Q COSTARICA — The ever-controversial Mexican journalist, David Faitelson, went all out, calling Costa Rica’s performance against Haiti an “infamous disgrace.”
When everyone expected a victory, La Sele, Costa Rica’s national team, ended up losing 1-0 and “complicated” its chances of taking up in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
“Costa Rica’s performance is an infamous disgrace. If you can’t beat Haiti (on neutral ground with the match held in Curaçao because of Haiti’s political chaos and safety issues), you have no business being in a World Cup…”
“A World Cup, by the way, with 48 teams, where the most powerful in the soccer world are already qualified as hosts,” he concluded.
Costa Rica is currently managed by Mexican coach Miguel Herrera, whose days in Costa Rica are numbered.
This is because Herrera’s objective was to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, something that seems impossible given Costa Rica’s performance on the field.
With the win on Thursday, Haiti takes second place while Costa Rica drops to third in the Concacaf standings.
The math
Costa Rica has to beat Honduras big time Tuesday night, and Nicaragua pulls off a win against Haiti, just like they managed to do against Honduras last night. That’s the only mathematical formula for the final match that would put La Sele in first place with nine points, while their rivals would remain with eight, for a direct pass to the World Cup.
The other possibility is that Costa Rica wins and Haiti draws, in which case both teams would be tied with nine points, and everything would be decided by goal difference.
The other way for the Costa Ricans to keep their World Cup dream alive is to secure a playoff spot. To do so, they must first finish second in their group and also be among the two best second-place finishers.
A draw or a loss would completely eliminate Costa Rica’s hopes of qualifying for the World Cup.