Coach explains Villasanti's absence from Copa squad | OneFootball

Paraguay national team coach Gustavo Alfaro spoke candidly at a press conference about one of the most keenly felt absences from the final World Cup squad: Grêmio defensive midfielder Mathias Villasanti.

The Argentine manager revealed that he had waited until the very last deadline in hopes of including the midfielder, but the fact that the player had not played in the last twelve months because of a serious injury weighed heavily.

"I waited for Mathi until the very last moment. But he wasn’t able to log even a single minute on the pitch over the last year, and that is what explains his absence. I was honest with him: ‘Mathi, the World Cup doesn’t wait.’ The World Cup is ruthless. We can’t challenge medicine or time, and I couldn’t be unfair to the group," the coach said.

Villasanti had been a key player and an undisputed starter in Paraguay’s rebuilding process on the road to the tournament in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The defensive midfielder was even included in the preliminary squad list, but was ultimately left out of the final call-up.

The reason was the complicated recovery from a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), combined with an injury to the lateral meniscus in his left knee, suffered in the middle of last year in a match against Atlético.

Although he was recently included in the squad by Grêmio’s coaching staff, the player was once again rested for the club’s following matches and has still not played an official game since the medical issue.

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

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