Costa Rica men’s soccer team returns to training for first time during pandemic

The Costa Rica men’s soccer team will return to training this week with a view to its September friendly against Mexico, coach Rónald González reported.

The Ticos will have a training “micro-cycle” on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with 27 players from the local tournament, including youngsters from the U-20 and U-23 teams.

“I am excited about this microcycle because we are going to see new faces in the national team, players who played good roles last season and in the preseason prior to this championship,” González said in a statement from the Costa Rican Football Federation (Fedefutbol).

Goalkeeper Alexander Lezcano (Herediano), defender Marco Meneses (Guadalupe), forward Bryan López (Santos) and midfielder Harry Rojas (Grecia) are some of the debutants in their national team call.

Costa Rica is preparing to face Mexico on September 30 at the Azteca Stadium.

The last time González coached La Sele was in January prior to a February 1 friendly against the United States.

Subsequently, the COVID-19 pandemic paralyzed world football, forcing changes to World Cup qualifiers and the Nations League in the process.

“This is the first microcycle, and it is an preview for the next ones to come, where we will continue to observe more national players and where more experienced players and international players will join,” González said.