Costa Rica were seen as underdogs in Group E from the start, but a surprise win over Japan keeps the Central Americans in contention for the Round of 16. Except for the goalkeeper, national coach Luis Fernando Suárez has no big stars in his team.
At the end of the group stage, Germany meets Costa Rica. Since the DFB-Elf is currently last, they absolutely have to win against the seven-time World Cup participant. The game could turn out to be a tough affair.
play style
Costa Rica takes on the role of the underdog, which is reflected very well in the team's football. Because coach Suárez relies above all on a stable defense and selective counterattacks. A 4-4-2 was used in the 0:7 against Spain, which, however, turned out to be inadequate against the short passing game and the transfer balls of the Iberians. For the second game against Japan, Suárez switched to the previously often practiced 3-4-2-1, which at least brought more defensive stability.
strengths of the team
The defense and goalkeeper Keylor Navas were mainly responsible for Costa Rica being able to qualify for this World Cup at all. The times when "Los Ticos" still played decent attacking football are over, at least for the moment, because strategic forces like Bryan Ruiz only play reserve roles or no longer play internationally. Due to the often solid work against the ball with compact rows and good movement to the ball, Costa Rica manages to allow opponents few shots on goal. The exception was the game against Spain last week, in which even goalkeeper Navas made a mistake. Otherwise, the 35-year-old is an important support - and was even the best player of all nations in the final qualifying round of CONCACAF.
weaknesses of the team
The dedicated defensive focus is not least due to the fact that Costa Rica can do very little going forward. Attacks work best after winning the ball and then down the left flank with Bryan Ovideo and Joel Campbell. But the record of the first two days of the game speaks volumes, because against Spain and Japan "Los Ticos" conceded just one shot on goal, which, thanks to a mistake by Shuichi Gonda, also resulted in the winner against Japan. With a single shot on goal, Costa Rica collected three points - two points more than the DFB team. It's a small miracle of this World Cup.
Of the four CONCACAF teams taking part in this World Cup, Costa Rica have already scored the fewest goals in qualifying, 13 in 14 games. So if so little comes out against the sometimes weak competition in North and Central America, it can only get worse at a World Cup.
key players
The aforementioned goalkeeper Keylor Navas is one of the greatest legends of Costa Rican football even before he retired. He won the Champions League three times with Real Madrid and was still a coveted name on the European transfer market a few years ago. Navas is now just the back-up for Gianluigi Donnarumma at Paris Saint-Germain but that doesn't diminish his status in Costa Rica. In addition, due to his successes, he is also an important leader and should lead the defense for head coach Suárez.
How should Germany play against Costa Rica?
If you want to get a rough idea of how this game could play out, you should watch a few clashes between the German national team and weaker nations in the World Cup qualifiers or the UEFA Nations League. Germany will have up to 70 percent possession of the ball and keep building up new attacks from behind. Patience is important here, because ill-considered passes can initiate rapid counterattacks from Costa Rica.
In addition, it will be important for Germany to secure any gains in space accordingly. For example, if the ball goes forward via Leon Goretzka and Jamal Musiala, at least one midfielder or full-back must be positioned appropriately behind them to block space or even initiate counter-pressing if the ball is lost.
Now the question of whether Niclas Füllkrug has earned a starting XI is driving Germany's soccer team. First of all, his final qualities speak for it, but the Bremen professional would possibly only wear himself out in the first half against the three central defenders of Costa Rica. One possibility would be to tire the defensive line with a Kai Havertz, Thomas Müller or even Youssoufa Moukoko and substitute Füllkrug in the second half so that he can then effectively use passes from Musiala or Leroy Sané.
Costa Rica manage to keep the lines very compact at times, but this element in the CONCACAF representative's game weakens as the game progresses. Then the hour of the filling jug could come again.
