The coach of the El Salvador national team, Hugo Pérez, left with a taste of defeat after the United States managed to rescue the tie (1-1) in the last minute of the game at the Cuscatlán stadium.
Pérez was clear in describing the feeling that the tie left him despite the fact that the El Salvador team played face to face with the United States, current champion of the League of Nations and team qualified for the Qatar 2022 World Cup.
“It was a tie with a taste of defeat,” said Hugo Pérez during the match’s press conference.
The coach, who directed his third game against the United States, blamed himself because El Salvador could not hold the result until the end. However, he highlighted the role of his players.
“It wasn’t enough and in the end it was my fault, I’m to blame for not winning tonight, but I congratulate my players because they did a great job after that disaster in Granada, I didn’t want a draw, but I can’t complain because the players competed as I asked them to,” he added.
He also assured that he would leave Cuscatlán sad for the result, assuring that a victory against a rival like the United States would serve the growth of the team. “I’m leaving sad because we had the three points, but no way, that’s life and we have to keep going because we’ve already qualified for the Gold Cup.”
“Sad for the effort we made for 88 or 90 minutes in one play they scored for us, sad because we had the three points and we need to win one of these games to have a better foundation when we compete and we have to learn to win but we stayed short,” he added.
He highlighted the attitude of the players in the face of the criticism received after the draw in Granada. “Today the players realized that despite all the criticism in our country they went ahead, they fought and they played one on one against the United States and that more than anything I feel happy for them because criticism doesn’t make me angry, but come with foundations,” he concluded.