Covering up a penalty was not enough to get what Ricardo Gareca and his team expected. In a difficult match in which the options were constant, especially in favor of Australia, they equalized without goals in 120 minutes and ran into the fate of penalties. Unfortunately, and although Pedro Gallese stopped one, Alexander Varela failed to score the most important one saved by the Australian goalkeeper, and it is the ‘Socceroos’ who enjoy it.
Peru was in fifth position in the Conmebol Qualifiers, a quota that did not give an accurate classification, but the opportunity to play the playoff against the Asian team. Luck was cast for the Incas to face Australia in a definition of a single match that refreshed memories because both teams met at the 2018 World Cup.
The Peruvians lacked scoring options in the 120 minutes, reacting towards the end with a shot from the vertical. Thus, and with equality without goals, the definition was extended to the penalty spot. Pedro Gallese won the toss and with full confidence in himself, he decided to start blocking and indeed had a result, saving the first Australian pitch.
However, the final execution came at the feet of Alexander Varela. The recently entered ran into an Andrew Redmayne who replaced Matthew Ryan in the complement for the shootout. With his characteristic dance with which Sydney FC became champion in the Australian league, he distracted the kickers. Luis Advíncula met the vertical, and Varela with the goalkeeper.
Complete disappointment portrayed by Pedro Gallese who referred to it, Peru could not settle in the World Cup and the sadness was not a secret, ‘it is a very hard moment, we were all excited to see our flag again in a World Cup ‘. He added, ‘we knew it was going to be a tough game, and it was like that (…) we lost the game, we lost the penalties, but Australia also did their thing. It’s a tough team, that runs’.
Ricardo Gareca also spoke about the disappointment of not being able to bring joy to the Peruvians who came to the Al-Rayyan Stadium. He did not mention much about his future, although he maintained that once they arrive in Lima, the situation will be analyzed. Pedro Gallese hopes that the Argentine will continue, as it has been a long process on the bench that has brought many joys and different changes, ‘he has taught us a lot, he has changed the mentality of the players’. A winning mentality that returned the feeling of going to a World Cup in 2018. Finally, Gallese maintained that the fringed team has no ceiling and that they will recover soon.
