Home / Match Previews / 2015 Gold Cup quarterfinal: Mexico v Costa Rica preview

2015 Gold Cup quarterfinal: Mexico v Costa Rica preview

Kick-off: July 19 @ 7.30 pm EST

Venue: MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, New Jersey)

Past meetings

Mexico v Costa Rica 2-2 (International friendly)
Costa Rica v Mexico 2-1 (2014 World Cup qualifier)
Mexico v Costa Rica 0-0 (2014 World Cup qualifier)
Mexico v Costa Rica 1-0 (2014 World Cup qualifier)
Costa Rica v Mexico 0-2 (2014 World Cup qualifier)

Mexico

Last 5 matches:

Mexico v Costa Rica 2-2 (international friendly)
Mexico v Honduras 0-0 (international friendly)
Mexico v Cuba 6-0 (2015 Gold Cup)
Guatemala v Mexico 0-0 (2015 Gold Cup)
Mexico v Trinidad 4-4 (2015 Gold Cup)

Team News:

Mexico national team did not exactly impress in the group stage and they missed out on the first position by conceding in the dying moments of the 4-4 draw with Trinidad & Tobago, with coach Miguel Herrera under intense pressure at the moment.

Despite conceding four goals in their last clash, Mexico will again line up in a 5-3-2 formation with virtually the same group of players that faced the Soca Warriors few days ago.

Even if star forward Giovani dos Santos (90/17) recovered from a thigh injury earlier than planned and already trained with his teammates, the LA Galaxy star is unlikely to be risked, meaning that Oribe Peralta (42/19) returns to the starting line-up.

Players to watch: Carlos Vela, Oribe Peralta, Hector Herrera.

Probable starting line-up (5-3-2): Ochoa – Aguilar, Reyes, Rodriguez, Y. Corona, Layun – J. dos Santos, Herrera, Guardado – Peralta, Vela.

Costa Rica

Last 5 matches:

Spain v Costa Rica 2-1 (International friendly)
Mexico v Costa Rica 2-2 (International friendly)
Costa Rica v Jamaica 2-2 (2015 Gold Cup)
Costa Rica v El Salvador 1-1 (2015 Gold Cup)
Canada v Costa Rica 0-0 (2015 Gold Cup)

Team News:

Costa Rica coach Paulo Wanchope decided to make one change to his roster ahead of the knockout stages, with experienced defender Michael Umana (92/1) dropped and Vancouver Whitecaps defender Kendall Watson (2/0) taking his place.

Talented midfielder David Guzman (15/0) misses out the Mexico game through suspension, with Jose Miguel Cubero (47/2) likely to replace him in the starting line-up.

Francisco Calvo (8/0) should be preferred to calamitous Roy Miller (57/2) in the heart of defence, whereas out-of-form forward Joel Campbell (49/10) could again be left on the bench, with his replacement Deyver Vega (7/0) producing a very good performance last time out.

Players to watch: David Ramirez, Bryan Ruiz.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Alvarado – Gamboa, Gonzalez, Calvo, Diaz – Borges, Cubero – Vega, Ruiz, Venegas – Ramirez.

Mexico v Costa Rica betting odds & tips

*Mexico have shown a great deal of promise up front and boasting a 4-2-0 record vs Costa Rica at the Gold Cup finals, El Tri look a good bet at 1.82 (41/50) to emerge victorious.

*With a total of 14 goals scored in Mexico’s games in group stage and Los Ticos far from impressive at the back, bear in mind that over 2.5 goals pays 2.47 (147/100).

*La Liga star Carlos Vela has been in fine form ever since he returned to the national team and after bagging two goals so far, he can be backed at 3.15 (43/20) to score anytime.

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2015 Gold Cup final: Jamaica v Mexico preview

2015 Gold Cup final: Jamaica v Mexico preview

Kick-off: July 26 @ 7.30 pm EST Venue: Lincoln Financial Field (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) Past meetings ...

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