"It does not make up for the fact that we lost. I know that the boys gave their all on the field. We could not give that joy to the [Peruvian] people. We will continue to grow and this will empower us with time."
Gareca was also magnanimous in defeat, commending Chile for their performance, and naming them as his favourites for the title.
"Today, Peru was eliminated by virtue of Chile,” he continued.
"Chile is a strong candidate to be champion. This was true before the Copa and is now reaffirmed. These games are different and there is a lot of pressure. But they solved the game and that has merit.”