Costa Rica Face Guadeloupe in Opening Match of Gold Cup

• Game: Costa Rica vs Guadeloupe
• Location: Exploria Stadium, Florida
• Time: Monday, July 12, 9 p.m. ET
• Television: beIN Sports
• Live Stream: FuboTV

CONCACAF Gold Cup Soccer Betting Lines

Team	Handicap	Moneyline	Over/Under	Team Total
Costa Rica	-1½ -140	-650	2½ -140o
Guadeloupe	+1½ +110	+1800	2½ +110u
Draw		+590

Head to Head

• Previous Matches: 2
• Costa Rica Victories: 2 (6 goals)
• Guadeloupe Victories: 0 (1 goals)
• Draws: 0

Costa Rica and Guadeloupe last met in the Round of 8 of the 2009 Gold Cup. Costa Rica won 5-1 with goals from Celso Borges, Andy Herron, Pablo Herrera, and Alvaro Saborio (2). Only Borges will play this edition.

Their other meeting was in another Gold Cup (2007). That time Costa Rica won 1-0 thanks to Walter Centeno.

Why bet on Costa Rica?

Having your new head coach debut in an official tournament could be counterproductive. Nevertheless, Costa Rica needed a change badly. “Los Ticos” won only one of their last nine games in all competitions.

Suarez has plenty of experience in CONCACAF. He was Honduras’s head coach from 2011-14. With him in charge, Honduras reached the Gold Cup semifinals twice.

Unlike Mexico and the United States, Costa Rica will have some of its main players. The list includes Bryan Ruiz, Celso Borges, Oscar Duarte, and Joel Campbell. Goalkeeper Keylor Navas will not be able to attend due to injury.

Even without Navas, Costa Rica should be fine defensively. They allowed four goals in their last five games, including a couple of clean sheets. Their main concern should be to improve offensively. Jose Guillermo Ortiz and Ariel Rodriguez will try to become the team’s new No. 9.

Their expected lineup is Leonel Moreira; Keysher Fuller, Francisco Calvo, Oscar Duarte, Ronald Matarrita; Celso Borges, Allan Cruz, Alonso Martinez, Bryan Ruiz, Joel Campbell; Jose Guillermo Ortiz.

“La Sele” will be wearing a new uniform during the tournament. Hey, you can’t underestimate the positive impact of a new-shiny uniform, right?

Costa Rica’s best performance in a Gold Cup was in 2002. They finished as the runners-up after losing the Final to the United States (2-0).

Why Bet on Guadeloupe?

Guadeloupe managed to qualify after beating Bahamas (2-0) and Guatemala (1-1; 10-9 in penalty shootout) in the preliminaries. This will be Guadeloupe’s fourth participation in the Gold Cup. Their best result has been to finish in fourth place (2007).

Matthias Phaeton, who plays for Guingamp in France, is the team’s star. He scored in both preliminary games. He’s only 21 years old. Expect Guadeloupe to play on the counterattack in order to take advantage of his speed.

Guadeloupe scored at least one goal in their last six games in all competitions. They finished with a clean sheet in three of those games.

Head coach Jocelyn Angloma has plenty of experience. He played for several European powerhouses such as PSG and Inter Milan. He took over in 2017 as Steve Bizasene’s replacement.

Their expected lineup is Yohann Thuram-Ulien; Kelly Irep, Ronan Hauterville, Steve Solvet, Kevin Malpon; Raphael Mirval, Mickael Alphonse, Matthias Phaeton, Morgan Saint-Maximin; Dimitri Cavare, Anthony Baron.

Final Analysis and Predictions

Costa Rica will take the reins from the start, but don’t sleep on the sports betting underdog Guadeloupe. They will put up a fight, their speed could be a problem for the Costa Rican center-backs. Nevertheless, Costa Rica’s experience will make a difference. All players are eager to show they deserve an opportunity from Luis Fernando Suarez beyond the Gold Cup.

Don’t forget to check the Soccer Props for Costa Rica vs Guadeloupe to increase your winning chances. Take a shot at the correct score, half-time/full-time winner, and more!

Prediction: Costa Rica 2, Guadeloupe 1

Pick: Over 2½ Goals at -140