“When we saw family members involved, we had to rush into the locker room,” Scaloni recalled.
About Wednesday’s events, he added: “The images are bad. I don’t think you can blame them, seeing your family in the middle of the tumultuous situation which isn’t fair. It’s maddening. We need to see that.
“The players are protagonists and we ask them to be examples, but when those things happen, I don’t think anyone would’ve reacted any other way. It’s natural.
“But I hope tomorrow it doesn’t happen. We hope it’s a party among the fans of Argentina and Colombia. We cannot be thinking about what happens if one side celebrates. We must learn once and for all. … The images look like they were from 50 years ago and that worries me for tomorrow.”
Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano MartÃnez echoed Scaloni’s comments.
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“It’s bad to see, it’s not something I’d encourage my teammates to do, but when you see your kids and wives at risk, it’s a normal reaction,” he said. “What happened with Darwin and [Mathias] Olivera is normal. It’s sad and I totally agree with them. I support the players of Uruguay.”
The scenes also drew a compassionate response from Colombia midfielder Juan Fernando Quintero.
“It’s sad what happened, the families are not at fault,” he said. “We do what we can on the pitch and take care of families. We don’t want these things to happen in football. I understand emotions are high, but one from their place tries to be respectful. No one wants these things to happen. The game cannot be tainted by this incident. The aggressive people at fault should not be allowed in at a stadium, especially with children around that aren’t at fault.”
Martinez went on to add that he hoped there was sufficient security in place for Sunday’s final.
“There needs to be more attention [Sunday], especially as people drink more alcohol in the final,” he said. “We have to reinforce security, and live things better between fans … win or lose we should celebrate that both teams are in a final.”
As for the match, plenty of eyes will be on Colombia playmaker James RodrÃguez, who has contributed six assists during the tournament, a Copa América record. But Scaloni said it’s important that Argentina don’t focus too much attention on Rodriguez, especially with winger Luis DÃaz also in fine form.
“He’s a great player, it’s a pleasure to watch him,” Scaloni said about Rodriguez. “For football, it’s great. But for us, we haven’t focused on one player, but on the collective. Colombia is a good team, and we will defend the team. We will try as a team to stop them, and be owners of the game.”
Scaloni stressed that Argentina need to play their game, rather than react to what Colombia do. With Lionel Messi in the lineup, that is certainly possible.
“We have a way of playing that when we take ownership of the ball the team becomes strong,” Scaloni said. “We don’t see another way then counter all the good that they have. We see it that way, we want to be owners of the ball.”
Martinez added that his side must also adapt to whatever transpires, and draw on its experience from previous finals, including the triumphs in the 2021 Copa América and 2022 World Cup finals.
“Everyone has a plan until the final is played,” he said. “There are many factors in a final. … We have experience playing it and having won it, but finals are played and we try to win. There is no more plan, the heart is a great part of it.”
Source link : https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/40555430/copa-america-2024-final-argentina-uruguay-security-bielsa
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Publish date : 2024-07-13 18:35:00
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