Everything is ready within the United States and Costa Rica teams to fight tomorrow, Saturday, for a place in the grand final of the fourteenth Gold Cup in the opening game of the semifinals.
Both teams have reached the semifinals without making the best football but being consistent and taking full advantage of the individual talent they possess in their respective templates.
Saturday’s duel will be their seventh in the Gold Cup competition, with an overwhelming lead for the United States with a five-win mark, including that of the 2002 final (2-0) – the only game played by Costa Rica -, and a draw.
None of that matters so much to the United States coach, Bruce Arena, who today in the last pre-match press conference said that they are clear that they will face “a team that in the last duel with them won us in a way Very precise and therefore we must be prepared for this meeting and not another. ”
Despite the significant losses that Costa Rica will have because of the injuries, Arena praised the way they have managed to maintain their quality in the field.
As for what his team is going to offer at the AT & T Stadium in Arlington (Texas), where the game is going to play, Arena did not want to get into the criticism he has received for lack of precision in his football and said that each One could say what he wanted.
What he did talk about was the enthusiasm that reigned within the group and the motivation they felt for fighting again in search of a pass to the final.
As usual in Arena, did not want to give clues about the lineup presented against Costa Rica, although everything seems to indicate that it will be the same that played against El Salvador in the quarterfinals and won 2-0.
There will be the key men who are sure holders under his direction like goalkeeper Tim Howard, Mexican national defender Omar Gonzalez, – scorer of two decisive goals against Martinique and El Salvador – midfielder Michael Bradley and strikers Clint Dempsey and Jozy Altidore.
It was also contrary to the fact that at this stage of the tournament, we are trying to dose the forces because they are the matches in which we have to give everything in the field, no matter how little time they have been able to recover between matches.
For his part, Óscar RamÃrez, the top manager of Costa Rica was also optimistic about the seventh duel they will have against the United States in the Gold Cup.
Despite the team’s injuries – Bryan Oviedo, Christian Gamboa, Joel Campell, Johan Venegas, Rodney Wallace and Ariel Rodriguez – RamÃrez reiterated that he has a competitive team with the motivation and conviction of winning the United States.
“We do not have to think about that, here the theme is to play the pass to the final according to the circumstances we have, they have tried to say that it is for the preparation, but this is football, a short tournament and injuries are given.”
Ramirez recalled that the United States was a typical game of Concacaf, where the final line of the tournament come the selections that have a very similar football level and everything can happen to a single encounter.
Like Arena, did not want to advance anything as to the probable starting lineup that will present tomorrow in a stadium that until now has been talisman in the Gold Cup after playing in the 2009 editions against Guadalupe and against Cuba in The one of 2011 with trails slashed of 5-1 and 5-0, respectively.
As for the referee, Salvadoran Joel Aguilar, a sad reminder for the Costa Rican team, Ramirez did not want to comment and said that what they had to do was play and get to be in the final.
Aguilar returns to a game between both teams four years after the memorable snowfall, when Costa Rica lost 1-0 against the United States in Denver to Brazil 2014, playing in an impracticable field for the sport of football , In another scandal of the arbitration within the Concacaf.
Probable alignments:
United States: Tim Howard; Eric Lichaj, Matt Hedges, Omar Gonzalez, Justin Morrow; Paul Arriola, Michael Bradley, Darlington Nagbe, Gyasi Zardes; Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey.
Coach: Bruce Arena.
Costa Rica: Patrick Pemberton; José Salvatierra, Giancarlo González, Kendall Watson, Johnny Acosta; David Guzman, Bryan Ruiz, Francisco Calvo, Yeltsin Tejeda; Marco Ureña and Ulises Segura.
Coach: Oscar RamÃrez.
Referee: Joel Aguilar (El Salvador)
Stadium: AT & T Stadium of Arlington (Texas). Natural céspede. 100,000 spectators.
Time: 21:00 local (20:00 Costa Rica and 02:00 gmt on July 23).
