Uruguay will bounce back from Copa America loss to Mexico, says Pereira

Glendale (Arizona), June 6 (IANS) Uruguay's football team will bounce back after falling to Mexico 1-3 in Copa America action, defender Maxi Pereira said.

Mexico rolled over the South American team on Sunday in Phoenix, but Pereira said Uruguay had come back in more challenging tournaments and would have to do it again at the Copa America, reports Efe.

"When you don't start with a victory, you must go out and win the next game (against Venezuela), it's all on us ... we have to have hope, we've pulled it together at more challenging times and you have to think about what's ahead," Pereira told reporters in the locker room after the match at the Phoenix University stadium.

The self-goal by Alvaro Pereira, "in part, set the tone for the rest of the match" for Uruguay, but "we had the whole game ahead of us and we knew we could recover", Pereira said.

The second half "was completely different until we tied the score," but the second Mexican goal "was a hard blow," the 31-year-old defender said.

Teammate Alvaro Gonzalez, for his part, said that although the Uruguayan team played with 10 men on the field the whole second half, it kept fighting to stay even and did it.

"We made a great effort, we didn't give up the match as a loss, we didn't hold back, and one (player) down we tied the score, but when it looked like we would be able to keep it up, they scored again," Gonzalez said.

Uruguay will face Venezuela, which defeated Jamaica on Sunday, on June 9.

--IANS

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