Uruguay’s style shone through in Copa America win over Brazil, says Marcelo Bielsa

NEVADA – Uruguay’s diligence and resilience under pressure after going a man down against Brazil in their Copa America quarter-final victory on July 6 put the team’s distinctive character in the spotlight, coach Marcelo Bielsa said.

Nahitan Nandez received a red card on a video assistant referee review, reducing Uruguay to 10 men for the final stages of the second half. But they defended resolutely to take the match to penalties and prevailed 4-2.

“Everything that happens, happens Uruguayan style, because the players are the ones that give their all to the team,” said Bielsa at the Allegiant Stadium in Nevada.

“It was a match with very little goal opportunities, highly contested, very close, even with very little changes in possession. When we were one man down, we decided to dedicate ourselves to defending in our half.

“So holding on to that result as the Uruguayan team did show the profile of Uruguayan football. And they were very calm in the penalty shoot-out, that demands not only accuracy but also character.”

Bielsa’s teams are usually characterised by relentless attacking football and no team have scored more goals in the tournament than Uruguay, who netted nine times in the group stage.

But three straight clean sheets have also helped Uruguay book a semi-final clash against Colombia on July 10 and Bielsa was quick to praise his squad's mentality rather than take credit for their defensive record.

“I am a bit more drawn to the offensive than the defensive game, but in a match that was as tight as this one, we created one more opportunity than our opponent and we defended well,” Bielsa added.

“The players are inherently good at defending... they are very good at keeping a clean sheet.”

His opposite number Dorival Jr said Brazil are still a work in progress with a lot of room to grow and improve, as they shift their focus to the World Cup qualifiers.

Brazil had failed to impress at the tournament, drawing twice in the group stage while beating only Paraguay before their second straight quarter-final exit from a major tournament following the 2022 World Cup.

“We are undergoing a very important renovation or reinvention of this team. I have only coached this team for eight matches and this is a process that we have to go through,” Dorival said while taking “full responsibility” for their exit.

“We have a lot of room to continue growing, evolving, improving and our main objective now is to qualify for the World Cup.”

In the other quarter-final on July 6, James Rodriguez scored one goal and set up two more as Colombia dismantled Panama in a 5-0 win at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

They are through to the semi-finals for the third time in four editions after goals from Rodriguez, Jhon Cordoba, Luis Diaz, Richard Rios and Miguel Borja. REUTERS