Uruguay |
| Costa Rica |
Uruguay vs Costa Rica Match Preview
Uruguay match analysis
The Uruguayans defied all the odds by beating Costa Rica 1-0 through Diego Lugano's first half goal.
Uruguay were usually poor away from home throughout the qualifiers but their passion and determination last Saturday paid-off with a victory against an excellent Costa Rica team.
Uruguay missed out on the opportunity of qualifying automatically for the World Cup against Argentina in the last match-day of the South American zone, but their captain Diego Lugano carried the team on his shoulders as he scored the only goal of the match in Costa Rica.
After the match, Uruguay’s manager Oscar Washington Tabarez expressed his relief:
“This result is very important as winning away is never easy. We’ve passed a very difficult test in a very opened game.”
He also said:
“We’re focused on Wednesay.
“We’ve dreamt for three and a half years and we now have the chance to realize it.”
This result ultimately gives Uruguay a lifeline boost ahead of the return leg which will exclude the likes of Costa Rica’s Randall Azofeifa after the player received a red card on Saturday.
Adding to the fact that Costa Rica will have to adapt with the absence of Azofeifa, they’ll also have to find a way of shutting down Atletico Madrid’s Diego Forlan.
The striker was terrific last weekend and he was only just denied from being off the mark to multiply Uruguay’s lead and crush Costa Rica on their won soil.
On Wednesday, fans of the home side will be on their feet awaiting the final whistle to celebrate their way through to the finals of the World Cup in South Africa.
The mission is not over yet and things could turn around negatively for Uruguay and positively for Costa Rica, but according to analysis there are few probabilities that such an upset will occur.
Costa Rica match analysis
Costa Rica were terrible away from home during the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers with three defeats in five outings and their poor statistics explain that they will be denied from reaching South Africa next summer if there is no miracle on Wednesday.
For Costa Rica’s Brazilian boss Rene Simoes, the gates are open and the paths are done for his team to comeback and cruise into the promise land.
Reflecting on Saturday’s loss to Uruguay at home, the manager explained:
“The first half was decisive and our form was poor. In the second period, we started playing despite the fact that we were one man down.
“And if we had played the first period the same way we played after the interval, we’d have secured another result.
“We must believe that we can qualify. It is not over. There are 180 minutes and we’re 1-0 down after the first half. It is not over at all.”
He concluded:
“Uruguay won the World Cup in 1950 at the Maracana, so why can’t we win at the Centenario?”
The deal is to win and nothing else for Costa Rica if they want to appear in the World Cup for yet another time.
