FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017: 'Composed' Costa Rica must break quarters jinx to emulate senior side's success

Nobody expected Costa Rica – a team that featured only four times at the FIFA World Cup – to qualify for the next round ahead of a strong group comprising Uruguay, England and Italy in the 2014 World Cup. But when the matches were played, the above-mentioned heavyweights were stunned as the tiny nation went on to top the group and enter the quarter-finals for the first time ever.

It was a brilliant example of how fearlessness can enable the squad to pull off the unthinkable. Similarly, when Costa Rica’s U-17 side will make its 10th appearance in the U-17 FIFA World Cup in October, they have to follow the same ethics.

The Los Ticos have been drawn with Germany, Iran and Guinea following their consistent run at the 2017 CONCACAF tournament earlier this year. Costa Rica were almost unbeaten at the Central American qualifying zone en route to the CONCACAF final group match. They kicked off their campaign in Group E with an entertaining win over Canada. Alfaro Vargas scored twice, including a crucial injury-time winner in the 95th minute. It was a cakewalk for Costa Rica in the second and third game where they registered comprehensive wins over Suriname and Cuba respectively.

Video Credit: Concacaf official Facebook Page

They went on to beat Panama 2-1 next but then suffered a heavy 1-6 loss to eventual champions Mexico. The Los Ticos finished second in the group courtesy of their slender 2-1 win over Panama, and in the process, qualified for the World Cup.

Breansee Camacho, who took over the reins of Costa Rica’s U-17 side last year from Marcelo Herrera after playing numerous roles as assistant and coach in the various Costa Rican youth sides, was left in awe of how his squad showed qualities like composure and order to take the match against top age group teams.

“At the age of 16 they surprised me because of the character and composure they had, because of the way they played the game, it is difficult to deal with the pressure of the stadium, public, and the opponent, as well as the pressure exerted by the opponents with the central referee. They despaired and we had peace of mind, “commented Camacho, in statements provided by the Costa Rican Football Federation (Fedefútbol) .

Ahead of the U-17 World Cup in India, Camacho wants his players to be ready well in advance for tough games. “All the teams in our group are very competitive. We are comfortable with the group and not to forget we are facing some historic teams like Germany, so that is very important for us.” Camacho told Firstpost on the sidelines of the U-17 World Cup draw in Mumbai. “Our first objective will be to get best results, assess our opponents in the group and then we will try to make it to the round. We try to play attractive football, it’s not the tiki-taka style but static football,” he added.

As far as the team’s attacking football concerned, 17-year-old Jose Rodolfo Alfaro has been spoken of highly by coaches and players as the forward is the main figure of the current U-17 side and Costa Rican club Deportiva Carmelita. His ability to terrorise the defence has gained a lot of popularity in the country. Even his club coach Guilherme Farinha was satisfied with the performances shown by the attack-minded Alfaro in recent games.

“I tell you Figuito (Alfaro), is the star of Costa Rica. I do not know where this player will reach, I hope he never has an injury or inconvenience because this man will get very far,” Farinha was quoted saying by Everardoherrera .

Farinha also gave Alfaro his senior team debut when he was just 16. “I never expected to debut so young, at the time I was still 16 years old, and it was an incredible experience, something I always dreamed of and thanks to God I was fulfilled at such a young age,” explained Alfaro.

Meanwhile, other youngsters too have impressed the coach and with teams like Germany and Iran, who have been showing glimpses of what they are capable of in recent games, and along with Guinea, which comes from the continent with the highest number of titles in this category with 7 — five from Nigeria and two from Ghana – Camacho’s young guns must be prepared for the tough challenges.

Again, nobody will expect Costa Rica to make it beyond the knockout stages, but the U-17 side must take a leaf out of their senior team’s book and beat the odds to script yet another thrilling story for the country.