Fall in the Copa do Brasil and Pedro Raul: Barbieri vents about Vasco

O Basque didn’t run away from the underdog and fell in the second phase of the Brazil’s Cup. Mauricio Barbieri saw his team draw 0-0 in regulation time and miss out on penalties. Pedro Raul and Orellano they missed the respective charges and the number 9 was criticized again. In a press conference, last Thursday night, the 16th, the Vasco coach tried to explain the elimination to the ABC.

Questioned about Vasco’s departure, Mauricio Barbieri made it clear that frustration took over him after the fall in the Copa do Brasil: “What I can do is point out factors that contributed to this disappointing result for the fans and for us, who are undoubtedly frustrated. It’s no secret that we couldn’t make a great game and create it like we usually do. Merit of the opponent who managed to reduce the spaces“.

We tried, but we couldn’t. We are coming from a sequence of decisions. The first against Flamengo we needed to win, then Bangu, again Flamengo and now ABC. No doubt this contributed to the wear and tear.“, he pointed out in relation to the fall of his team in the Copa do Brasil.

Pedro Raul and penalty kicks…

Barbieri was also questioned by journalists regarding the penalty kicks and, mainly, about Pedro Raul’s mistake. According to Vasco’s coach, every batsman is subject to making mistakes and defended his number 9 shirt. According to him, even with the three consecutive errors in penalties, the center forward is an important part of the squad.

“Pedro is a number 9, used to scoring goals. We did a survey of the use not only of penalties, but of those who hit decisions and got it right. Peter is one of those. Just like Miranda, who is a good hitter, like Nenê, Puma. Unfortunately he lost. It’s a difficult time for us and for him. He is a very important player for us. It’s time to strengthen ourselves and give him strength“, explained the coach of Vasco.

Barbieri also showed concern about the reaction of Vasco’s squad with the defeat in the Copa do Brasil: “Even though we didn’t play a good game, we looked for the result. This brings an element of injustice, because we try to attack, even if not in the best way. Life is like this. Injustices will happen and feelings will appear. The most important thing is how we are going to react to it. We have two days to recover, lift our heads and get back on top in another important game for us.“.

“We always practice penalties on the eve of the game and evaluate who hits to improve. That’s why we put other players in front. If Pedro wasn’t the fifth, perhaps due to the hierarchy, we would put Léo. I don’t like to think about whether it should have been this one or that one, because I would judge by what happened.“, concluded Mauricio Barbieri.