HOUSTON, TEXAS – Honduras Head Coach Fabian Coito lamented his team’s elimination from advancing to the knockout stage of the 2019 Concacaf Gold Cup, but shed the spotlight on the things his players did effectively in the 1-0 loss to Curacao at BBVA Stadium in Houston.
Honduras outshot Curacao 36 to 7 with three players generating at least five opportunities on their own. Building on those chances, and translating them into goals, is one of the things the tactician wants to focus on moving forward.
“We have to have more peace of mind at the moment of finishing. I'm left with good things that the team did in the first half: high pressure, fast recovery of the ball, we played away from our goal, we tried to impose things on the opponent that forced them to make mistakes that would allow us to have goal options,” said Coito in his post-match press conference.
Being more effective in front of goal will be the key in the team’s third and final matchday of the group stage, an encounter against Central American rival El Salvador.
It’s an opportunity that will come as an option to heal the wounds of Friday night’s loss.
“I think that with the passing of the hours, we will have the option of speaking, of starting to take evaluations, of talking to each other face-to-face, of situations that we must improve and reverse,” added Coito.
While not being able to advance to the quarterfinals, Honduras will still have the option to leave the tournament with a win.
A good result on Tuesday at the Banc of California Stadium in Los Angeles would be a positive step in the direction Coito wants to take his team.
“Undoubtedly, we are in debt, of course. I’m not encouraged to say so much from the point of view of the game. Yes, in terms of the results, which is ultimately what we play for,” concluded Coito.
