The sight of Costa Rica taking on Greece for a place in the World Cup quarter-finals on Sunday will surprise many and make others dream of what could have been.
While the likes of Spain and England are already home and unloading their suitcases, the Costa Rican surprise packages are gearing up for a trip to Recife where they will meet Greece on Sunday in the last 16.
For a country of less than five million people and considering the strength of their rivals in Group D, what the Ticos have achieved is nothing short of extraordinary.
With manager Jorge Luis Pinto in charge since 2011, there has been some continuity, the Colombian’s ethos has been given time to bed in.
Paulo Wanchope, the former Manchester City and West Ham forward, is part of Pinto’s backroom staff and knows huge advances in defending and working on a solid gameplan to snuff out opponents has worked wonders in Brazil.
Yet there is something else – hunger.
Kids coming through the system in Costa Rica don’t have the top-notch facilities and everything given to them on a plate like some of the big European super-powers.
There is a sense that they appreciate more and work harder.
Arriving on the world’s biggest stage is one opportunity which is not going to slip through their fingers.
“We may be a country of less than five million but we have a lot of talent,” enthuses Wanchope. “Everyone plays football in Costa Rica and that is what we try to exploit. The facilities are not the same that the likes of England or Germany would have.
“Yeah, maybe they want it more. I think people forget that we have around 17 players who play in Europe. We need to be even more clever to put a team together, defend well and know we are capable of scoring against anyone. Guys like (Bryan) Ruiz and (Joel) Campbell can cause problems. If we defend well we have a chance against anyone.”
Costa Rica barely got out of second gear against Roy Hodgson’s side in Belo Horizonte but it didn’t matter – the hard work had already been done.
“Am I surprised? I am surprised that a team like England hasn’t gone through,” he added.
“I saw some of their games and I saw them playing well without any luck in front of goal. I think they are going the right way with this group of players – (Jack) Wilshere, (Daniel) Sturridge, (Raheem) Sterling – talented players.
“It’s a big surprise for everyone that we have won the group but we just wanted to work hard and get out but if I said to someone before the tournament started that we would we have seven points having conceded just one goal, I wouldn’t have believed it.”
