It was ‘Benverge’ after all. After leaving South Korea to take charge of the UAE in the Middle East, Paulo Bento made his UAE managerial debut with a win. In a four-goal fireworks display, the national team cruised to a 4-1 victory over North and Central American powerhouse Costa Rica.
The United Arab Emirates defeated Costa Rica 4-1 in a friendly match at Stadion Maksimir in Zagreb, Croatia, on Wednesday (July 13). The UAE raced out to a three-goal lead in the first half and added one more in the second half to complete the rout of the one-goal Costa Rican side. In his first game in charge, Bento marked his debut with a convincing victory.
Costa Rica lined up in a 4-4-2 with Lee’s teammate Keylor Navas in goal. Jeffrey Valverde, Julio Cascante, Francisco Calvo, and Ronald Matarrita formed the back four. Jimmy Marin, Sebastian Acuña Murillo, Alejandro Bran, and Randall Lill formed the midfield. Manfred Ugalde and Joel Capmel completed the front two.
The UAE lined up in Bento’s favorite 4-2-3-1. Khalid Eisa was in goal, while Abdullah Idris, Khalid Al Hashemi, Khalifa Al Hammadi, and Khalid Ibrahim combined in defense. Yahya Nader and Ali Salmin lined up in midfield, while Yahya Algassani, Ali Saleh, and Fabiu Birginiu supported frontman Kaiu in the second line.
The first goal came quickly. In the 16th minute, Algassani received a pass from Birginio, dribbled into the box and fired a shot that rattled the post. Navas quickly got a hand to it, but the ball deflected off him and into the back of the net.
A second goal in the 23rd minute gave the UAE the lead. Saleh’s pass into the middle of the box was centered by Khaoui, who slotted home his second goal of the game. With a two-goal lead, the UAE added to their lead in the 38th minute when Birginiu’s shot deflected off a defender and into the back of the net.
With a three-goal lead in the first half, the UAE completed the comeback eight minutes into the second half when Al Ghassani played a one-two with Nader before calmly slotting into the corner of the net. Costa Rica narrowly escaped defeat with a 19th-minute goal from Cascante.
For Bento, who took over as UAE coach in July, this was his first game in charge of Costa Rica, a team that had just beaten Saudi Arabia 3-1 on Sept. 9. With a largely unchanged starting lineup from the Saudi Arabia game, Bento’s first game in charge saw the team put on a four-goal fireworks display to secure a comfortable victory. 먹튀검증
In contrast, Klinsmann’s side went five games without a win before bouncing back with a 1-0 victory over the Saudis at the sixth attempt.
Since his appointment in March, Klinsmann’s record has been a dismal three draws and two losses, including two A matches in March, two A matches in June, and his first A match in September against Wales. He was the first foreign coach in history to fail to win his first five games in charge.
The team also suffered from a goal drought during this period. Fiery attacking football