Powerhouse teams Costa Rica (1-0-0, 3 points) and the United States (0-1-0, 0 points) are set to square off in a fifth round match in the CONCACAF 2018 World Cup qualifiers on Tuesday, Nov. 15 at the Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica in San José.
Start Time and Streaming Info
The game starts at 8:00 p.m. UTC-6. It can be viewed live online thru FuboTV.
Costa Rica topped the Group B competitions in the fourth round of the CONCACAF qualifiers and is one of the favorites to outright advance in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
La Sele has opened their Hexagonal campaign with an impressive 2-0 blanking of Trinidad and Tobago on the road at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Port of Spain last Friday, via SB Nation.
It was a hard-fought match right from the kickoff as both squads failed to score a goal in the first half because of their inspired defenses.
Eventually, Costa Rican right winger Christian Bolanos, who is currently playing for MLS club Vancouver Whitecaps, broke the deadlock in the 65th minute off an assist from Celtic defender Cristian Gamboa.
Trinidad and Tobago fought back in the late minutes looking for the equalizer, but a goal from New York City defender Ronald Matarrita in injury time sealed the win for head coach Oscar Ramírez's squad.
Meanwhile, the United States were nipped by Mexico, 1-2, at the Mapfre Stadium in Columbus, Ohio also last Friday to start the Hex on the wrong foot, as per USA Today.
Mexican midfielder Miguel Layun opened the scoring in the 20th minute which Team USA failed to respond to, letting the visitors take a one-point advantage in the halftime interval.
Head coach Jürgen Klinsmann's side was able to find the equalizer four minutes after the restart courtesy of a goal from Hamburger SV striker Bobby Wood off an assist from Toronto FC striker Jozy Altidore.
However, Mexico found the winning goal in the 89th minute with a strike from midfielder Rafael Marquez from a cross by Layun to snatch the three points away from the hosts.
Prediction and Predicted Lineup
The predicted result is a tough 2-1 decision for the United States.
Costa Rica starting lineup (5-4-1 formation): Navas; Gamboa, Waston, Acosta, Calvo, Matarrita; Ruiz, Borges, Azofeifa, Bolanos; Ureña
United States starting lineup (3-1-2-2-2 formation): Howard; Gonzalez, Brooks, Besler; Bradley; Chandler, Johnson; Pulisic, Jones; Altidore, Wood