Ecuador struggle to absorb 'hard blow' of World Cup exit

DOHA : Ecuador's players collapsed in tears after failing to reach the World Cup knockout stage on Tuesday and their equally devastated coach acknowledged it was a bitter pill to swallow.

"I am in pain over this defeat. We all are," Gustavo Alfaro said after his young team lost 2-1 to Senegal in Group A to end third and out of the Qatar tournament.

"It is a hard blow. It is a big frustration that we are feeling. We knew that details could make all the difference and unfortunately that's what happened in this match."

Defeat was desperately frustrating for Ecuador after they had fought back to 1-1, but then conceded a sloppy goal minutes later to deny them the draw needed to reach the last 16, a feat they achieved only once in 2006.

Elimination was all the more painful given how close they came to beating the Netherlands in their second game which, after defeating Qatar, would have put them in the knockout stage even before Tuesday's game against the African champions.

"Unfortunately we made mistakes in the decisive match," Alfaro said, after watching his team concede a penalty to Senegal then switch off at the back for the second goal against.

"This leaves us with a bad feeling because we wanted to go through and stay on this road we had been following. The pain that we all feel right now, which Ecuador is feeling, is a huge pain.

"But we need to take into account the good performances we played and take that into the future. I am sure that these players will have revenge in the future."

Alfaro said he was disappointed with Ecuador's failure to keep the ball in midfield during the first half against Senegal but pleased with their reaction in the second.

"During the first half we were not ourselves. What I was telling my