Sunday afternoon, 14:00, Cosmos Arena, Samara. That’s the time and place where Costa Rica and Serbia will face off for the first time in history. Serbia will be looking to get past the group stage for the first time since 1998, while Costa Rica will try to repeat the miracle from Brazil. There, Los Ticos topped a group that included Italy, England and Uruguay, eliminated Greece on penalties in the Round of 16 and nearly did the same to Holland around later. They finished the tournament without a single loss.
More or less, it’s still the same team, nurturing the same 5-3-2 tactic that opponents during the last World Cup had so much trouble with. Oscar Ramirez is still the manager, Sporting Lisbon’s Bryan Ruiz is the captain again, while Real Betis’ Joel Campbell is in charge of goals. Costa Rica was one of the few teams that played three friendlies during the preparation period. After a great start versus Northern Ireland (3-0), two losses against England (2-0) and Belgium (4-1) have grounded the Central Americans.
Serbia is one of the more fascinating World Cup teams. It has the players to go far, but it also has the instability and the group opponents to fall down quickly. Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s usage and form will be key. The Lazio midfielder is a special talent who can influence all facets of the game. It’s nearly impossible to follow his footsteps throughout 90 minutes. Nemanja Matic, Adem Ljajic, Dusan Tadic and Filip Kostic were his midfield companions in the 5-1 victory over Bolivia in the team’s last friendly match. Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a hat-trick in that one and will be the primary target of crosses inside the penalty box. Branislav Ivanovic and Aleksandar Kolarov add experience from the back end.
Being that this is their opener, both squads might struggle to find their groove and could cancel each other out. The Balkan nation certainly has the quality to prevail, but Costa Rica will be ready to take advantage of even the slightest opportunity that presents itself. It all depends on what kind of approach is taken by coach Mladen Krstajic.
