The Uruguay head coach has been a vocal critic of Copa America organizers and the United States Soccer Federation, who co-hosted the tournament in 2024
Bielsa lodged several complaints against Copa America organisers in a fiery press conference(Getty Images)
Marcelo Bielsa, the fiery Argentine manager and current head coach of Uruguay, has launched a blistering attack on Copa America organisers and the United States Soccer Federation. This comes after a summer filled with controversy.
In his press conference ahead of Uruguay’s third-place match against Canada on Saturday, Bielsa unleashed a broad tirade about the 2024 Copa America.
“They cannot continue to deceive us that the pitches are perfect,” Bielsa raged in Spanish during Friday’s presser. “They held a press conference saying that it was a visual issue, that Vinicius [was wrong], that Scaloni should not speak. Scaloni was told not to speak anymore. All threats….
“This is a plague of liars. Scaloni spoke once and dared to say that the seams [of the natural grass that they placed on the artificial grass] do not close. And the training pitches were a disaster. And Bolivia did not train, and the penalty to Brazil and all the injustices. It is a disgrace, in a country that as an organizer has [to take] responsibility.”
Bielsa’s rant touched on many of the most criticised aspects of this summer’s Copa America. Nine of the competition’s 14 venues are NFL stadiums, many of which had to lay a temporary grass pitch over their usual artificial turf pitches.
The most notorious example of this occurred during the Argentina vs. Canada semifinal match at Metlife Stadium, set to host the 2026 World Cup final, where seams between strips of grass began to show. The former Leeds United manager wasn’t alone in criticiing the quality of the pitches.
Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni termed the conditions “not apt,” his goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez described the pitch in Atlanta as “very bumpy” and many of the tournament’s most recognizable stars, including Vinicius Junior and James Rodriguez, voiced their complaints.
Martinez was among several players to criticise the Copa America playing surfaces(Getty Images)
Bielsa first came into conflict with CONMEBOL officials on June 27 in a 5-0 victory against Bolivia for failing to return his team on time from the halftime intermission. He was issued a one-game suspension for the infraction, served during a largely insignificant tie against the United States, while Scaloni also incurred a similar penalty.
Uruguay would breeze through the group stages and take down continental giants Brazil 4-2 on penalty kicks, setting up a semifinal matchup with Colombia in Charlotte. Bielsa’s side fell 1-0 against Los Cafeteros, a match marred by post-game violence that left the veteran manager with choice words once more at Saturday’s press conference.
The incident saw Uruguayan players enter the stands to fight with Colombian fans, allegedly prompted by threats issued toward the families of La Celeste players.
Darwin Nunez was involved in a mass brawl following Uruguay’s defeat to Colombia(Getty Images)
“One has to speak thinking about all the threats that one receives if one speaks,” Bielsa announced. “The only thing I can say is that the players reacted as any human being would have done. If they are attacking his wife, his mother, a baby, his wife, his sister… What do you do?
“Do you ask if they are going to sanction those who went to defend? There is a degree of complicity, because the questions also act in a complicit manner. You (the journalists) have to say this, not what I have to say.
“When you see that there is a violent act, of course who is going to be in favour of a violent reaction, but the first thing you have to see is what the reaction is in response to, and if there would have been the possibility of doing it differently.”
Source link : https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/marcelo-bielsa-tears-copa-america-33233832.amp
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Publish date : 2024-07-12 21:00:00
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