Bocha Batista stays after Venezuela miss World Cup: "Here out of respect" | OneFootball

The coach spoke for just one minute after the 6-3 defeat against Colombia in Maturín, avoided questions from journalists, and his tenure seems to be coming to an end with the Vinotinto.

Venezuela's dream of playing in their first World Cup in history was shattered by the 6-3 thrashing by Colombia in Maturín at the end of the qualifiers. The result left the Vinotinto without a chance and granted the playoff spot to Bolivia, who defeated Brazil with a controversial penalty. Amid this upheaval, Fernando Batista found himself at the center of controversy due to his reaction in the post-match conference.

Bocha appeared in the press room but did not want to answer questions and only gave a brief message lasting just over a minute: “Simply, I want to say that this is a very hard, very difficult moment. We tried, we were chasing a dream. It couldn't be… Honestly, it's difficult to analyze right now. In the coming days, we will make an analysis, more calmly. I want to apologize to the Venezuelan people, we had a dream with these players to qualify for the playoff.”

He also thanked the team for their effort and for trying “until the last match”, reiterated that it was a “very hard moment personally and football-wise”, and quickly left without taking any questions: “I am here out of respect for you, who have always treated me well and we have had a good relationship. I just wanted to say that. I apologize. Today I am not in a position to have a question-and-answer session. We tried, we couldn't achieve it. Good night to everyone.”

The decision not to answer questions caused strong discontent among the journalists present at the stadium. From the official broadcast, a commentator criticized him live: “I can't believe it, Mr. Bocha Batista, you should face the media and answer the questions from all the media outlets that supported you throughout the World Cup cycle. This cannot end like this.”

Social media amplified the complaints and the figure of the Argentine coach became even more questioned. Local media claim that his tenure is over, despite having recently taken over from José Pékerman. The truth is that Venezuela's schedule is tight: on October 10th, they will face the Argentine National Team in an international friendly in Miami and before that, they must decide who will take the reins of the team.

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