48 hours left

As the Costa Rican team left Walldorf this afternoon for Munich, players and coaching staff alike – not to mention fans – can see that the World Cup’s debut is closer than ever. With less than 48 hours left until kickoff, coach Alexandre Guimaraes might be wondering how his defense will act, having played together only once before in the same five-men formation. And it happened just last week, in the loss against the Czech Republic (0-1). The attack could be taking away some of Guima’s sleep as well, having failed to score in the last three friendlies before the big tournament in Germany. In the end though, all that matters is how the team performs for 90 minutes on Friday. We could be about to see Costa Rica’s biggest moment in soccer. Or just another loss to a heavy favorite. In either case, the passion and entertainment that only a World Cup can provide are here. Costa Ricans just hope it will last them more than three games.