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The Celeste have changed the picture under the impulse of the brilliant coach Oscar Tabarez, but they still have some players capable of provoking opponents
On August 24, 2010, Real Madrid hosted Penarol in the Trofeo Santiago Bernabeu. It was, apparently, a friendly – but Marcelo's "Pato" Sosa was not "friendly".
When asked before the match how he was going to stop Cristiano Ronaldo, the former Uruguayan international revealed that he was going to advance Real first. with a paraphernalia and then "ruffling his hair to annoy him."
He was not kidding either. Sosa leveled Ronaldo inside six minutes. Then, just before the break, as the pair jostled before a turn, he messed up the hair perfectly coiffés of the Portuguese, causing a furious response from Ronaldo.
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Speaking next with a radiant smile on his face, Sosa admitted to having been amused that Ronaldo appeared "more upset by my hair than the fault!"
In truth, Ronaldo was gone slightly. The story of & # 39; The Beautiful Game & # 39; is full of ugly tales of Uruguayan skulduggery.
After the 1930 World Cup in Montevideo, Argentine players complained of being unable to sleep before the match because Celeste fans spent the night singing in front of their hotel, while Mexico in 1986, they were making their way into the knockout stages, with a red card for Jose Batista after just 55 seconds of their group match against Scotland, the indisputable highlight of their campaign.
So, when Uruguay captain Diego Godin says that the footballers of his country are very competitive, they are "always honest and fair", especially when he plays alongside Luis Suarez, l? man whose handball was partly responsible However, Suarez still has no regrets on his first red card.
On the eve of the last World Cup clash with Portugal in Sochi on Saturday, the Barcelona star admitted that the effectiveness of VAR meant that "some players have less to complain about" before smiling and raise his hand to recognize his reputation for appealing fouls – even when he himself bit someone.
Suarez then sincerely added: "Even with VAR, you have to consider what is best for your team …"
Essentially, the end justifies the means, a saying adopted by many predecessors of Suarez. Indeed, some Uruguayan players and fans still revel in their reputation as masters of dark arts of football.
There is even a popular satirical website in Uruguay. up to defend the tradition of betrayal of the country. However, as its name indicates, " That vuelva the Celeste de antes " ("Who wants the Celeste of the Old"), the founders joke about the fact that the national team has become too honest; too clean.
They want to "recover the old values", which they claim – with the tongue planted in the cheek – were abandoned under Oscar Tabarez, the legendary coach who revolutionized the game in Uruguay.
When the 71-year-old In 2006, Celeste had just failed to qualify for three of the previous four World Cups, which was too difficult for a nation that had won the tournament twice
. They allowed the former professor known as El Maestro to oversee a football revolution with a focus on structure and education. Certainly, it was striking that Suarez seemed as pbadionate about his coach's comments at the Friday press conference at the Fisht Arena as all the reporters present.
"We have been working together for 12 years and goals, step by step, but given the limitations we have as a footballing country, we have been very successful in qualifying for the World Cup," he said. he says. "19659003" "But now that we are here, we have I started to show what we were capable of and I believe this group is closer than ever to achieving our true goals."
Namely, win the World Cup. Ronaldo Messi Santos PS "perform: prop =" uuid: r8omhkp74r6e1x87gb7e1cnlq; width: 1080; height: 1080 "src =" https://images.performgroup.com/di/library/GOAL/2e/5d/ronaldo-messi-santos -ps_1lk7837jk136d1q8h4lnhemrz1.png? t = 1296486788 "style =" width: 100%; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid; "/>
In the match rankings of the site, they make fun of the players for not committing enough mistakes, or for the sports braids rather than for the mustache of the old school, but they even admit that Uruguay is the team that nobody wants to face in Russia.
The Celeste keep the ball better than they have for years but they are not obsessed with possession – Saudi Arabia had more ball in group A in Rostov but Uruguay won the match 1-0, just as they The opening match of the tournament, against the l & # 39; 39, Egypt
The South Americans scored three goals in eliminating Russia to 10, but the most notable aspect of their qualification for the last 16 was that they were the only team to progress without a goal goal
Uruguay is essentially the Atletico Madrid of international football Both teams are based on Diego Godin's defensive excellence, both play 4-4-2, and both are led by two world-clbad strikers.
In short, the Celeste are a team that also differs in organization and frustration, which does not bode well for Ronaldo.
Portugal stumbles on the last 16 with a 1-1 draw against Iran, a match where their captain "Players like [Lionel] Messi and Ronaldo want to be the best and refuse to fail" Portugal coach Fernando Santos thought, "but when they"
Ronaldo was so angry, however, he almost got kicked out, having missed a penalty early in the second period, the striker Real Madrid foolishly aimed an arm in the direction of Morteza Pouraliganji in the final laps.
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The referee consulted VAR while the Iranian players were baderting that an elbow had been thrown, but Ronaldo escaped with a yellow card, just as Portugal escaped with a point that staged a meeting with Uruguay in Sochi.
Saturday will be a much bigger test of Ronaldo, it may not be the Celeste of the past, but people like Suarez and Godin will probably try to provoke the skipper of Selecao in an expensive act of petulance
They could hit him, they could shoot him, they could bite him. Worst of all, they can even ruffle his hair! How he reacts might decide the game.
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