Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa admitted his frustration after his side collected only two points from their opening two FIFA World Cup matches, despite believing they deserved victories in both encounters.
La Celeste began their campaign with a 1-1 draw against Saudi Arabia before being held to a 2-2 stalemate by World Cup debutants Cape Verde, leaving the two-time world champions with work to do in Group H.
“We have two draws from matches that we felt we could and should have won,” Bielsa told reporters. “There’s no doubt we deserved to beat Saudi Arabia, and I believe we also did enough to win today.”
Uruguay’s defensive lapses once again proved costly. Cape Verde opened the scoring from a long-range free-kick that slipped through the defensive wall, while their second goal came following a mix-up at the back.
Bielsa accepted responsibility for the mistakes, insisting that any organisational shortcomings ultimately fall on the head coach.
“When a team makes organisational errors, the responsibility belongs to the manager,” said the 70-year-old Argentine. “There is no magic solution for these situations. They are part of football, but unfortunately we paid a very high price for the goals we conceded.”
The result leaves Uruguay level on two points with Cape Verde and trailing Group H leaders Spain, who hammered Saudi Arabia 4-0 earlier in the day.
Uruguay now face a daunting final group match against the European champions in Guadalajara, knowing a positive result could be crucial to their hopes of reaching the Round of 32.
“It is a huge challenge for all of us,” Bielsa said. “We have only managed two points from six, and against a team of Spain’s quality we must improve our performance considerably.
“But there is absolutely no doubt that we will approach that match with maximum motivation and determination.”
