World Cup 2022: Live Spain vs Costa Rica
Опубликовано: 23-11-2022, 13:27, , 677, 0
Where: Al-Tumama Stadium
When: Wednesday, November 23 at 19:00 (16:00 GMT)
FIFA ranking: Spain (7), Costa Rica (31)
Odds of Costa Rica vs. Spain
Los Ticos, as the Costa Rica team is known, will look to repeat their heroic performance at the 2014 World Cup, where they defied all odds and topped a group of three World Cup winners: Uruguay, England and Italy. They then knocked out Greece in the round of 16 reaching the quarter-finals, where they lost to the Netherlands on penalties. This year they once again formed a tough group with Germany, Spain and Japan.
In Spain they will face a team made up of promising young players such as 18-year-old Gavi and 19-year-old Pedri, both midfielders, as well as seasoned veterans such as Chelsea defender Cesar Azpilicueta.
Under manager Luis Enrique, the Spanish national team have been in great form lately, topping the UEFA Nations League group with a morale-boosting victory over Portugal in September.
But anyone who underestimates Costa Rica does so at their own risk. Los Ticos have won their last five matches and have had impressive results in their World Cup qualification campaign, including victories over Canada and the United States.
Spain odds against Costa Rica
"The first match is always difficult, but on paper Spain are favorites to beat Costa Rica," says Syed Nabawi, a sports journalist who specializes in Spanish football. "A victory will give Spain confidence in their next match against Germany."
Costa Rica is expected to play conservative football. It's a style they've become known for in recent years, and one that disappointed several high-profile teams in 2014. At the heart of the defensive structure is Keylor Navas, a PSG stopper with over 100 shots. speeches for their country.
Spain will rely on their attacking sense to break the often stubborn Costa Rica defense. They will not want a repeat of their first Euro 2020 match against Sweden, where they failed to score despite 17 shots on goal and a staggering 86 per cent of possession.
Costa Rica will face a tough challenge in attack, with 30-year-old ex-Arsenal striker Joel Campbell facing Real Madrid's Dani Carvajal and Barcelona's Eric Garcia on defense. Spain have not conceded more than two goals in a game since beating Croatia 5-3 at Euro 2020 over a year ago.
Spain have decided to drop several big names from their squad, including Navas' former Real Madrid teammate Sergio Ramos and Manchester United's David de Gea.
Neither team performed well at the last World Cup, with Costa Rica finishing last in their group with just one point and Spain losing to Russia in the round of 16. They both want to catch up in Qatar starting Wednesday.
Live broadcast of the Spain-Costa Rica match is available on the 1win platform.
