Costa Rica and Suriname saw out a tightly fought 1-1 draw on Friday night in Paramaribo, thanks to goals from Josimar Alcócer and Gleofilo Vlijter. In team news, interim coach Claudio Vivas made two changes from last month’s goalless draw against Guatemala, with Haxzel Quirós and Josimar Alcócer coming in for Gerald Taylor and Sebastián Acuña. Vivas stuck with his trademark 3-4-3 formation, but Joel Campbell was deployed in an unfamiliar central midfield role as the Argentine coach sought to inject more attacking flair into the team after last month’s drab goalless draw against Guatemala.
First-half
The match started so well for Los Ticos, and it appeared like the alterations had the deserved effect. After just 13 minutes, they took the lead when winger Josimar Alcócer expertly converted from a Manfred Ugalde through ball, a real clinical finish from 12 yards out by the Westerlo attacker. At that moment, it looked like the away side would stroll to an expected comfortable victory. However, from there, Suriname started to grow into the game and should have equalized in the 27th minute when Gleofilo Vlijter shot straight at Patrick Sequeira from six yards out.
The warning signs were evident, and just seven minutes later, the equalizer did come when leading goal scorer Gleofilo Vlijter coolly finished from a Sheraldo Becker cross. It was the first goal La Sele had conceded in the Nations League campaign, and it empowered the home side to take further initiative, with the rest of the half dominated by Suriname pressure.
Second-half
Five minutes into the second half, La Sele were reduced to ten men when goalscorer Alcócer picked up a second yellow for being adjudged to have followed through on winger Djevencio van der Kust, a harsh and pretty poor decision by the referee. Eight minutes later, Ariel Lassiter nearly scored, shooting just wide of the Suriname goal. But that was the closest Costa Rica came to a winner. In fact, with the man advantage, the home side looked the likelier to score.
With seven minutes to go, the ever-lively Becker shot inches wide of Sequeira’s goal, which would have been a historic winner. After that, the contest was a scrappy affair, and both sides had to settle for a point, as Suriname gained its first-ever positive result against La Sele.
A really disappointing display from Los Ticos after such a promising start, illustrated by the statistic that the away side’s only shot on target was the goal, a shameful feat against a nation ranked 138th in the FIFA rankings.
Player Ratings
1) Patrick Sequeira – 6.5/10
3) Jeyland Mitchell – 6,5/10
4) Juan Pablo Vargas – 5.5/10
15) Francisco Calvo (C) -6.5/10 (MOTM)
2) Haxzel Quirós – 5.5/10
13) Jefferson Brenes – 4/10
12) Joel Campbell -4/10
11) Ariel Lassiter – 4/10
20) Josimar Alcócer – 5/10
9) Manfred Ugalde – 4.5/10
17) Warren Madrigal – 4/10
Substitutes
2) Sebastián Acuña (for Jefferson Brenes 22nd minute) – 3.5/10
14) Alonso Martinez (for Ariel Lassiter 63rd minute) – 4/10
10) Brandon Aguilera (for Manfred Ugalde 63rd minute) – 4/10
21) Álvaro Zamora (for Warren Madrigal 71st minute) – N/A
14) Kenneth Vargas (for Joel Campbell 71st minute) – N/A
Coach
Claudio Vivas- 3/10
It was a lackluster display by Los Ticos, and serious questions must be asked of the coach’s credentials after succumbing to two consecutive draws in fixtures La Sele should really be winning. The players must also take accountability for such a poor display, but they lack any semblance of patterns of play or cohesion, which ultimately lies with the coach.
The result means Costa Rica slips to second in the CONCACAF Nations League table, two points behind Guatemala who won 3-1 away to Guyana yesterday. But they can reclaim the top spot when they face Los Chapines on Tuesday night at the Estadio Nacional de Costa Rica.
By Isaac Roblett
