Mexico 2-0 Costa Rica
In a night when Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez tied Jared Borgetti’s all-time scoring mark, Mexico also showed to the whole online betting community that they are the team to beat in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifiers.
Sure enough, Costa Rica tried their hardest to defy betting odds and keep their place at the top of the Hex, but Mexico’s “great attacking quality” just proved to be too much for the visitors.
Using a 5-4-1 formation, Coach Oscar Ramirez’ plan against Mexico was clear: defend, stop them from getting opportunities inside the box and share the spoils at Estadio Azteca.
However, Costa Rica’s plan backfired when Carlos Vela slipped a pass to Chicharito to put Mexico ahead in seven minutes. It was the 28-year-old’s record-tying 46th goal for his country, which was also the defining moment of their win over the Ticos.
La Sele didn’t sit back and even dominated in the midfield to get some solo runs down the pitch. Nonetheless, their defensive approach and lineup got the best out of them as they struggled to finish on the net.
El Tri, on the other hand, continued their relentless attack and found another chance at the stroke of half-time with Carlos Vela again assisting Nestor Araujo who nodded home their second over keeper Keylor Navas.
Putting in Joel Campbell minutes after the restart, Costa Rica hoped to get some ground back. Nevertheless, the Mexicans looked livelier in the second and controlled the moment to keep the Costa Ricans at bay.
Bryan Ruiz threatened Mexico with a couple of opportunities midway through the game, including a nice lofted ball in the Mexican area. Though, that was the nearest they can get to scoring as they failed to pull one back over the spirited Mexico outfit.
The victory put Mexico on top of the Hex with seven points on two wins and a draw, while Costa Rica went down to second with their first defeat this round.
It should be worrying for El Tri though that Chicharito is hurt and still uncertain to play in their next game after picking up a knock in the 66th minute.
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