Uruguay stunned by Costa Rica

CHRISTOPHE SIMON / AFP - Costa Rica's defender Oscar Duarte (L) and Costa Rica's defender Junior Diaz celebrate after Duarte scored his team's second goal

Costa Rica kept the World Cup upsets going on Saturday with a shock 3-1 win over Uruguay as England and Italy prepared for a heavyweight clash in the heart of the Amazon.

In yet another free-flowing, high-scoring match, minnows Costa Rica recovered from falling behind to an Edinson Cavani penalty to claim a surprise win at the Castelao Stadium in Fortaleza.

That came just 24 hours after the Netherlands stunned and humiliated reigning champions Spain 5-1 in Salvador.

Uruguay, the reigning South American champions, looked to be on the way to all three points in the Group D opener after Cavani's first half spot-kick.

But Costa Rica roared back in the second half as Uruguay, missing injured Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, ran out of steam.

Two goals in three minutes from Joel Campbell and Oscar Duarte put the Central Americans ahead before substitute Marcos Urena added a late third.

Uruguay's Maxi Pereira was red-carded in injury time.

The win thrusts Costa Rica into contention in a group which also includes Italy and England, who play later Saturday in Manaus, the capital of the Amazon.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2014-06-15

I am not surprised by this result.

I saw Costa Rica on tv a week or so before the WC, and they looked pretty ok.

As already mentioned before here, Uruguay has a couple of world class strikers.

But rest of Uruguay are mediocre players at best.

They barely made it to the WC.

Fitting, too, that Uruguay's Maxi Perreira was sent off for a thoroughly nasty hack at one of the CR players.

It wasn't quite as violent as Benjamin Massing trying to turn Argentina's number 11 Caniggia into two number 1s in 1990, but quite rough enough to be going on with.