Joaquín Papa refuses to celebrate after win in Colombia: "The series is wide open"

Winning away from home in the Copa Libertadores is never a small thing, but Joaquín Papa doesn't want to hear the word "done." The Independiente del Valle coach walked into the press conference after his team's win in Colombia over Tolima and tamped down the excitement before it could take hold: as far as he's concerned, the tie is still completely up for grabs.

The result in Ibagué was valuable, no doubt, but the Uruguayan preferred to talk about what's left to do rather than what had already been accomplished. His team will have to settle the series next week in Ecuador, and that's where Papa wants the squad's full focus to be.

The players are the first ones who aren't satisfied, who are with us in keeping the focus on what we want to improve rather than on the result. Obviously we want the result, but we have to concentrate on staying grounded so we can keep growing. We have plenty of room to improve.Joaquín Papa

His breakdown of the match itself also came with some caveats. Papa admitted that Tolima controlled most of the possession and that his team struggled to take charge of the ball, something that isn't usually the case in Independiente del Valle's game plan.

"It was an even match with a huge amount of possession for them. We defended well and we want to be more of a factor with the ball. For some reason we weren't today, we'll have to look at that. We want games where we can control the pace better. We're doing well, happy, with our feet firmly on the ground. We're not getting carried away with anything," the coach added.

The return leg, with the advantage under scrutiny

The underlying message is clear: winning on the road buys some breathing room, but it guarantees nothing in a two-legged format where any small detail can flip the overall result. Papa was explicit as he wrapped up his remarks, leaving the impression that in Ecuador the team will look for a sharper version of itself than the one it showed in Colombia.

"We hope to play a good match at home and advance in the series thanks to the good result on the road, but the series is wide open," the coach said, laying out the plan for the coming days of training.

Next Tuesday, Independiente del Valle will host Tolima in Ecuador with a spot in the quarterfinals of the Copa Libertadores on the line. The squad knows the first-leg result helps, but the real work still has to happen on the field.