World Cup: Italy 0-1 Costa Rica

Costa Rica shocked the footballing world by qualifying for the knockout stages of the 2014 FIFA World Cup from a group containing 7 World Cup’s between their three opponents. They did so after a one nil victory over four time champions Italy thanks to a first half header from captain Bryan Ruiz.

Not unexpectedly, the first 25 minutes of the game were void of opportunities for both sides. Italy set out with Daniele De Rossi and Thiago Motta sitting deep in the midfield area which limited the work the incomparable Andrea Pirlo could do. For Costa Rica, Joel Campbell could not get his foot on the ball in an advanced position which logically led to an intense midfield battle.

Just on the half hour mark, Pirlo finally got the chance to work his magic. Antonio Candreva laid it inside to Pirlo who hit a fifty yard pass to Mario Balotelli. The AC Milan striker got in behind the Costa Rican rear guard but could not match his team mates pass with the finish. Keylor Navas came out to close him down and former Manchester City striker dinked the ball over the bar.

Five minutes after that golden Balotelli chance, Gianluigi Buffon proved his worth having been restored to the side after injury. Christian Bolanos picked the ball up of Michael Umana before taking a single touch followed by a low drive. For a moment it appeared destined for the bottom corner but the Italian captain had other ideas, calmly tipping the ball away to safety.

On the stroke of halftime, Costa Rica continued their habits of shocking the pundits. Junior Diaz broke down the left in an acre of space before lining up to cross. He duly did, finding Ruiz, who has been sensational for PSV since arriving in January on loan. The skipper made no mistake, heading the ball past Buffon and over the line.

Italy introduced Antonio Cassano at the break and that brought a change in formation. It also brought a brighter tempo to their play, the first evidence of this came with a finely worked move which ended with left back Matteo Darmian rocketing a fine effort just over the crossbar.

In truth, Costa Rica were complete value for their lead with twenty minutes to go. The performances of Oscar Duarte and Yeltsin Tejeda were pleasing to anyone with a defensive eye and as a result Cesare Prandelli used his second and third substitutions to bring on the pace of Lorenzo Insigne and Alessio Cerci in an attempt to expose the high Costa Rican defensive line.

Italy were unable to keep themselves on side let alone create chances to find an equaliser. Costa Rica even had chances to extend their lead but nonetheless the Central American side became the third side to qualify for the knockout stages, at the official expense of England.

Italy: Gianluigi Buffon; Ignazio Abate, Andrea Barzagli, Giorgio Chiellini, Matteo Darmian; Daniele De Rossi, Thiago Motta (Antonio Cassano 46); Andrea Pirlo; Antonio Candreva (Lorenzo Insigne 57), Claudio Marchisio (Alessio Cerci 70); Mario Balotelli.

Booked: Mario Balotelli (69)

Costa Rica: Keylor Navas; Cristian Gamboa, Oscar Duarte, Giancarlo Gonzalez, Michael Umana, Junior Diaz; Christian Bolanos, Celso Borges, Yeltsin Tejeda (Jose Miguel Cubero 68), Bryan Ruiz (Randall Brenes 81); Joel Campbell (Marco Urena 74).

Booked: Jose Miguel Cubero (71).

Referee: Enrique Osses (Chile)

Attendance: 46,160

Extratime.com Man of the Match: Oscar Duarte (Costa Rica)