Photographie: Felipe Echeverría - Santiago Barcacel
This morning, the VIII FIFUSA Futsal World Cup continued with the Round of 16, where Argentina dominated Costa Rica with a 13-1 victory, securing their place in the quarterfinals.
Argentina, who topped Group C with a perfect record, faced a Costa Rican team that qualified as the fourth seed from Group B, thanks to goal difference, and without their key player, Jordy Umaña (#5), who was injured in the previous match.
First Half: Argentine Domination
From the start of the match, Argentina dominated possession and kept the game in Costa Rica’s half, while Costa Rica attempted to defend and look for counterattacking opportunities.
At 16:13, Diego Koltes (#3) opened the scoring for Argentina with a goal following a midfield pass from Matías Cárcamo (#8). Five minutes later, Diego Vargas (#9) doubled the lead to 2-0, once again assisted by Cárcamo, who showed excellent vision.
Costa Rica tried to respond, and at 10:59, their coach called a timeout to adjust the team. The tactic quickly paid off as a penalty committed by the Argentine goalkeeper was converted into a goal by Steven Villalobos (#12) at 3:17, reducing the deficit to 2-1.
Despite Costa Rica’s improvement, Argentina struck again at a crucial moment. Two minutes before the end of the first half, Santiago Verón (#5) scored to make it 3-1, following a through ball from Jeremías Asencio (#11), putting Argentina in control heading into halftime.
Second Half: Argentine Rout
In the second half, Argentina was relentless. With high pressure that forced defensive errors from Costa Rica, the Argentinians added 10 more goals to close out the game in dominant fashion. The final goal came from Santiago Verón (#5), assisted by goalkeeper Juan de Lucía (#1), with just five seconds remaining.
The clock hit zero, and Argentina celebrated their 13-1 victory, advancing confidently to the quarterfinals of the FIFUSA World Cup 2024.
Match Lineups:
Argentina (Coach: Julio Armando Corvalán):
Starters:
-#1: Juan De Lucía (Goalkeeper) (1 assist)
-#4: Tomás Civeli (1 goal) (1 yellow card)
-#5: Santiago Verón (3 goals) (2 assists) (1 yellow card)
-#8: Matías Jesús (2 goals) (2 assists)
-#3: Diego Koltes (Captain) (2 goals) (1 assist)
Substitutes:
-#2: Fabián Emiliano (3 goals)
-#6: José María Carrizo (1 assist)
-#7: Julio Sánchez (1 goal)
-#9: Diego Vargas (1 goal)
-#10: Sosa Batiz (1 assist)
-#11: Jeremías Asencio (2 assists)
-#12: Augusto Río
Costa Rica (Coach: Julio Armando Corvalán):
Starters:
-#1: Jafete Ballestero (Goalkeeper)
-#7: Pablo Fallas (Captain)
-#6: Alejandro Casasola
-#10: Frander Sánchez
-#2: Vinicio Pérez
Substitutes:
-#18: Héctor Fonseca
-#20: Kevin Acosta (1 yellow card)
-#8: Pablo Montero
-#12: Steven Villalobos (1 goal)
-#9: Marco Carvajal
FIFUSA Press