USA falls to Costa Rica 1-0 in Tim Howard's return to goal
HARRISON, N.J. – After coming up short when it mattered the most against Mexico Saturday night, the U.S. men's national team couldn't quite right the ship against another CONCACAF foe.
The U.S. men fell to Costa Rica 1-0 at Red Bull Arena, a match that marked Tim Howard's return to the U.S. goal for the first time since the 2014 World Cup round of 16.
Joel Campbell gave Costa Rica the lead in the 70th minute, beating Howard with a low shot from inside the area. Campbell was a late trailer on the play and beat a lagging Danny Williams to David Myrie's pass to put one into the back of the net and send the Costa Rica-heavy crowd into a frenzy. Howard prevented it from being a 2-0 result, stuffing Marcos Ureña on a 90th-minute breakaway.
The U.S. had minimal opportunities, with Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas coming up when he had to. He was most troubled on a ball at the far post that Tim Ream put on frame after Brek Shea set him up with a looping cross-field pass.
Aside from that, it was a quiet night at the office for Jurgen Klinsmann's players, who took to the field just days after falling to Mexico for the right to advance to the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. Klinsmann had swapped out a number of players and jettisoned Fabian Johnson, as the pressure surrounding his position continues to mount.
The match, the USA's third straight loss on home soil, also served as the USA's final tune-up ahead of 2018 World Cup qualifying, which kicks off with a pair of matches in November.
Here's how the match unfolded:
ROSTERS
USA
GOALKEEPERS: Brad Guzan (Aston Villa), Bill Hamid (D.C. United), Tim Howard (Everton)
DEFENDERS: Ventura Alvarado (Club America), Geoff Cameron (Stoke City), Brad Evans (Seattle Sounders), Michael Orozco (Club Tijuana), Tim Ream (Fulham), Jonathan Spector (Birmingham City)
MIDFIELDERS: Alejandro Bedoya (Nantes), Mix Diskerud (New York City FC), Jermaine Jones (New England Revolution), Lee Nguyen (New England Revolution), Brek Shea (Orlando City SC), Danny Williams (Reading), DeAndre Yedlin (Sunderland)
FORWARDS: Jozy Altidore (Toronto FC), Bobby Wood (Union Berlin), Andrew Wooten (FC Sandhausen), Gyasi Zardes (LA Galaxy)
COSTA RICA
GOALKEEPERS: Esteban Alvarado (Trabzonspor), Keylor Navas (Real Madrid), Patrick Pemberton (Alajuelense)
DEFENDERS: Jhonny Acosta (Alajuelense), Francisco Calvo (Saprissa), Oscar Duarte (Club Brugge), Cristian Gamboa (West Brom), Ronald Matarrita (Alajuelense), Dave Myrie (Herediano), Bryan Oviedo (Everton), Kendall Waston (Vancouver Whitecaps)
MIDFIELDERS: Elías Aguilar (Herediano), Celso Borges (Deportivo La Coruña), Mauricio Castillo (Cartagines), Oscar Esteban Granados (Herediano), David Guzman (Saprissa), Luis Miguel Valle (Alajuelense), Deyver Vega (Saprissa), Johan Venegas (Montreal Impact)
FORWARDS: Joel Campbell (Arsenal), Daniel Colindres (Saprissa), Marco Ureña (Midtjylland)