Costa Rica and Cuba opened their 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament schedules hoping to solidifying themselves as a candidate to advance to the elimination round.
RELATED: Cristiano Ronaldo Transfer News: Real Madrid President Florentino Perez Says Ronaldo Will Retire With Club
While Costa Rica entered Tuesday night's match as the favorite, the Cuban national defense did their job in holding players such as Alvaro Saborio and Yeltsin Tejeda off the scoreboard through the first 45-plus minutes of action. Alberto Gomez fired 3 shots for the Cuban's but because of a strong Costa Rican defensive effort, no shots found their way past keeper Patrick Pemberton.
Each team had their fair share of scoring opportunities with Costa Rica managing to get 8 shots off in the first half to Cuba's 9 and despite the commendable effort on the offensive end, both teams were rendered scoreless heading into the locker room.
RELATED: Barcelona Transfer News: David Villa Departing Camp Nou For Atletico Madrid
Both clubs were extremely pressing on the offensive end throughout the opening half and while Cuba was certainly capable of hanging with their opponents, it was Costa Rica who struck the first blow in the second frame.
Michael Barrantes sent a left-footed shot from the center of the box between the pipes six minutes into the second half to put Costa Rica up 1-0. The quick strike for Costa Rica coming out of the locker room was a clear indication of how talented this team can be in this Gold Cup and beyond.
Jairo Obando Arrieta increased the lead for Los Ticos in the 71st-minute and when a second Michael Barrantes shot found its way to the back of the net six minutes later, Costa Rica was well on their way to a victory with just over 10 minutes remaining in the match.
Thanks to a strong second half showing, Costa Rica earned a crucial win to open Gold Cup play in Group C. Their next match is set for Saturday, July 13th against Group C opponent Belize while Cuba will take on the United States that same day.
RELATED: Top 20 Latino Soccer Players Right Now [PHOTOS]
© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
