The Ecuador coach, the Argentine Gustavo Alfaro, recalled his origins in the Santa Fe city of Rafaela and reviewed the “30 years” of his career until Qatar 2022, in which he put his team one tie away from matching their best performance historic in a FIFA World Cup.
“I’m going to speak like ‘Lechuga’, that young man from Rafaela, a city more car-oriented than soccer. I come from the interior of the interior, I had a dream and I fought for it. Never let someone tell you that you can’t fight for a dream” , expressed Alfaro sensitively in the subsequent press conference after the 1-1 draw with the Netherlands.
The Rafael was proud when the chroniclers recognized him for having won the tactical battle against a coach of the prestige of the Dutchman Louis van Gaal.
“I told my players that today I didn’t care so much about the result. We were facing a team with claims to be world champions, setting very important guidelines, with an average goal of 2.6 per game, with a coach of enormous trajectory and hierarchy. And we were in front of us, with all our enthusiasm. I asked my players to fight for it,” he said.
Alfaro considered that Ecuador “did not win the game for sins of youth” from a team that “does not have the number of battles played” in a competition like the World Cup, except for captain Enner Valencia.
The “Tri” will qualify for the round of 16 in Qatar with at least a draw in the last match of Group A against Senegal, next Tuesday, and thus equal the best performance recorded in Germany 2006.
“We will be able to qualify or be left out, but nothing that can happen in the match with Senegal will change my perception of what has been done by all these boys from the Ecuadorian National Team,” acknowledged the former Boca, San Lorenzo and Arsenal coach.
On the other hand, Alfaro admitted that he has “a conflict of interest” in the match that Argentina will play this Saturday against Mexico in Group C, decisive for the future of both in the World Cup.
“I love ‘Tata’ Martino very much, he seems to me one of the best coaches in the World Cup, and I always want him to do well. But I also wish my country success. I sincerely wish that both Argentina and Mexico could continue in the competition “, hill.