Costa Rica v England predictions, tips, lineups and free bets (World Cup - Group D - June 24, 2014)

Monday, 23 June 2014 17:04
Written by David Bet

Costa Rica, the odd team out in the Group D, have a chance of winning three in a row as they face England on Tuesday. Find below a complete COSTA RICA v ENGLAND betting preview with tips, predictions, best odds, probable line-ups, free bets and no deposit bonuses on the match!

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COSTA RICA v ENGLAND BETTING PREVIEW

If Costa Rica wins or ties with England, they are assured of the No. 1 spot in the group. But if England wins, then there’s a chance that Costa Rica slides down to the No. 2 position, depending on the outcome of the Italy-Uruguay match. If they win Group D, Costa Rica are likely to avoid Group C leaders Colombia, with Ivory Coast, Japan and Greece all fighting for second spot behind the South American side.

Costa Rica will come into this game full of confidence after securing qualification already. After defeating Uruguay on their first match, they snatched a surprising win against Italy last Friday. The Costa Ricans did not allow the Azzurri to progress on offense, often disrupting the Italians’ playmaking attempts.

There are no reports from the Costa Rica camp in regards to any injuries but Jorge Luis Pinto might implement some changes in his team. Marcos Ureña and José Cubero have been used as subsititutes in both games and will be among those hoping to come in if any changes are made. Forwards Joel Campbell and Bryan Ruiz are both set to start on the bench.

England are now just playing for pride and trying to avoid heading home having finished bottom of Group D. Back to back defeats against Italy and Uruguay have left them empty handed. Never before have the Three Lions recorded zero points in a World Cup group.

Phil Jones and Chris Smalling could both feature, while Hodgson has confirmed that Ross Barkley will start and Luke Shaw will come in for the injured Leighton Baines. Frank Lampard will captain the side in the absence of Steven Gerrard.

These two have never met before, so no history to look back on. Despite Costa Rica’s fantastic moment, England are to be considered favourites for next Tuesday’s match as they want to leave the tournament with at least one win in their bags.

COSTA RICA v ENGLAND PROBABLE LINEUPS

Costa Rica (5-4-1) – K. Navas – Y. Tejeda – G. Gonzalez – O. Duarte – Umana – J. Diaz – Gamboa – Cubero – Bolaños – C. Borges

England (4-2-3-1) – Hart – Johnson – Smalling – Cahill – Shaw – Gerrard – Lampard – Lallana- Barkley – Rooney – Lambert