Copa America | Uruguay coach believes his players deserve an apology

(Charlotte) Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa said his players deserved an apology, not punishment, for storming into the stands at the Bank of America Stadium and attacking Colombia fans after their 1-0 defeat in the Copa America semi-finals.

A furious Bielsa criticised tournament organisers for failing to protect the players’ families sitting behind the Uruguay bench, adding that his players had been right to take matters into their own hands in May by going into the stands to protect their loved ones.

“We are in the United States, the country of security,” Bielsa said through an interpreter on Friday. “How can you not want to protect your mother, your sister, your baby? If they had not done so, they would have been judged by all of us.”

South American soccer federation CONMEBOL said Thursday its disciplinary committee was investigating the incident.

“It is unacceptable that an incident like this turns passion into violence,” the federation wrote in a statement.

Asked if he feared his team would be punished, Bielsa expressed his anger.

“The sanctions should not go against the players, but against those who forced them to act like that,” he said. “It has become a witch hunt. It is embarrassing.”

Uruguay had the option of seating team members’ families in the boxes, rather than in the stands.

The team will return to Bank of America Stadium on Saturday for the bronze medal game against Canada. The crowd is expected to be less enthusiastic and no changes to the security plan are planned.

More than 70,000 spectators attended Wednesday’s match, 90 percent of them Colombia supporters. There were only a few small cells of Uruguay supporters, many of them behind the team’s bench.

After a hard-fought match that saw seven yellow cards and one red card, fights broke out in the stands and drinks were thrown. About ten Uruguay players went to the stands, including Darwin Núñez.

Bielsa claimed that the security measures in place had not been sufficient and complained about the lack of an emergency exit for Uruguay fans. Several representatives of the Uruguayan soccer federation escaped the fighting by going onto the pitch, while police restored order.

The melee in the crowd lasted more than five minutes.

At one point during the press conference, Bielsa raised his voice in an exchange with a journalist, who eventually left the room before the end of the conference.

“You should ask me if we have received an apology, not if we fear sanctions,” Bielsa shouted.

Defender Sebastian Cáceres also expressed concerns about the incident.

“What happened after the game is something that anyone would have done,” Cáceres said. “I went to make sure my family was okay and I tried to bring my teammates with me to make sure this would end.”