England vs Costa Rica 08/06/18

8 June 2018

At the Elland Road in Leeds, England will host Costa Rica, looking to extend their lossless streak to nine straight games. The Three Lions are faced with an imperative of achieving a notable result at the 2018 World Cup in Russia after a series of failures at the World Cup final tournaments. However, considering the immense attacking problems Gareth Southgate’s team are faced with, it would be a miracle to see England in the World Cup final. In the previous seven matches, England have found the net barely six times, which is a quite modest record for a team of such a quality. The 2014 World Cup sensation, Costa Rica, have secured their second consecutive World Cup appearance after finishing second in the CONCACAF qualifying zone behind Mexico. La Sele have won two out of three games in 2018, both against England neighbors, Scotland and North Ireland, without conceding a single goal.

Two sides have played against each other at the World Cup in Brazil, with the encounter finished in an uninspiring 0-0 draw.

After fielding his strongest starting eleven against Nigeria last weekend, Southgate might decide to bench some of his key players including Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling. As for Costa Rica, Óscar Ramírez doesn’t like to change his team much, which is why La Muerte should start the game at full strength.