"We lost control of the game," says Paraguay coach after tie with Qatar
2019-06-16
Paraguay’s manager, Eduardo Berizzo, did not hide his frustration after the 2-2 draw he suffered on Sunday in Group B kick off of CONMEBOL Copa América 2019.
«We lacked serene and did not manage the ball (…) We lost control of the middlefield and the game, the ball in the middle of the field was almost always recovered, but we never tried to create chances,» he said at the press conference after the match in the Maracaná.
Before the game, a few people bet on such a result against Qatar, considered a rival not so difficult despite being champions of Asia. People even did not bet on that result in the second half, when the «Guaranis» were 2-0 up.
Things would have been different «if we had controlled the game after the second goal,» said Berizzo.
But it was not like that. The Qataris, who had already warned in the first half, reborn and drew the game with power and good football.
«The 2-1 put them back in the game and built a goal with a very master class football connection and tie us,» he added.
Berizzo admired the physical power and the «well-organized» game of the Qatarians and considered that «by the merits and defects» of the two teams, the result ended up being «fair».