements of the scorer and He changed the focus by quoting the American Ernest Hemingway, the writer and journalist who received the Pulitzer Prize and a Nobel Prize in Literature some time after covering both world wars. “It takes a man two years to learn to speak and 60 to learn to keep quiet. I am 61 years old, I have already learned to keep quiet.” He sentenced the match, without wanting to add spice to the duel that will take place at State Farm Stadium in Phoenix at 7 p.m. (Argentine time). In the first round, the Colombians beat Paraguay 2-1, while Costa Rica drew 0-0 with La Canarinha.
“It is very easy to shoot someone else with a shotgun… I would like to see how many coaches dare to play against the five-time world champion with eight Under 23s. They have no idea of the sacrifice these kids make to proudly defend what they are representing. They feel a great love for the shirt, they have commitment,” Alfaro added, determined to highlight the virtues of his team rather than join a conflict.
“We were subjected to a huge expenditure after the Brazil match. The physical report of the boys was amazing, Costa Rica’s physical performance was extraordinary,” stressed Lechuga, who led Ecuador in Qatar 2022 and was announced as coach of the Costa Ricans last November.
“If I want to defend well, it’s because I want to attack well. And if I have to choose, I want to defend with quality and not with quantity. “It is not a question of accumulating players,” He said, and gave examples: “The other day, Vinicius was double-marked, but that is the way you have to mark Vinicius because he can kill you one-on-one. Luis Díaz (my rival this Friday, with Colombia) has to be marked in a different way. And James (Rodríguez), too. They are players with a capacity and imprint that make themselves felt.”
In response to criticism of the style of play he played with the Brazilians in their tournament debut, the coach responded with famous quotes. “It’s very easy to ask for things. I’m proud of the players I have. Everything costs us a huge sacrifice. Obviously, we would like to be Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay… But we are Costa Rica, humbly. As Serrat said, we walk with what we wear. But I, personally, feel very proud,” he described, bringing a section of the song up to date. “Simply Yours” which the Catalan launched in 1986.
“Everyone had assumed that we were going to lose all three games and we don’t know what will happen tomorrow. But we are going to fight, we are going to try to get a result. Whether it happens or not, this is football… In this group, desire, will and attitude are not negotiable. The important thing is to respond to the complexity of the rival,” he concluded.
THE NATION
