FRANCE 98 – Holland-Mexico – A. Garcia Aspe: “We demonstrated a strength of character in this match”

Holland-Mexico – A. Garcia Aspe: “We demonstrated a strength of character in this match”

25.06.98 20h15 CET

Alberto GARCIA ASPE (8), captain:

“We demonstrated a strength of character in this match against HOLLAND and our team has a strong personality. We got out of a tricky situation and did the right thing. I didn’t know the result of the other match between BELGIUM and SOUTH KOREA because we were all concentrating on our game. It was a really good performance as HOLLAND are amongst the favourites for this World Cup. We have a good team and could take on anybody, GERMANY just as well as YUGOSLAVIA. The Latin American teams are now just as good as the European ones.”

Jorge CAMPOS (1):

“As for the red card given to Ramon RAMIREZ (7). I didn’t agree with the referee’s decision but he’s the one who has the last say. I followed all the GERMANY and YUGOSLAVIA matches and don’t have a particular preference. In either case, we’ll do our utmost.”

Ramon RAMIREZ (7):

“I’m sad, I won’t be able to play in the second round as I got a red card. However, I am happy for my country. We’ve got our qualification thanks to our excellent second halves. I don’t have any preference as to our next opponents who will be in any case very difficult. We’ll do our best.”

Ricardo PELAEZ (9):

“Today is really something to remember, but tomorrow we’ll have to think about our next round. I am happy for the whole of South America. For the rest of the tournament, we’ll know how to maintain the essential quality needed by every team: the desire to win… whoever the opponent might be.”

Cuauhtemoc BLANCO (11):

“We have reached our goal thanks to tonight’s match against HOLLAND: We’re through to the second round. If we want to put the pressure on GERMANY, we’ll have to be very motivated and not hesitate to attack. We have an offensive side that can do just that.”

Luis HERNANDEZ (15):

“It’s a joy that we’re going to celebrate this evening. I’m glad I’m played today. I’ll always remember it because we made it to the second round. HOLLAND took advantage of our attacking game and space to score their goals. During the second half, we tightened up the sidelines and we managed to score using counterattack. We didn’t want to know the result of the BELGIUM – SOUTH KOREA match. We now hope that COLOMBIA to make Latin America happy. I want to thank the public, they supported us up until the end. Our equalisation is thanks to them as well.”