Ancelotti on tough match and hostile Bolivian atmosphere: “Different football” | OneFootball

Carlo Ancelotti experienced his most difficult match so far at the helm of the Brazilian National Team this Tuesday, in the 1-0 defeat to Bolivia, at the altitude of more than 4,000 meters in El Alto, during the final round of the South American Qualifiers for the World Cup.

After the match, the Italian coach commented on the “complicated game” at high altitude, admitting that the consequences of the thin air made the difference and led to him losing his unbeaten record as Brazil’s coach.

“It was very complicated, difficult, there are technical and physical components. It was quite normal, now there’s not much we can do. Prepare well for the next two friendlies and keep moving towards our goal, which is to prepare well for the World Cup,” said Ancelotti.

“I think the team did well in these games and I have maximum confidence in the team, in the players. We are going to have a successful World Cup. Today’s game was very special in every sense, VAR decided the penalty, refereeing… obviously we will improve to try to put a better game on the field,” he added.

The fact is that altitude was not the only advantage the Bolivians had to come away with the win and keep their dream of playing in the next World Cup alive. Throughout the match, more precisely after Bolivia opened the scoring, ball boys started taking longer to return the ball to the field and even took away the balls that should have stayed along the sideline, precisely to prevent this kind of “gamesmanship” from happening.

The local fans also contributed to the hostile environment, throwing objects onto the field that nearly hit players like Bruno Guimarães and Caio Henrique. Even the president of the CBF, Samir Xaud, complained about the stadium atmosphere and the lack of security for the Brazilian delegation.

“It was a bit of a different kind of football than what happens on the pitch. The objective for Bolivia was much greater, more for them than for us. There are officials who have to control this, not the players, coach, or even the president. The officials off the field have to control this,” Ancelotti concluded.

Brazil finished its campaign in the South American Qualifiers in fifth place, dropping three positions, as they started the final round in second place. The spot for the World Cup, however, had already been secured since June, when the team beat Paraguay in São Paulo.

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