SANTA CLARA, July 2 (Xinhua) -- Brazil manager Dorival Junior admitted that his side had plenty of scope for improvement after a 1-1 draw with Colombia in their final Copa America group match on Tuesday.
The result at Levi's Stadium meant Brazil finished second in Group D with five points from three games, two points behind leaders Colombia.
"We really had difficulties getting the ball out of defense because [Colombia] put a lot of pressure on us," Dorival told a news conference.
"These fluctuations happen. But we have to remember that Colombia have gone 25 matches without losing. Their level is different and it had a big impact."
Brazil's next match in the continental tournament will be a quarterfinal against Uruguay in Las Vegas on Sunday. The Celeste advanced to the last eight by finishing top of Group C with wins over Panama, the United States and Bolivia.
Dorival, who replaced Fernando Diniz as Brazil manager in January following a poor run of results, called for patience as he implements his ideas.
"It's a process and you can't skip steps," the 62-year-old said.
"I hope that the team continues to grow in the fundamental areas. That will only come through training and playing more games. We were able to spend some days together as a group to prepare for this tournament but we're going to need more time for the progress to become evident," he added. ■
