"It's the end of a dream, one we believed in," said a disappointed Juan Carlos Chavez as his Mexico side crashed out of the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2-0 to Brazil in the competitions semi-final. The Mexicans failed to take their chances whilst the Brazilians showed clinical finishing late-on, as playmaker Ulises Davila acknowledged.
"We created some good chances against the Brazilians but we just couldn't put the ball away," he lamented. "Football's a simple game and if you want to win, you have to score goals. That's what they did and that's why they're on their way to the final."
Davila also paid tribute to the four-time competition winners: "I would have liked to have seen more of the ball, but the Brazilians were very strong in defence and I couldn't get control of it. That's the way things are, though, and sometimes you have to sacrifice yourself for the team. We did everything we could and we kept our shape, but they held on to the ball well and imposed their game. They were very worthy opponents."
"We're devastated," he admitted. "Our goal was to reach the final and we didn't make it. That's why there wasn't exactly a party atmosphere in the dressing room. We were so excited about the prospect of playing the final on Saturday and fighting for the title. All we can do now, though, is recharge the batteries and focus on third place."
And coach Chavez explained, the bronze medal is the goal now: "My players are sad and there were tears in their eyes. But I told them that this isn't over and that there's a third place to go for against France, which is worth fighting for."
"It won't be easy to get our focus back, but we came here to win something and that's what we're going to try to do," added Davila.
"We've got the match for third place coming up and it's not the same to finish as one of the top three teams in the world than to leave empty-handed."
