Mexico and USA through as Ticos seal play-off spot

USA back in the big time, Ticos go close

USA have worked hard to atone for missing out on a place at Russia 2018, a failure that shocked the game to the core stateside. The man entrusted with getting them back on track was Gregg Berhalter, who rebuilt the side around a group of young players hungry to take the nation back to the elite. Despite a less than convincing end to the campaign, capped by a 2-0 defeat to Costa Rica, they did just enough to secure a berth a Qatar 2022. Costa Rica gave it all they had in the triple header that brought the qualifying competition to a close, making an impressive late push that almost saw them go through directly. Going into the last three games, they were a point adrift of Panama and out of the qualifying places altogther. Showing why they made it to the last two World Cups, Los Ticos won all three matches to secure a play-off with New Zealand in June and just miss out on third place and direct qualification on goal difference. Juan Pablo Contreras and Anthony Vargas were the goalscorers for Luis Fernando Suarez’s side against USA, while goalkeeper Keylor Navas had a big hand in their run to fourth. The Paris Saint-Germain man conceded just one goal in their last six matches and kept a clean sheet in seven of their 14 games to show that he is the bedrock of Costa Rica’s defensive set-up.