Jorge González anticipated the rematch of the round of 16 of the Copa Sudamericana and assured that his team is prepared to withstand the pressure and force penalties
Recoleta must win by two goals to take the match to penalties or by three to advance directly. In that context, the Paraguayan coach revealed that the squad is already preparing to face a possible penalty shootout: "The boys are very motivated. In case we have to take penalties, the boys have already been practicing since the day after the match".
This Tuesday, Recoleta will seek to make an impact against Boca at the Defensores del Chaco. The Paraguayan team arrives at the second leg of the Copa Sudamericana Round of 16 with the obligation to overcome the 3-1 suffered at Tomás Adolfo Ducó, but their coach, Jorge González, is convinced that the series is still open.
"We know that a two-goal difference is recoverable in Asunción", the coach assured in an interview with TyC Sports, where he analyzed the keys his team must have to try to reverse the result and make it to the last eight of the tournament.
Firstly, González considered that the expulsion of Wilfrido Báez in the first leg was decisive in explaining the defeat. "Unfortunately, being a key player, it affected the team deeply, and that's why we started the second half asleep and they turned the score around", he explained. Nevertheless, he valued the reaction of his players despite playing with a numerical disadvantage: "With one man down and the expulsion of Dayron Mosquera, we managed to maintain the game".
The coach also has identified some of the main threats from Rodolfo Arruabarrena's team. Among them, he highlighted Leandro Paredes, Milton Delgado, and the full-backs, although he emphasized Sebastián Villa, whom he will try to control with special marking. "Yes, we have already visualized that situation, we will have to put a double full-back or a winger who can defend him better", González anticipated. He also confirmed that Facundo Echeguren, who was not present in the first leg, will be available and will be an option to strengthen the marking on the Colombian.
The significant presence of Boca fans in Asunción does not seem to worry the coach. About 20,000 Xeneize supporters are expected to attend the Defensores del Chaco, although González believes that his players are already accustomed to playing under external pressure. "We are not a team with a large fan base. We almost always have opposing fans, it happened to us in Brazil, with San Lorenzo, and now with Boca. With Santos, we even played on the border with Brazil and it was filled with visiting fans", he recalled.
And far from seeing it as a disadvantage, he assured that a full stadium can benefit his players: "For us, it is important to play in a full stadium because it is an extra motivation for the boys, they have already shown that they are capable of overcoming any type of pressure, whether from the public or the opposing team".
Finally, González highlighted Recoleta's growth in recent years and emphasized that the club has already achieved part of the objectives it set at the beginning of the competition. "We wanted to reach the group stage and we did, we wanted to qualify for another phase and we also did. Staying in the Round of 16 will not be a problem because we have already achieved what we aimed for", he commented.
