Costa Rica stuns Italy to qualify; England bows out

RECIFE: Costa Rica produced another huge upset to reach the knockout stages of the World Cup for the second time on Friday with a 1-0 Group D win over Italy that also ensured England were eliminated.
Bryan Ruiz headed powerfully home a minute before halftime to leave Costa Rica fans dancing in the sunshine at Recife’s Pernambuco arena, while Mario Balotelli missed Italy’s best efforts.
Costa Rica moved top of the group with six points, having already beaten Uruguay in their first game, while Italy, three points adrift, now need at least a draw from their final game against Uruguay, also on three points, to go through on goal difference.
In making the last 16 for the first time in 24 years, the Central Americans ensured England became the latest team to make a surprise early exit, leaving at the group stages for the first time since 1958.
The midday sun reduced the early stages to shadow boxing, with Italy hogging the ball but strolling round the pitch at walking pace while Costa Rica were busy but cautious.
Costa Rica’s back-five pushed high up the pitch to compress the space as Italy sat back and looked to hit on the break, a tactic which almost paid dividends on the half-hour mark as Balotelli was sent clear by a superb through ball from Andrea Pirlo.
But the striker, who headed the winner in Italy’s opening win over England, miscontrolled the ball with his first touch and then tried and failed to lob keeper Kaylor Nevas with his second.
As the first half was drawing to a close, Costa Rica showed why they can pose such a threat.
In the space of three minutes, Oscar Duarte headed fractionally over, Joel Campbell had a penalty appeal waved away by Chilean referee Enrique Osses and Ruiz headed them in front.
Junior Diaz floated a beautiful cross to the far post and Ruiz arrived to head it in off the underside of the bar and over the line, with the decision to award a goal confirmed on the big screen.
Italy brought on Antonio Cassano at halftime, but Costa Rica expertly took the sting out of the match, reducing their opponents only to glimpses of goal, while they continued to look threatening on the counter.
England’s failure at the first hurdle at the Brazil World Cup leaves manager Roy Hodgson with no choice but to put even more faith than he has in untried, emerging talent.
As the player ratings came in following England’s loss to Uruguay in Sao Paulo, it was clear that older team members were judged to have been the main culprits in a defeat that consigned them to an early flight home from Brazil.
True, teenager Raheem Sterling could not repeat his exhilarating display in the 2-1 defeat by Italy five days earlier, and Danny Welbeck, 23, was among the worst-ranked performers at the Corinthians arena.
But alongside him in the hall of shame stood Leighton Baines, Glen Johnson, Phil Jagielka and Steven Gerrard, whose average age is nearly 31.
While the inquest into England’s failures is likely to be long and loud, it is already swinging in favor of a greater emphasis on youth, if only because the blend of younger and older players taking the field in Brazil has failed.
Hodgson has taken risks. He moved the tried-and-tested Wayne Rooney out wide to make way for Sterling in the center against Italy, and while Rooney did not play well, the team did.
The majority of pundits urged him to put Rooney back in the middle behind striker Daniel Sturridge against Uruguay, and he duly obliged. Rooney played well, scoring his first World Cup goal, but the team did not.
Seeing England struggling to break down a robust Uruguay, Hodgson’s substitutions came late in the game.
Exciting Everton midfielder Ross Barkley was introduced in the 64th minute for the largely ineffectual Sterling, and Adam Lallana came on for Welbeck seven minutes later.
Their appearance coincided with an improvement in England’s play that culminated in Rooney’s goal, raising questions over whether they could have been brought on earlier.
Hodgson’s final roll of the dice was bringing on 32-year-old Rickie Lambert three minutes from time.