POSTED: Thursday October 1st 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Qantas Young Socceroos Eager to Atone

Jan Versleijen warns his team to not get complacent in FIFA U-20 World Cup match against Costa Rica

Qantas Young Socceroos coach Jan Versleijen has warned his players against complacency in today’s all-important FIFA U-20 World Cup match against Costa Rica (midnight AEST). 

Brazil
handed the Costa Ricans a 5-0 drubbing but Versleijen said the
scoreline was a touch unfair to the losing side, who had their share of
early chances and had a penalty appeal turned down. 

Both sides are eager to secure their first points, with the Czechs taking on Brazil in the other Group E encounter. 

“We can’t be complacent and I don’t think that will happen because Costa Rica did really well against  Brazil, especially the first half hour where they had some chances,’’ Versleijen said. 

“We’ve also watched some of the games they played prior to coming to Egypt and it was clear they have some real quality. 

“They are the CONCACAF champions, beating USA 3-0 in the final, which gives you some idea of how strong they are. 

“They’re technical, good ball players, speedy, they like to play football and it will be a challenging game for us.’’ 

Versleijen
was looking for a marked improvement from his own side, who produced a
disappointing performance in the 2-1 loss to Czech Republic after
captain James Holland scored a late consolation goal from the penalty spot.

 

“What
we need is for everybody to play at the level that they can. I think
some players were nervous because there was a lot of expectations and
Czech are not an easy team to play against,’’ he said.

 

“Regardless of nerves, now we have to produce because this is our only chance of getting to the next round.’’

 

The Qantas Young Socceroos will be hoping history repeats itself, with Australia never having lost to Costa Rica at U-20 level.

 

The
teams met three times in 1983, first in the Joao Havelange Trophy in
Mexico, then twice in the World Cup Intercontinental Qualifier in Costa
Rica.  The last time they met was at the 1995 FIFA U-20
World Cup in Qatar, with midfielder Robbie Enes and captain Mark Viduka
scoring the goals on that occasion. 

The
Qantas Young Socceroos will be forced to make at least one change with
defender Ryan McGowan suspended in the wake of his red card against
Czech Republic, but Versleijen would not be drawn on whether more
changes were planned.

 

“I
don’t think there will be too many changes, but we have to replace
McGowan. We have to bring in some more creative players because we have
to score against Costa Rica,’’ said Versleijen, who again has no injury
concerns. 

“A
crucial point will be the set pieces and we have to put pressure on
them because we will have a height advantage. But overall we have to
play a lot better.’’ 

All Qantas Young Socceroos matches at the FIFA U-20 World Cup are broadcast live and exclusive on SBS TV (see www.sbs.com.au for full broadcast details).  

HEAD-TO-HEAD
Australia’s U-20 record v Costa Rica
- 1983 W2-1 - U-20 World Cup Campaign, Joao Havelange Trophy (Mexico)

- 1983 W3-1 - World Cup Intercontinental Qualifier (Costa Rica)

- 1983 W3-0 - World Cup Intercontinental Qualifier (Costa Rica)
- 1995 W2-0 - U-20 World Cup Campaign, World Cup - group match (Qatar)

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Keywords · FIFA U-20 World Cup · Qantas Young Socceroos · Jan Versleijen · Costa Rica · James Holland

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Name: Bonita Mersiades
Organization: FFA Football Federation Australia
Email:
Phone: +61 2 8354 5544
URL: http://www.footballaustralia.com.au/default.aspx?s=home

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