Switzerland takes on Costa Rica in their final game of the group stage at the 2018 World Cup in Russia. This closely-played group has come down to the final game, and even though Costa Rica has been eliminated after losing its first two games, how this match plays out will have dramatic effects on the standings. Switzerland, who are favored to win according to our World Cup Betting odds, can lock up a spot in the knockout round with a win, and force Brazil to beat Serbia or get eliminated. If these teams tie, it will set up a goal difference situation where the result of the Brazil-Serbia match will determine who advances and who is eliminated. What we do know is that while favored to win, Switzerland should not take Costa Rica lightly. History has shown that Los Ticos can be dangerous if given a little luck. Switzerland and Costa Rica have played each other twice before, once in 2006 and again in 2010, with both teams having one win.
Switzerland
Switzerland has played two very dramatic, come from behind games in their first couple of matches in at the World Cup. In their first game, they fell in a 1-0 hole against a Brazilian team that looked very dominant in the first half before sneaking back in the game and taking control in the second half to force a 1-1 tie. Facing Serbia in their second game, the Swiss managed a very similar situation in which Serbia scored early and controlled most of the first half before seeing Granit Xhaka tie the game early in the second half before Xherdan Shaqiri scored a dramatic goal to take the lead in the 90th minute. Clearly the Swiss are a team that handles pressure well and are cool as ice in the clutch, so barring a major breakdown they should be able to handle Costa Rica without much of an issue.
Costa Rica
Los Ticos have had a rough go in Russia so far, dropping their first two games after being the darlings of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, where they surprised everyone by advancing to the quarter finals before losing on penalty kicks. This year, luck has not so much been on their side as they lost their first game to Serbia thanks to a perfectly placed free kick by Aleksandar Kolarov early in the second half. Costa Rica then went on to lose 2-0 to a Brazil team determined to prove their worth after an embarrassing 1-1 tie to Switzerland. Having been eliminated with that loss, the Los Ticos will now have to be satisfied with playing the role of spoiler for Switzerland, who can lock up their spot in the next round with a win. With nothing on the line but pride, Costa Rican goaltender Keylor Navas will surely be looking to shut the door on Shaqiri and the Swiss.
Match Overview
On the surface, this should be a close game. Costa Rica may not have the surprise element that helped it advance to the quarter finals of the last World Cup, but they do still have most of their key players from that run, most importantly Navas. Switzerland doesn't have that potent of an offense either, so getting to Navas will mean having to get a lot of traffic in front of him and hope for stray balls to pop out onto the right feet. What Switzerland does have is are some good flanks and some star power in Shaqiri, so as long as they can hold on to the ball for most of the game, they should be fine. A tie here would go a long way in locking up a spot in the round of 16, provided Serbia doesn't beat Brazil.
