CAPE TOWN: Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez has reminded his team they still have a job to do at the World Cup despite their agonizing 3-2 semi-final defeat to the Netherlands.
The South Americans failed in their bid to make their first final in 60 years but still have to lift themselves for a third-place play-off against either Germany or Spain on Saturday in Port Elizabeth.
Tabarez said his team would recover and perform for their country’s pride.
"To use a term that is common in the team — we have to bury this match and get over our sorrow," he said.
"We must give a good image like the one we delivered against the Netherlands on the pitch to show people in football that Uruguay wants to play at an equal level with others.
"We want to show that this is a team with pride, despite our limitations, and this third-place play-off match is important for this reason."
The tiny South American nation, sandwiched between Brazil and Argentina, has been a revelation at the World Cup, making their first semi-final in 40 years while heavyweights like Brazil and Argentina were knocked out.
Uruguay came into Tuesday’s match having conceded just two goals and they put up a credible fight against the Dutch.
Their hopes took a setback on 18 minutes following Dutch captain Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s spectacular strike, and it looked like their could be on their way to a whipping.
But Uruguay hit back through Captain Diego Forlan’s fourth goal of the tournament and his country’s eighth overall when he rifled his shot into the back of the Dutch net from 30 meters out.
Two Dutch goals within three second-half minutes though put an end to the dream, although Tabarez said he was proud of what they had achieved.
"When it comes to looking back, we can say that we were among the four semi-finalists and the other three are powerhouses of Europe," said the veteran, in his second stint in charge after steering then to the last 16 in 1990.
"Today we are looking at the team that is in the final and I believe we put this team in difficulty.
"I know football in Uruguay and where it stands on a worldwide level and so I can say I am proud and happy with the performance of my team.
"They managed to play at an equal level with Holland but didn’t manage to score the winning goal in the final moments. I couldn’t ask for more from these players and nor could Uruguay."
Uruguay’s glory days, when they won the World Cup in 1930 and again in 1950, have become a fading memory and Tabarez hopes their performances in South Africa will inspire a new generation of young Uruguayans.
Asked what their run to the semis meant to him personally, he replied: "First and foremost to show the people who love football in Uruguay that it is possible," he said.
"I’m not saying we are among the superpowers but it is important to have a team that is hard to play against.
"If we come to the World Cup our team should be one that deserves to be commended for its dedication and for having young players who really want to play, who have shown the necessary profile at international level.
"We will have to take stock of what we done."
