Venezuela remain the perennial whipping boys of South American football | OneFootball

Venezuela once again missed out on the World Cup. The 3-0 defeat to Argentina and the setback against Colombia by 6-3 reinforce their reputation as the continent's "eternal punching bag."

Important Data

Concerning History

Throughout history, the Venezuelan national team has never managed to compete in a World Cup. The numbers show campaigns with few victories, many goals conceded, and rare moments of prominence.

Venezuela came close to qualifying for the playoffs only twice in history. Besides this Tuesday's elimination, the team finished in sixth place in 2014, but it was under the old regulations, thus ending without a spot.

Statements

Midfielder Tomás Rincon, from Santos, is the captain and the player with the most appearances for Venezuela. In an interview with Líder, a Venezuelan sports newspaper, he lamented the team's elimination.

"It was a very sad day; we couldn't achieve our goal. We deeply regret it, from the bottom of our hearts. Many years have passed, and we haven't succeeded... The team needs to regain its strength so that our football can remain competitive. We have a lot of work ahead," he said.

Coach Fernando Batista shared the midfielder's frustration over the elimination.

"It's a very difficult moment... it's a difficult moment in football. We tried, we were chasing a dream; it just wasn't possible," he added.

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