Despite the U.S. national team's terrible history in Costa Rica – one draw and six losses in qualifying matches – Costa Rican journalists have a lot of respect for the visiting Americans (TV: Wednesday, ESPN2, Galavision, 10 p.m. ET). "We have to make sure we respect the United States because the U.S. is the better team," Al Dia journalist Fernando Araya said.
"It will be difficult," Araya said. "The U.S. is well-prepared, has the Confederations Cup coming up and it's a team that has its full arsenal. It will be difficult for Costa Rica to win. It's not that Costa Rica is too overconfident, but sometimes they rest on their laurels and that's sort of a negative thing for us Ticos."
Tico journalists also suggested that Costa Ricans follow the movements of the American team. "Costa Ricans are loyal and follow soccer very closely and know a lot of players," Araya said. "(The Americans) have 17 players playing abroad. Some of them play in England which makes it easier to keep up on them and some others on some very important clubs, like Freddy Adu." Much talk also concerned Landon Donovan, respected for both his linguistic and soccer abilities. "Donovan is the most sought-after player for interviews because aside from his ability to speak Spanish, he's the most well-known," Araya said. "There is always fear that Donovan will score on us."