Costa Rica vs. El Salvador
2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup
July 11 | 9 pm ET | BBVA Compass Stadium, Houston, Texas
TV: Fox Sports 2, UniMás, UDN in US, Sportsnet World in Canada
Two Central American nations at opposite ends of most observers' Gold Cup prognistications meet in the nightcap of Saturday's Group B doubleheader in Houston, Texas, as Costa Rica and El Salvador hunt for important points.
After spending much of 2014 as CONCACAF's top team in the FIFA World Rankings, Los Ticos are eager to build on their gutsy World Cup campaign by breaking up the USA and Mexico's joint stranglehold on the Gold Cup. Conversely, El Salvador are looking up at most of the region, still in recovery mode from their 2013 match-fixing scandal and keen to find promising signs for the future.
ALL TO PLAY FOR: Both sides labored to draws in their opening matches against Jamaica and Canada, respectively, in Southern California on Wednesday night, adding uncertainty to a group that most saw as Costa Rica's to lose coming into the tournament. Los Ticosblew a 2-1 halftime lead against the Reggae Boyz and had to settle for a 2-2 result. Meanwhile, El Salvador outplayed Canada for long stretches, but were counting their luck when Orlando City SC rookie Cyle Larin missed an empty net in the first half of a 0-0 stalemate.
HORRIFIC HISTORY FOR CUSCATLECOS: El Salvador can boast two World Cup appearances and two second-place Gold Cup finishes in their rich history. But the matchup with Los Ticos has not been a flattering one, with Costa Rica holding an all-time record of 38-10-14 vs. Los Cuscatlecos – and only two losses since since 1997.
MORE RUIZ, PLEASE: The talented Bryan Ruiz scored two goals for Costa Rica during their impressive quarterfinal run at the World Cup and just clinched a promising move from England's Fulham to Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon. But Ruiz had a quiet night against Jamaica, taking no shots and making way for Elias Aguilar in the 67th minute. Los Ticos will be looking for more from their creative force against El Salvador, given what he's shown in the past (like this strike vs. Greece last summer):
