EFE

United States ad Costa Rica

Both teams took turns driving the ball up field during the first half, led by American Clint Dempsey and Costa Rica's Oscar Rojas.

Although both squads had scoring opportunities, but Costa Rica was unable to get a clear shot and the United States could not put one past goalie Jose Francisco Porras.

Costa Rica coach Alexandre Guimaraes opted for a tight defensive strategy, lining up veteran Victor Cordero, Michael Umaña, Brenes and Rojas in the backfield.

U.S. coach Bruce Arena, for his part, opted for an offensive press, creating dangerous scoring chances that failed to yield a goal.

With the score tied 0-0 at halftime, both teams came out running in the second 45 minutes of play, only to be shut down by a competent display of defense.

Hoping to secure the win, Arena pulled star forwards Landon Donovan and Demarcus Beasley off the beach. The gambit looked set to pay off on a couple of occasions, but Porras was too much to overcome.

Costa Rica withstood the U.S. onslaught thanks to the solid play of Cordero and Umaña and tried to beat the Americans on the counter attack, which was led by Cristian Bolaños and Rojas.

The draw left the United State on top of Group B with seven points, while Costa Rica will advance thanks to its second-place finish in the group.

Lineups:

0- United States: Kasey Keller, Tony Saneh, Jimmy Conrad, Steve Cherundolo, Frankie Hejduk; Chris Armas, John O'Brien (Damarcus Beasley, 58th minute), Clint Dempsey (Josh Wolf, 78th minute), Ben Olsen; Steve Ralston and Patrick Noonan (Landon Donavan, 66th minute).

0- Costa Rica: Jose Francisco Porras, Michael Umaña, Victor Cordero, Roy Miller, Harold Wallace; Jose Luis López (Douglas Sequeira, 68th minute), Danny Fonseca, Steven Bryce, Jafet Soto (Bryan Ruiz, 76th minute); Oscar Rojas and Randall Brenes (Cristian Bolaños, 61st minute).

Oscar Rojas (25th) and Cristian Bolaños (78th minute) of Costa Rica and Frankie Hejduk (86th minute) of the United States all received yellow cards.