USA 2 Costa Rica 2 (USA win 4-3 on pens)
June 29 – You’d hate to use the word ‘sterile’ to describe a Concacaf Gold Cup quarter-final, but following the drama and passion of Guatemala versus Canada, it all felt a little flat as the United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) and Costa Rica kicked off for the right to face Guatemala in St. Louis. After 90 minutes and the drama of penalty kicks, ‘sterile’ would not be the right word as USA would be celebrating.
As the contest began, the crowd looked bigger than the first game, with 32,289 on hand. Was it Guatemala fans staying behind to hopefully gloat, or had the home country finally shown up in force? The 100 or so red, white, and blue Sam’s Army supporters behind the goal did their best to make some noise, but in the monstrous U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, they’d need an amplifier.
USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino made three changes to the team that had beaten Haiti, bringing in Max Arfsten for John Tolkin, Sebastian Berhalter for Quinn Sullivan, and Diego Luna for Brenden Aaronson. Both Arfsten and Luna would have a major impact in the first 45 minutes and beyond.
Costa Rica boss Miguel Herrera also made three changes from the 0-0 draw versus Mexico, with Alexis Gamboa for Jeyland Mitchell, Alejandro Bran for Joseph Mora, and Juan Pablo Vargas for Manfred Ugalde.
The game began at a slow pace, resulting in an uneventful first ten minutes. However, in the 12th minute, a rash challenge from Arfsten – perhaps showing his inexperience – resulted in referee Walter Lopez Castellanos pointing to the spot after Kenneth Vargas got his body across the U.S. defender.
Francisco Calvo stepped up to take the penalty, and despite Matt Freese getting a good hand on the ball, it still found its way into the net for a Costa Rican lead.
Arfsten tried to make amends quickly, sending in a great cross that Alexander Freeman couldn’t convert.
In the 25th minute, thanks to the prompting of Tyler Adams, who seemingly wanted to cover every blade of grass, a smart interchange of passes saw Patrick Agyemang hit the side netting. It was a warning shot that the Ticos ignored at their peril.
Another slick move saw Malik Tillman whip in a cross. On the follow-through, Juan Pablo Vargas clipped Tillman’s ankle. Lopez Castellanos was called by VAR to take a look and, after a long wait, pointed to the penalty spot.
Tillman took responsibility, which seemed odd as he was still struggling with his ankle. His effort from 12 yards was poor and hit the post. Arfsten curled in the rebound, forcing Keylor Navas to respond with a world-class save.
And then it kicked off. Vargas got in Tillman’s face, questioned his penalty prowess, and both teams rushed at each other for a 22-man melee.
An American goal was coming, though, and in the 43rd minute, Luna received Arfsten’s pass, with the Real Salt Lake attacker showing off the power of his left foot. The shot was pure, the deflection nasty, and Navas was wrong-footed as the game was tied up.
The second half began with the USMNT on the front foot, and within two minutes they had taken the lead with perhaps the best-worked goal of the Gold Cup to date. Chris Richards found the influential Tillman (the U.S. version of Jude Bellingham), who combined beautifully with Agyemang to release Arfsten, and the youngster made no mistake slotting the ball past Navas.
After making the mistake for the penalty, Arfsten had shown heart and poise to come back with an assist and a goal.
Just minutes later, Berhalter curled in a wicked free kick that Richards met perfectly. However, he hadn’t taken into account the ageless Keylor Navas, who produced yet another world-class save.
This looked to be the moment for the US to kill Costa Rica off. However, they stepped back and let the Ticos back into the game – a tactical or mental mistake that only Pochettino and his players could answer for.
In the 72nd minute, Carlos Mora put on his dancing shoes, slicing and dicing two US defenders before unleashing a shot that Freese should surely have done better with. The rebound fell back to Mora, who pulled it back for Alonso Martinez to equalize, and you had to say it was deserved.
Minutes later, a clearly nervous Freese fumbled a long speculative effort from Jefferson Brenes behind for a corner, and it was Costa Rica making the running despite being second-best for long periods.
Six minutes from the end, Alonso Martinez picked up a loose ball and hit a laser. Freese was a spectator, but cruelly for Martinez, his shot hit the inside of the post and bounced away.
In stoppage time, Tillman had a chance to win it, but his shot was deflected wide. So we would go to the lottery that is penalties and once again ask the question: who’s got the bottle?
Penalty Shootout
Costa Rica: Alonso Martinez – straight down the middle. 1-0
USA: Tyler Adams squeaks his shot under the hand of Navas, who guessed right. 1-1
Costa Rica: Vargas with a really poor effort that Freese gratefully smothers. 1-1
USA: Tillman shows tremendous courage after missing from the spot in regular time, fizzing his effort into the corner. 1-2
Costa Rica: Santiago van der Putten makes no mistake. 2-2
USA: Sebastian Berhalter goes into a full NFL kicking routine—one can only imagine to pay homage to U.S. Bank Stadium and the Minnesota Vikings. Three steps back, two to the side, and yes, he hits it straight over the bar. 2-2
Costa Rica: Brenes goes to his left with too much power for Freese, who goes the right way. 3-2
USA: Good penalty from Freeman, who picks his spot. 3-3
Costa Rica: Calvo, who scored during regular time, chooses this moment to hit the worst penalty of his life straight at Freese, who punches the ball out. 3-3
USA: Tolkin steps up to win it, but Navas rolls back the years with a wonderful save, diving to his left. 3-3
Costa Rica: Andy Rojas has the opportunity to put the Ticos in front, but he looks nervous. Freese reads the body language and makes the save. 3-3
USA: Damion Downs steps up to send the U.S. to the semifinals and a date with Guatemala -he makes no mistake. USA wins 4-3
After letting Costa Rica back into the game, the home crowd—for the first time in this year’s edition of the Gold Cup – showed up and willed the US forward. It made the difference!
Costa Rica were game opponents, but ultimately they couldn’t beat the one man who looked most vulnerable for Pochettino’s team: Matt Freese, who came up with three huge penalty saves.
It’s now four wins in a row for this team, and they are growing in belief and confidence. With Canada out of the way, if Los Chapines can be overcome, a date with Mexico surely awaits.
For Costa Rica and their young team, there is plenty more to come as they work their way back into Concacaf’s elite.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1751290388labto1751290388ofdlr1751290388owedi1751290388sni@o1751290388fni1751290388