Brazil coach calls on his players to improve

Kochi, October 19: Brazil coach Carlos Amadeu is not entirely happy with the performance of his team despite outplaying Honduras 3-0 in their FIFA U-17 World Cup pre-quarterfinal match.

Ahead of their quarter-final against heavyweights Germany, Amadeu felt his team cannot give away chances like they did against the Hondurans.

"All the players have their functions. The responsibility is mixed. Our midfield was not really good in their defensive system. We could block the play at the wings. But we conceded many long- and medium-range shots. They (Honduras) were very close to scoring against us. This is what we have to be careful about in the next match," Amadeu said. "We had 20 minutes of good football against Honduras. After that, we went a bit slow and were vulnerable in the counter attacks. At the end of the first half, we scored our second goal and that gave us some time to relax."

He conceded that his players were a bit complacent towards the end of the match against Honduras and could not afford to be the same against Germany. "We had these moments of losing concentration, losing focus. It is a challenge for us, for me and our technical staff to go through because it is little bit difficult for us," Amadeu said.

Amadeu, however, said he was happy with the overall performance of his team in the tournament so far. "I am proud of my players. They are playing with maturity and we have been working on this team since 2015. This is why we have been able to do so well," he said.

Asked about his thoughts on the quarterfinal match against Germany on October 22 in Kolkata, Amadeu was non-committal. "We will travel (to Kolkata) and then think about Germany. Everybody expects Brazil to win because our style is go out and attack. So there will be pressure on the boys and it will be a bit difficult," he said. "You get more tired when you are trying to win matches. That's why we are not thinking about Germany yet. We will think about recovery first and then we will think about next match. However, I have to point out that in our recent match, a year ago, we beat Germany to win the gold medal in the Rio Olympics. We will draw inspiration from that."