Coach: Costa Rica can't slip up if they want 2026 World Cup spot | OneFootball

The coach of the Costa Rica national team, Mexican Miguel "Piojo" Herrera, warned this Wednesday that his team cannot falter in the two remaining matches of the Concacaf Qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup if they want to qualify for the competition that will be held in North America.

Costa Rica is seeking its seventh participation in World Cups and will face Haiti away on Thursday, in a match that will be held in Curaçao due to the ongoing crisis in the Caribbean country. They will then conclude the qualifying phase at home against Honduras next Tuesday in San José.

"All of us, as a team, understand that we cannot afford to blink in these games. Blinking has already cost us some unexpected draws because we didn't do things the right way," said Herrera in a press conference.

"The margin of error is over," although "fortunately," the qualification for the World Cup "is in our hands," added Herrera.

Current Situation

With two rounds remaining, Honduras leads Group C with 8 points, followed by Costa Rica (6), Haiti (5), and Nicaragua (1). The qualifying tournament guarantees three direct spots for the World Cup to each of the group winners and two spots in the intercontinental playoffs.

A slip by Costa Rica, along with a victory by Honduras in the next round, would leave the team with no chance of direct qualification for the World Cup. "With a 1-0 win in each game, we're in the World Cup. There's no other calculation," stated Herrera.

Costa Rica failed to win its first two matches against Nicaragua and Haiti, which led to boos from the fans directed at the Mexican coach.

Old Acquaintances

Herrera had to rely on goalkeeper Keylor Navas and other veterans like Kendall Watson, Celso Borges, and Joel Campbell to compensate for the team's lack of personality and experience.

However, he stated he is "excited" because he sees the players "working hard" and "very aware" of what is at stake.

Borges, a member of the team that surprised by reaching the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup, also emphasized the importance of the match against Haiti.

"The game is crucial for all our aspirations (...) there is a lot of desire and enthusiasm to go to a World Cup, but first we have to win this first match," he said.

The Costa Rican midfielder also highlighted that the role of the veterans who returned to the national team is to "show" the others "the way" to qualification.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.