Alan Franco moved by Atlético-MG defeat, apologises: "It hurts so much" | OneFootball

Alan Franco did not hide his emotion after Atlético-MG's defeat to Lanús, on penalties, in the grand final of the Copa Sudamericana. The Ecuadorian left the field inconsolable and made a point of apologizing to the Atlético fans, who filled the section designated for them at the Defensores del Chaco stadium in Asunción, Paraguay.

It is worth remembering that Alan Franco was injured in the friendly match between Ecuador and New Zealand, on the last FIFA date, and played on Saturday despite hip pain, all to help Atlético-MG lift the much-dreamed-of Copa Sudamericana trophy, which ultimately did not happen.

“This [sacrifice of playing injured] is secondary. Actually, I can say today that I feel a very strong pain. I just want to apologize to the fans, to everyone at Atlético-MG, to Massa. It's hard to talk now,” confessed Alan Franco to SBT.

With teary eyes, the midfielder felt deeply sorry for not being able to repay the massive support of Atlético-MG fans in Asunción, Paraguay.

“Man, I only have words of apology, of forgiveness. We fought, tried, and in the end, we ended up losing the final. So, anything I say now will go unnoticed. I imagine the pain felt by all the fans who traveled so many hours, left Brazil, arrived in Paraguay to support us. So, anything I say now will go unnoticed,” he added.

With the Copa Sudamericana runner-up finish, Atlético-MG received 2 million dollars (R$ 10.8 million) as a prize from Conmebol. Lanús, on the other hand, earned 6.5 million dollars (R$ 35.1 million).

Atlético-MG now shifts focus to the match next Tuesday against Flamengo, at 9:30 PM (Brasília time), at Arena MRV, in Belo Horizonte, for the Brazilian Championship.

Upcoming matches for Atlético-MG

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.