Costa Rica will look to maintain their 100% record at the 2021 Gold Cup when they take on Suriname at Exploria Stadium in Orlando on Friday.

The Costa Ricans got an early goal in their opening match with Guadeloupe before cruising to a comfortable 3-1 victory, while Suriname were blanked 2-0 by Jamaica.

Match preview

In their first match at this tournament, Natio will consider themselves unlucky to come away empty-handed against Jamaica, after creating a number of good scoring opportunities.

This team not only had 53% of the possession, but they were also able to find some openings in behind the Jamaican defence, but they were lacking a little precision in the final third, which could have changed their fortunes.

Making the most of their opportunities will be paramount against Costa Rica, who will likely see a lot more of the ball than the tournament debutants.

Given who they were up against in their opener, and seeing as this team last appeared in this competition back in 1985 when it was known as the CONCACAF Championship, it was probably as good of a performance as Dean Gorre could have hoped for from his team.

Suriname have never beaten Costa Rica in their five previous games, but their performance in their first game of this competition was a message to the rest of the teams in this group that they will be a tough team to play against and should not be taken lightly.

Los Ticos ended a six-game winless run on Monday with a well-deserved 3-1 victory, winning their opening match of this tournament for a third successive time.

Coaching in his first competitive match since taking over the job in late June, Luis Fernando Suarez had to be impressed with how his team performed through 90 minutes, taking the lead early and scoring three goals, their highest tally in a competitive match in over two years.

They were not only clinical in front of goal, but they also showed a lot of poise, playing at a very high level of consistency for the first time all year and they were full marks for their victory, earning 63% of the possession, the first time they had seen more of the ball in a match in 2021 than their opponents.

The blend of young players and veterans seemed to work well for this team, who looked in sync for much of the match and rarely appeared to be troubled at the back.

As they get set to play a side who are new to this international competition, it seems likely that Suarez will have a similar approach to this contest than he did in their opener, emphasising the importance of playing hard for 90 minutes and not underestimating their opponents.

Team News

Suriname had some great opportunities in their game against Jamaica, particularly their striker Gleofilo Vlijter, who should have levelled the match in the eighth minute but failed to hit the target after getting in behind the Jamaican backline.

Inter Miami right-back Kelvin Leerdam moved up to midfield for their opening fixture, with Ajax right-back Sean Klaiber making his international debut.

Winger Sheraldo Becker made his third successive start, and his team could use a similar performance to the one that he made on his international debut when he scored a brace versus Bermuda back on June 4 in a 6-0 victory.

Veteran striker Joel Campbell benefitted from a goalkeeping error in their opening match, scoring his 20th goal in a Costa Rica uniform and his first ever at this competition.

Monday was a special night for veteran midfielder Celso Borges, who broke the Costa Rican record for games played at the Gold Cup, appearing in his 22nd match at this tournament, while also scoring his 24th goal for his country in his 135th appearance.

Ariel Lassiter scored his first international goal, which would stand up as the game-winner, while goalkeeper Leonel Moreira made his fourth consecutive start in goal for his country, making two saves, collecting his first victory with the national team since Matchday Two of the 2019 Gold Cup.

Suriname possible starting lineup:
Hahn; Haps, Donk, Malone, Klaiber; Leerdam, Becker, Eduard; Jozefzoon, Vlijter, Comvalius

Costa Rica possible starting lineup:
Moreira; Fuller, Gonzalez, Calvo, Matarrita; Borges, Guzman; Ruiz, Cruz; Campbell, Lassiter

We say: Suriname 1-2 Costa Rica

Suriname proved in their last match that they could stick with some of the stronger sides in CONCACAF and, with a little more precision in the final third, they could have earned their first result at this competition.

After a challenging year for Los Ticos, they had quite the response in their opener, and that should give them a significant confidence boost moving forward that they can recapture the magic of years past.

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