Nicaragua and Costa Rica playing for a ticket to the CU17 Quarterfinals

BRADENTON, Florida- For the first time, the Nicaraguan and Costa Rican teams will face each other on Thursday in a direct elimination match in the CONCACAF Under-17 Championship.

The Ticos who finished first in Group H, led by their striker Geancarlo Castro (six goals), will seek to take the next step to bring them closer to the World Cup in Brazil For Nicaragua, who has never been to a World Cup, they have a unique opportunity to caress the possibility of achieving it.

There will be a duel between two goal scorers. For Nicaragua Patrick Romario with his four goals helped the Nicaraguans win Group A of the preliminary round, and Castro has the Ticos dreaming of returning to the FIFA World Cup. Who will win the duel between the two goal scorers

• This will be their first meeting in a CU17.
• Costa Rica will play its 72nd CU17 match. 40W-12D-19L, 148GF-82GC, +66GD.
• Nicaragua will play its 4th CU17 match. 0W-0D-3L. 3GF-15GC, -12GD. Faced Canada, El Salvador and Jamaica in Group A of El Salvador 1994.
• Costa Rica finished 1st in Group H, 7 points, 2W-1D-0L, 11GF-2GC. Defeated Curacao 3-0 and Suriname 6-0 and tied Panama 2-2. 5 saves and 2 clean sheets.
• Nicaragua finished 1st in Group A, 9 points. 3W-0D-1L. Defeated US Virgin Islands 5-0, Grenada 4-0, Cayman Islands 2-0 and lost 2-0 vs Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. 3 clean sheets.
• Costa Rica tied Haiti for penalty kick goals in group stage (3).
• Costa Rica had highest percentage of ball possession in Group H, 59%.
• Geancarlo Castro (CRC): Leads CU17 in scoring with 6 goals. Leads CU17 in penalty kick goals (3).
• Patrick Romario (NCA): Led team in scoring in First Round (4 goals).
• José Tello (CRC): Had the most ball recoveries during the 1st half in group stage (7). Has 10 ball recoveries in CU17.
• Waldner Isaí Vásquez (NCA): Scored 2 goals in First Round.