This third 2022 World Cup Group E match for Costa Rica and Germany could put one of these teams into the Round of 16. Heading into the match, Costa Rica is in third place in the group with three points but has a -6 goal differential after their 8-0 drubbing by Spain. Germany only has one point so far and a -1 goal differential. Now, it’s time to continue our World Cup odds series with a Costa Rica-Germany prediction and pick!
While it doesn’t look great for either side right now, both teams do have an outside chance of advancing if things break right on Thursday. After Costa Rica’s upset over Japan, they have a win-and-get-in scenario, although they are massive underdogs to their European opponent. As for Germany, a win and a little help from Spain (by beating Japan) would help them avoid another disastrous World Cup.
In this World Cup odds piece, we will look at the odds of the match, discuss why Costa Rica could win, how Germany could win, and then make our picks for this Group E showdown.
Here are the Costa Rica vs. Germany World Cup odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
World Cup Odds: Costa Rica-Germany Odds
Costa Rica: +2000
Germany: -1050
Draw: +850
Over 2.5 Goals: -320
Under 2.5 Goals: +245
Why Costa Rica Will Beat Germany
The most realistic reason Costa Rica will beat Germany is that Germany is Germany right now. After winning the World Cup in 2014, the German core of Manuel Neuer, Mario Gotze, and Thomas Muller only managed three points in the 2018 World Cup Group Stage and crashed out early.
After the opening upset by Japan, the Germans again look disappointing. While the team is loaded with well-known, high-end, European league talent, there is just something missing from this squad the last four years, and if they decide not to show up on Thursday, who knows what happens.
From a tactical perspective, Costa Rica needs to CONCACAF-up this match to win. That means no German goes up for a header without an elbow in their face or goes on a run down the field without a bone-crunching tackle coming from a Costa Rican player.
If that happens and Keylor Navas pulls off some of that old Real Madrid magic in net, Costa Rican can win an ugly game 1-0.
Why Germany Will Beat Costa Rica
There is a path for Costa Rica to win ugly, but the truth is, Germany wins this match nine times out of 10 because of their far superior talent. This means a German victory is highly likely on Thursday.
Bayern Munich teenager Jamal Musiala has been the best all-around player on Germany so far in this tournament. If he can keep up his level of play, he should run circles around Costa Rica.
In the midfield, playmakers Ilkay Gundogan, Joshua Kimmich, and Leon Goretzka can control the pace of the match and keep possession for long periods of time. And up front, Thomas Muller, Serge Gnabry, and Leroy Sane are all proven goal-scorers who haven’t got going yet in the 2022 World Cup.
The one German forward who has scored a big goal in Qatar is Werder Bremen’s Niclas Fallkrug, who helped his team earn a dramatic draw vs. Spain and keep their Round of 16 hopes alive. If he can build on that performance, not even Keylor Navas will be able to save Costa Rica from taking the L.
With all this power and pedigree in Die Mannschaft’s top six, it seems like it is just up to manager Hansi Flick to figure out the best strategy to make it gel in this win-or-go-home contest.
Final Costa Rica-Germany Prediction & Pick
The odds in this match tell the story that Germany should make light work of Costa Rica and cover the over 2.5 goals by themselves. However, the way Germany played in its last four and a half World Cup matches over four years before the closing minutes of the Spain match, it’s hard to have a ton of confidence in the 2022 version of Die Mannschaft.
All that said, Germany is a world power, and, at some point, you’d think they’d remember that and start to play like it.
The first step to winning a World Cup is getting out of the Group Stage, and once that hurdle is cleared, anything can happen in the Knockout Stage. So, Germany still has a chance to do big things this go-around, and beating Costa Rica 3-0 in this all-important match (and getting some help from Spain) is the first piece of that process.
Final Costa Rica-Germany Prediction & Pick: Germany (-1050); Over 2.5 goals (-320)
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