The match ended in a 2-1 win to Argentina after goals by Messi and Aguero in the first half.
Tabarez said: “We deserved to lose. The result is difficult to explain when you give such advantages like we did at the beginning of the match,” admitted the Uruguay boss.
“Pulling a goal back allowed us to come back into the match. We forgot about the referee and the atmosphere,” he said, in relation to the controversial performance from match referee Carlos Torres of Paraguay.
“There were lots of stops and fouls but it is the job of the referee to sort that out. In the second half Argentina were responsible for all the stops, they wasted time and Torres didn’t do anything…fouls are normal in a derby.”
