Copa America, Group D, Saturday, 29.06.2024 at 00:00
In Group D, Colombia and Costa Rica open the second matchday of the Copa América 2024 on Friday night.
The tournament got off to a good start for both teams. The Cafeteros, for their part, recorded an opening win against Paraguay.
They had to replace central defender Lucumí early on in the 2-1 win as he was injured. Nevertheless, they scored twice before the break
Los Ticos were unable to get anything going forward, but that was certainly to be expected in their opening game against Brazil.
The 0-0 draw against one of the three title favorites was a good start to the Copa América. Now their hopes of reaching the quarter-finals are alive!
Can they pull off another surprise? My Colombia Costa Rica betting tip is slightly optimistic, even if little is likely to go their way again
The prediction of the betting providers?
It’s 12th against 52nd in the FIFA world rankings. So it’s clear how the roles will be distributed in the Colombia Costa Rica betting tip.
Top bookmakers such as Bet at Home are even predicting odds of under 1.90 if the Cafeteros win and don’t concede a goal.
The prediction for a match in which neither team scores is correspondingly low. Before kick-off, this is just over 1.50.
Analysis: Colombia vs Costa Rica
This clear favorite status is no coincidence. The Colombians have been in really good form for some time now!
Their last defeat came in February 2022. Along the way, there have been 19 wins and five draws. But their opponents weren’t just fruit.
They beat Spain, Germany, Brazil and even Japan in March 2023. They currently have nine wins in a row
In view of their recent results, the Costa Ricans have nothing to hide either. On the contrary, they have every reason to go into the game with a broad chest.
They have only lost one of their last seven games (4S, 2U), with that defeat coming against world champions Argentina in March. Most recently, they have kept four clean sheets in a row!
Analysis of odds
However, I think it is extremely unlikely that this will happen again. Los Ticos had a lot of luck against Brazil and a good Patrick Sequeira in goal.
If the Colombians fail to score in an international match for the first time since October 2023, you can win odds of over 5.00 for your Colombia Costa Rica bet at Tipwin Sportwetten!
Instead, I would turn the tables and see what coach Nestor Lorenzo’s team can produce going forward.
After all, they have scored at least two goals in five of their last six games. Will it be the same this time?
The bookmakers at Happybet are predicting odds of around 1.50 for at least two Colombian goals in this match. However, I wouldn’t set the odds any higher than that
Question mark for Colombia
For all the euphoria and sympathy that I have developed for the Colombian national team in recent weeks, I have to step on the brakes a little.
In their first group game against Paraguay, who are certainly not the stars of the soccer world at the moment, they struggled going forward.
In the second half in particular, it was the Paraguayans who were more courageous and had the better scoring opportunities.
If the Yellow Shirts created anything, it was through veteran James Rodríguez or Jefferson Lerma. However, it won’t work just from midfield against a team that will be more stable at the back
Costa Rica and the concrete mixer
It was a little absurd to see how the Ticos stood close to their own penalty area against Brazil on Monday night.
Coach Gustavo Alfaro knows South American soccer inside out from his time at Boca Juniors and Ecuador, among others.
That’s why he’s not afraid to put his team to the sword and defend a 0-0 draw when the opposition have names like Vinícius Junior in their ranks.
Consider this: Costa Rica only had 30 percent possession against Brazil and only made three attempts on goal, which didn’t even make keeper Alisson sweat
As far as the direct comparison between Colombia and Costa Rica is concerned, there are some comparative values here, unlike with other Central American teams.
Los Ticos were invited to the Copa América as a guest team for the first time in 1997. They have subsequently been invited twice more
They have been in the same group as the Cafeteros in three of their last four appearances. They lost twice. Only at the 2016 tournament did they emerge victorious.
Otherwise, however, I have to say that the balance between the two nations is clearly in favor of the Colombians. They have won nine of the eleven duels so far (2N)
My tip:
I doubt it will be as spectacular as in 2016, when Los Ticos won 3:2. I rate the Central Americans’ attacking efforts too low.
Lorenzo’s team, on the other hand, will have to be patient. They won’t dominate the game if they don’t quickly switch sides from midfield. I expect an advantage, but a close match.
My Colombia Costa Rica tip is therefore: The Cafeteros won’t lose and there will be less than 2.5 goals scored
