Costa Rica will face Panama in the first leg of the CONCACAF Nations League on Thursday at the Estadio Ricardo Saprissa Aymá.
The hosts are one of four teams who have a bye into the quarter-finals. They will play for the first time since September, when they won 3-1 against Saudi Arabia and lost 4-1 to the UAE in two friendlies that month.
Meanwhile, the visitors advanced to the quarter-finals after finishing first in League A Group A. They went undefeated in the group stage, winning three games. In their previous match, they defeated Guatemala 3-0 at home last month, thanks to goals from Adalberto Carrasquilla, Eric Davis, and Abdiel Ayarza.
The hosts finished fourth in the inaugural Nations League, while the visitors finished fourth the previous year.
Panama vs. Costa Rica Head-to-Head and Key Figures
- The two Central American rivals have met 60 times in all competitions, with the first meeting taking place in 1938. With 31 victories, the hosts have dominated the proceedings against the visitors. The visitors have defeated their northern rivals 17 times, with 12 games ending in draws.
- They met twice in the Nations League, both times in the group stage of the previous edition of the competition. In these meetings, the visitors won while keeping clean sheets.
- Panama has won three consecutive games against Costa Rica, including a 2-1 victory in the group stage of the CONCACAF Gold Cup earlier this year.
- Nine of the last eleven meetings between the two teams have resulted in fewer than 2.5 goals.
- Nine of the last eleven meetings between the two teams have resulted in fewer than 2.5 goals.
Panama vs. Costa Rica Predictions and Betting Strategies for November 16th, 2023
Prediction for Costa Rica vs. Panama
In 2023, Los Ticos have only three wins in ten games, with two of them coming away from home.
They have lost six games this season and have failed to score four times. Surprisingly, they have lost four of their last five home games against the visitors, failing to score in three of those games.
They have only one win in four Nations League home games and have failed to score twice. Two of their four losses in the competition have come against visitors, which is concerning.
Los Canaleros are in good form, having won four of their last five games. They have only lost one of their last 11 games in all competitions, against Mexico in the CONCACAF Gold Cup final.
They have only lost once in their last eight meetings with the hosts, winning six of them, and are heavy favourites. They have five clean sheets in that time and will look to keep their defensive form going in this game. For more information visit our website by clicking here
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