Costa Rica -
Canada Tie 2-2
MIAMI (AP) - Canada tied Costa Rica 2-2
Friday night and clinched the top spot in
its group at the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
The draw assured Canada seven points in
Group A. The Canadians defeated Jamaica and
El Salvador in their first two group games
and advanced to the tournament quarterfinals
July 18.
Costa Rica, which finished with a victory,
loss and a draw, advanced to the knockout
stage as group runner-up after Jamaica beat
El Salvador 1-0 later Friday.
“It was a well-played match,” Costa Rica
coach Rodrigo Kenton said. “We got careless
for a 10-minute period, but overall both
teams played well.
“Congratulations to Canada.”
Costa Rica sought a tie-breaking goal in the
final 15 minutes of regulation. In the 75th,
Celso Borges’ took a shot deep in the
penalty area that was deflected by Canadian
defender Jaime Peter, who stood next to the
left post.
Eight minutes later, Canada dodged another
close call as Walter Centeno’s header sailed
above the crossbar.
“I thought the guys played their hearts
out,” Canada defender Andrew Hainault said.
“We’re happy with the result. To come out
first in the group, nobody expected us to do
this.”
Costa Rica struck first on Andy Herron’s
goal in the 22nd minute. Greg Sutton sent a
goal kick to the midfield area, where Costa
Rica’s Armando Alonso headed it to an open
Herron on the right wing. Herron dribbled
unmarked to Canada’s penalty area and Sutton
came off his line to cut Herron’s angle. But
Herron flicked a shot past Sutton.
Canada responded with two goals in the next
4 minutes. Patrice Bernier tied the match in
the 23rd minute. Bernier received Josh
Simpson’s pass from the left wing and beat
goalkeeper Ricardo Gonzalez with a shot from
just outside the 6-yard box.
Marcel De Jong gave Canada a 2-1 lead with
an unassisted goal in the 27th. De Jong
found a loose ball, dribbled 5 yards and
blasted a shot from 25 yards that landed
inside the left post.
Centeno tied it with a swerving free kick
above a wall of defenders 7 minutes later. |
