U.S., Costa Rica square off again in Copa America

CHICAGO - Few national teams on the planet know the United States better than Costa Rica. From decades of World Cup qualifying slugfests to the many Ticos who've thrived in Major League Soccer, the ties between the two nations are close and long-standing.

In this case, familiarity does not breed the same kind of contempt that fuels the Americans' rivalry with Mexico. But the U.S.-Costa Rica relationship isn't exactly cordial, either. Their matchups are often physical and rarely pretty - especially when the stakes are high.

As the United States and Costa Rica prepare to meet again Tuesday at Soldier Field, there is every expectation of the exact same kind of contest.

"This is a CONCACAF clasico," Costa Rica manager Oscar Ramirez said, using the Spanish term for a major soccer rivalry. He spoke through an interpreter, but that word needs no translation even to English-speaking soccer fans in the United States.

The stakes are certainly there, thanks to the Americans' loss to Colombia and the Ticos' scoreless tie with Paraguay. Whichever team wins this game will have a big advantage in the race to reach the reach the Copa America Centenario's knockout stage.

"Coming out of that result, we approach this game as a must-win, and the 11 [players] that will start have that task to find ways to do it," U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann said. "There's everything to play for in the last two games, and then hopefully you go through, which we are convinced we will. But we've got to get it done [Tuesday] night."

Key Costa Rican midfielder Celso Borges is well aware that many American fans were not pleased with how the U.S. team played in Friday's 2-0 defeat. But he's not falling for any talk from the naysayers.

"I didn't see a U.S. that was a disaster - they had good ideas," he said. "We can't let ourselves think that they are in a bad position just because people say it. What we saw in the [Colombia] game was pretty solid, and we have to be at our best for us to be able to beat them."

Costa Rica has established itself as a power in the CONCACAF region over the last few years, right behind Mexico and the United States. It has done so thanks in no small part to MLS. Five of the 23 players on the roster play in the league, and a sixth used to.

The many U.S.-Costa Rica World Cup qualifiers have created memories that resonate to this day. American fans still have nightmares about San Jose's hostile old Estadio Saprissa; Costa Rican fans still complain about the Americans' decision to play a game in a blizzard in suburban Denver in 2013.

This time, things are different. The stage is more neutral, and the spotlight is a new kind that the Copa America Centenario has created.

But once the game begins, expect an old-fashioned backyard brawl.

@thegoalkeeper