Chile's Arturo Vidal says 'keeper Claudio had assured team that he would not allow Ronaldo & Co to score in tie-breaker; he saved three out of three shots
Chile's Claudio Bravo dives to stops one of Portugal’s penalties during their Confederations Cup semi-final on Wednesday. Pic/AFP
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Claudio Bravo proved Chile's hero on Wednesday as the Manchester City goalkeeper saved all three penalties to eliminate Portugal in a semi-final shootout following a 0-0 draw after extra time in Kazan to seal a place in Sunday's final. And Arturo Vidal has revealed what Bravo said to his Chile teammates before the tie-breaker.
While Bravo showed nerves of steel, his teammates transformed hot iron will into cool composure as Arturo Vidal, Charles Aranguiz and Alexis Sanchez calmly converted their spot-kicks. It was European champions Portugal who came up short, with Bravo denying Ricardo Quaresma, Joao Moutinho and Nani from the spot. And it is now revealed what Bravo said to his countrymen before the spot-kicks took place.
Chile's midfielder Arturo Vidal
"Claudio is extraordinary. He told us before the penalties that he was going to stop two or three," Vidal told ESPN.
"That was a crazy end, the first penalty is always the most important," said Vidal. "We fought like crazy and now we hope we can face Germany in the final and win that too."
Remarkably, after the game, Bravo claimed he was suffering from an injury.
"That was unbelievably stressful. This team never gives up, which means we can achieve great things like this," said the 34-year-old 'keeper.
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