National Stadium
Spectators: 10307 (Terracing: 7731,
Seating: 2370, VIP seats: 206) U21 Costa Rica's Donald Marin started the match with a crisp pass. The crowd had been anticipating this game for weeks and the excitement in the stadium was easily visible. In the 6th minute Olman Viquez shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Atro Heikkinen saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 6 minutes into the game, U21 Costa Rica's Olman Viquez nearly tore a hole in the net with a booming shot. Atro Heikkinen made a valiant effort, but he could not reach the ball in time, 2-0. 12 minutes into the game, Clodomiro Campos was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. U21 Costa Rica's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave U21 Finland the free kick. In the 12th match minute, U21 Costa Rica was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Clodomiro Campos to maneuver through the defense. 13 minutes into the match, U21 Finland's Teemu Nikander sent off a blazing shot straight on target, a shot that Otoniel Vilchez narrowly saved just below the crossbar. In the 15th minute, Aki Heliskoski left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The U21 Finland fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 2-1. 24 minutes into the match, Sami Valkealahti had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Otoniel Vilchez. U21 Costa Rica's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Sami Valkealahti was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 3-2. Olman Viquez could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 31st minute of the match, but Atro Heikkinen made a huge save. In the 33rd minute Sami Valkealahti shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Otoniel Vilchez saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. If Aki Heliskoski had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 34th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. 36 minutes into the game, Aki Heliskoski was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. U21 Finland's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave U21 Costa Rica the free kick. After a rather tough play, U21 Finland's Aki Heliskoski got a free kick in the 36th minute. Atro Heikkinen showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Elam Vicioso, who was totally free with the ball in the 38th minute. After 39 minutes of play, U21 Finland's Aki Heliskoski made it 3-4 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Otoniel Vilchez was left in no man's land by his defense there! Otoniel Vilchez showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Sami Valkealahti, who was totally free with the ball in the 42nd minute. Donald Marin kicked well hit freekick during the 47th minute of the match. In the 48th match minute, U21 Costa Rica was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Donald Marin to maneuver through the defense. The crowd was extremely unhappy with the home team's performance in the first half. They were losing 3-4.
The wind increased when Aki Heliskoski made the kick off in the second half. In the 52nd minute, Clodomiro Campos hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Atro Heikkinen showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Olman Viquez in the 55th minute of the match. After 56 minutes U21 Finland's defender was forced to head the ball over the line for a corner. It was Clodomiro Campos who took care of the corner kick. After taking down the ball on U21 Costa Rica's corner Olman Viquez fired away a hard shot, but the defenders efficiently covered the most dangerous angles and Atro Heikkinen quite easily take care of the ball. A collision led to U21 Finland getting a freekick after 66 minutes play. Antti Puurula hit a great ball. In the 67th match minute, U21 Finland was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Antti Puurula to maneuver through the defense. Sami Valkealahti recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 70th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. U21 Finland's Usko Ruuttu was substituted for Sami Valkealahti. An unexpectedly hard shot by Donald Marin in the 73rd minute of play forced U21 Finland's goalkeeper Atro Heikkinen to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Walter Madrigal hit a great freekick 75 minutes into the match. After some fancy dribbling in the 76th minute, Teemu Nikander managed to get in a good position for a shot. U21 Finland's supporters rose to their feet, but Teemu Nikander was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Otoniel Vilchez breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. After some careless play in the U21 Finland defense, Donald Marin kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Atro Heikkinen. The U21 Finland fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Atro Heikkinen should have stopped the shot. Usko Ruuttu might have been able to make a better finish in the 82nd minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Otoniel Vilchez. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Usko Ruuttu ran back to his position shaking his head. Atro Heikkinen took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Olman Viquez, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. After 86 minutes of play, U21 Finland's Usko Ruuttu made it 4-5 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Otoniel Vilchez was left in no man's land by his defense there! Otoniel Vilchez showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Aki Heliskoski, who was totally free with the ball in the 91st minute. After 92 played minutes U21 Costa Rica got a freekick which was hit by Rene Matos. A collision led to U21 Costa Rica getting a freekick after 97 minutes play. Isidro Chinchilla hit a great ball. When the final whistle was heard the away supporters stood up and showed their joy. U21 Finland had managed to secure a win in what was a close match throughout.
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