Five Things to Know: USMNT vs. Costa Rica in Gold Cup Quarterfinal
Here's everything you need to know before the USA faces Costa Rica at U.S. Bank Stadium
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The hunt for the U.S. Men’s National Team’s eighth Concacaf Gold Cup title continues as the knockout round begins Sunday, June 29 (7 p.m. ET on FOX).
The USA came out of the group stage undefeated while Costa Rica finished with two wins and a draw. If the USMNT advances, the Americans will take on the winner of Canada vs. Guatemala in the semifinal.
Before that, the U.S. faces a tough Costa Rican side. Here’s everything you need to know about the quarterfinal matchup:
1. Making the Most of the Moment
The Gold Cup roster with 16 average caps was relatively inexperienced when announced; however, it created an opportunity for players to stake their National Team claim.
Several players, namely, Malik Tillman, Diego Luna and Patrick Agyemang are making the most of their moment in Concacaf’s premier tournament. Tillman made his first USMNT appearance in 2022 and has made quite the impression heading into next year’s FIFA World Cup. Meanwhile, Luna and Agyemang debuted earlier this year and have taken full advantage of the Gold Cup to show their value.
Tillman opened the first group match with a brace, netting his first-ever goals, and Luna recorded two assists in a 5-0 dominant win against Trinidad and Tobago. Tillman leads the USA in this tournament with three goals, and Agyemang tops the team in scoring in 2025 with five. Agyemang lifted the USMNT over Haiti with the go-ahead goal in a 2-1 victory, completing the group stage with nine points.
2. Getting Past Keylor Navas
The USA will have a tough challenge against Costa Rican goalkeeper Keylor Navas, who is widely regarded as one of the best ‘keepers in the world.
“His career speaks for itself,” midfielder Tyler Adams said. “The levels that he's played at, the experience that he has with an even younger group now, I think that they're bringing in a lot of players for a new generation in Costa Rica, he's obviously the leader of that team.”
The U.S. has faced Navas several times, including in a 2022 World Cup Qualifying match where Los Ticos won 2-0. With Navas in goal, Costa Rica has beaten the United States three out of five meetings. USMNT head coach Mauricio Pochettino is uniquely familiar with Navas’ abilities. Pochettino coached Navas at Paris Saint-Germain from 2021-22.
“Always we admired him,” Pochettino said. “His mentality and his quality as a keeper, it's going to be a fantastic moment to share tomorrow with him. He's a great player. He's a great keeper, one of the best on the world.”
It’ll be a defining test for the USMNT who has scored eight goals in the tournament so far.
3. How They Got Here
The USMNT finished at the top of Group D, beating Trinidad and Tobago, Saudi Arabia and Haiti in the process. The Americans scored eight goals and only conceded one. The two shutouts for goalkeeper Matt Freese were tied with Canada for a group-stage best.
Costa Rica beat Suriname 4-3, the Dominican Republic 2-1 and tied Mexico 0-0. El Tri topped Group A while Costa Rica came in a close second by allowing one more goal.
USA midfielder Malik Tillman and Costa Rican forward Manfred Ugalde both have tallied three goals each, which is tied for the most in the tournament among teams yet to compete in the knockout round. However, Ugalde will be unavailable for Sunday’s match after drawing a second yellow card against Mexico.
4. Cautionary Tale
In the group stage, several Costa Rica players were shown yellow cards. Forward Manfred Ugalde and defender Joseph Mora picked up their second in the final group match and are both suspended for the quarterfinal match against the United States. Ugalde and Mora accounted for four of Costa Rica’s six goals in the group stage.
Midfielders Diego Luna, Tyler Adams and Sebastian Berhalter were also issued one yellow card each. They're at risk of a semifinal suspension if another is picked up in the quarterfinal.
5. USMNT History vs. Costa Rica
This will be match No. 44 between the United States and Costa Rica. Only Mexico, the USMNT’s biggest rival, has been a more common opponent with 76 games. The USA holds a slim winning record of 20-17-6 over the Concacaf foe.
The two nations last matched up at the beginning of this year in Orlando, Florida, during the January camp. Forward Patrick Agyemang scored his second international career goal in his second cap to lead the United States to a 3-0 win.
They’ve faced off in the Gold Cup six times with a 7-0-1 record, advantage USA. All but one of those came in the group stage. In 1993, the USA beat Costa Rica 1-0 in extra time in the semifinals.