England win like a movie, says Uruguay boss
PUBLISHED ONJune 20, 2014 1:26 AM
SAO PAULO - Uruguay boss Oscar Tabarez says movie screenwriters couldn't have dreamt up a better script after the 2-1 win over England which resurrected his team's World Cup campaign.
Tabarez said a game where Luis Suarez recovered from injury to score twice and overcome a strong England team, on the birthday of Uruguay's national hero Jose Artigas, was "loaded with symbols".
"If this was a movie, people couldn't have wanted a better result, at least in Uruguay," he said.
"We've won after a difficult first game, we've been able to beat a European team for the first time in a long, long time.
"Many people said we wouldn't be able to do so. I think it's a special day because today is the birthday of Jose Artigas, our national hero, and we won against a team such as England.
"But the goals were scored by Luis Suarez, a player who was injured a month ago and had to undergo surgery. So for us this game was loaded with symbols."
Uruguay lost their first game 3-1 to Costa Rica, meaning that defeat would have put them on the verge of elimination.
Instead Suarez, who left hospital in a wheelchair after keyhole knee surgery last month, returned to score twice - and was afterwards hoisted aloft by his team-mates.
It was Uruguay's first victory over European opposition at a World Cup since they beat the Soviet Union 1-0 at the 1970 tournament in Mexico.
"We all love him (Suarez) because he's a wonderful person and he's a very important player for our team, and of course we admire him and we're very proud and very happy for many reasons," Tabarez said.
"Some people said he had problems with his knee but we have respected him and his recovery, and we decided from the beginning that we would just wait and see how he felt.
"We said from the beginning, don't worry if things don't go well because you might miss a ball or not kick strongly enough, but I really trust him and I know what he can do in front of goal."