Costa Rica sadly saw their Cinderella World Cup run end on Saturday night in Salvador. Los Ticos fought valiantly against the Dutch, holding them scoreless, before falling in penalties. They put forth a defensive effort worthy of comparison to the Leonidas and his Spartans at the Battle of Thermopylae. Despite the loss, Costa Rica made it further in this World Cup than they had in any other World Cup. They also won a knockout round game, another first for the country. Most importantly, they made their country proud by putting forth a spirited display in all of their matches, despite being underdogs.

Keylor Navas was the main man for Costa Rica again, making save after save. He denied former Arsenal striker Robin Van Persie and Wesley Sneijder on consecutive chances in the first half.  Navas also parried away a Sneijder costless kick that was heading for the top corner. Furthermore, he made a beautiful leg save on PSV youngster Memphis Depay’s left footed effort. 

Overall, Joel Campbell, the Arsenal man, had a very quiet match. He ended up getting subbed in the 66th minute for fellow striker Marco Urena. One couldn’t help but think that this was because of his 120 minute effort in the Round of 16 match against Greece. But overall, he had a great tournament and showed Arsenal fans that he could be an effective asset to the club.

The Dutch really pushed for a winner in regular time. Sneijder’s curling costless kick rocketed off the post, and Van Persie completely missed a Sneijder pass that flashed through the six yard box. Van Persie also had a stoppage time effort that deflected off of the crossbar and Yeltsin Tejeda’s body that still somehow stayed out. And so, the match moved on to extra time.

Extra time saw the Dutch continue to keep a stranglehold on possession. Despite this, one of the best chances of extra time came when the Costa Rican substitute Urena missed a glorious one on one chance. Ajax keeper Jasper Cillessen denied him to keep the game scoreless. Then at the other end, the unluckiest man on the pitch, Sneijder, hit the crossbar. Kicks from the spot would be needed to settle this match.

The difference maker in the shootout was Dutch substitute keeper Tim Krul. He was brought on for his length (Krul is 6’4” compared to Cillessen who is 6’2”) and his reputation as a stopper. The Newcastle keeper made Dutch manager Louis van Gaal look like a genius when he palmed Bryan Ruiz’s and Michael Umana’s penalties wide of the mark. Van Persie, Sneijder, Arjen Robben, and Dirk Kuyt all converted their penalties to help lift the Dutch to victory and a berth in their second straight World Cup semifinals.  

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