Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Colombia gaffer salutes battlers
JOSE Pekerman praised his Colombia players for carrying out his instructions to a tee as they kept alive their last-16 prospects and knocked Poland out of the World Cup with a 3-0 victory.
The 2014 quarter-finalists were fighting to avoid an early elimination after their surprise loss to Japan and responded with a brilliant attacking display, with Yerry Mina, Radamel Falcao and Juan Cuadrado all finding the net.
Cuadrado, man-of-thematch James Rodriguez and Juan Fernando Quintero were all superb and Pekerman praised his men for delivering in the high-stakes contest.
“We always had as our goal to play the way we played tonight,” he said
“From beginning to end the players stayed true to that style.
“We understand t hat Poland were a tough rival and we had to focus.
“We were playing with the pressure of having to win. There was no room for any mistakes.
“We shouldered t hat responsibility fully but with creative football. We managed to impose this quality, that we have. “
Pekerman made a point of mentioning defender Carlos Sanchez, whose early red card for handball against the Japanese had contributed to Colombia’s loss.
Pekerman did not expand on reports Sanchez has received death threats in the wake of his dismissal but did confirm he was “deeply affected” by the fall-out.