Gustavo Costas: “Every match is a war, and you have to come out alive”

“Every match is a war, and you have to come out alive.” Gustavo Costas used those words to describe Cerro Porteño’s current fight for confidence after the team’s agonizing victory over Nacional in the neighborly derby.

The coach said he still wants his side to play good football and build from the back. Cerro even scored recently after moving the ball from its own goal to the other end of the field. But with only a few days of work, Costas acknowledged that the plan does not always come off. He rejected the idea of hiding behind that situation. “I could make 200,000 excuses,” he said, while noting that players could also point to the change from one coach’s methods to another’s.

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Every match is a war: you have to come out alive.

For Costas, the immediate priority is collecting three points. He warned that losing can create a damaging cycle, even when a team dominates a match and concedes an undeserved goal. Winning, by contrast, can restore confidence and help the players perform better, even when the football is not yet polished.

The coach also said he had worked with the squad on understanding where it plays and what the blue-and-red shirt represents. He said the team needs everyone, particularly as several injured players continue to recover. Costas praised the group’s fighting spirit against a difficult Nacional side and said the late goal kept Cerro’s hopes alive.

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I could make 200,000 excuses.