Not
1, 2 But With 3 Goals Costa Rica Defeats
US Again
By the 13th minute of its 2010 World
Cup qualifier here Wednesday night,
the U.S. men's national soccer team
was once again hopelessly lost
inside the Saprissa stadium.
Roars of approval echoed throughout
the stadium, also known as La Cueva
del Monstruo (Monster's Cave, in
reference to the stadium's home
team, Saprissa logo), as Costa Rica
tore through the Americans' weak
resistance en route to an early
two-goal lead and an eventual 3-1
rout.
For all practical matters, the U.S.
team's hopes were extinguished just
85 seconds into the match when
Alvaro Saborio struck from long
distance.
Celso Borges added another goal
shortly thereafter, and the
Americans (2-1-1) appeared headed
for their third straight shutout
loss and sixth consecutive defeat in
Costa Rica.
Pablo Herrera scored in the second
half for the Ticos before Landon
Donovan converted a late penalty
kick for the U.S. team, which
relinquished first place to the
Ticos (3-1) in the six-team final
round of qualifying for North and
Central America and the Caribbean.
"As a group tonight, we came up
short in every way," U.S. Coach Bob
Bradley said.
With the win, Costa Rica takes first
place in the six-team regional
finals of North and Central America
and the Caribbean with nine points,
two ahead of the United States. |
|
