National Team Friendly

National Stadium
Spectators: 10300 (Terracing: 7725, Seating: 2369, VIP seats: 206) U21 Bulgaria's Samuil Bibin started the match with a crisp pass. The crowd had been anticipating this game for weeks and the excitement in the stadium was easily visible. In the 3rd minute Velislav Tzapov shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Olger Azofeifa saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Olger Azofeifa showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Velcho Tzintzov, who was totally free with the ball in the 4th minute. In the 14th minute, Velcho Tzintzov ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Olger Azofeifa was frozen by the shot and now it was 0-2. Olger Azofeifa showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Velislav Tzapov, who was totally free with the ball in the 18th minute. Olger Azofeifa showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Velcho Tzintzov in the 23rd minute of the match. Velislav Tzapov took the ball and in the 25 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised Olger Azofeifa. Olger Azofeifa dived to the right, and did manage to get a hand on the shot, but it still went into the right corner making it 0-3. Olger Azofeifa made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Velislav Tzapov in the 29th minute of play. U21 Costa Rica's Olger Azofeifa played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Samuil Bibin in the 30th minute of play. After a rather tough play, U21 Costa Rica's Sindo Lores got a free kick in the 31st minute. Olger Azofeifa made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Velcho Tzintzov in the 32nd minute of play. 32 minutes into the match, U21 Costa Rica's goal looked a bit too open when Velcho Tzintzov came free, but Olger Azofeifa reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Olger Azofeifa showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Velcho Tzintzov in the 35th minute of the match. 36 minutes into the match, U21 Costa Rica's goal looked a bit too open when Samuil Bibin came free, but Olger Azofeifa reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. U21 Costa Rica's Olger Azofeifa played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Samuil Bibin in the 36th minute of play. Mainor Calderon came free with the goalkeeper in the 40th minute of the match, and shot straight on target. The shot was a little too simple and Stoyadin Shahov could save by the left post. In the 46th minute, Bozhko Shtúrkelov had to leave the field with a concussion. In the 48th minute, Ramon Mena hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Even after changing tactics the home team jogged off the field with a 0-3 deficit. They would have to work harder if they wanted to turn things around in the second half.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Kerry Flöter was the one to do the kick off. After having played for 55 minutes, Mainor Calderon managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. U21 Costa Rica's supporters crossed their fingers, but Mainor Calderon was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. U21 Costa Rica's Mainor Cantillo was substituted for Martin Picado. Olger Azofeifa made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Velcho Tzintzov in the 60th minute of play. After a rather tough play, U21 Costa Rica's Miguel Mondragon got a free kick in the 61st minute. In the 63rd minute, U21 Bulgaria's Stoimen Neshov dribbled the ball into the box and hit a shot with the outside of his foot, sending the keeper the wrong way. 0-4. Samuil Bibin could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 65th minute of the match, but Olger Azofeifa made a huge save. After a defensive mix-up in U21 Costa Rica's zone, Samuil Bibin stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Olger Azofeifa came out of the goal and Samuil Bibin tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Rex Pineda charged in rather forcefully in the 80th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Rex Pineda the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. In the 80th minute, one of U21 Costa Rica:s players had the ball in front of the goal but got pushed and fell. The referee felt it was an obvious case and blew a penalty for U21 Costa Rica. In the 88th minute, Samuil Bibin left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The U21 Bulgaria fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 0-6. After 93 minutes U21 Costa Rica's defender was forced to head the ball over the line for a corner. It was Stoimen Neshov who took care of the corner kick. U21 Bulgaria's Stoimen Neshov was first on the ball when the corner was shot and he dangerously headed the ball towards goal, but Olger Azofeifa in the goal jumped up to prevent it from getting in. Olger Azofeifa showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Velcho Tzintzov in the 94th minute of the match. In the 95th match minute, U21 Costa Rica was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Mainor Calderon to maneuver through the defense. In the 98th match minute, U21 Costa Rica was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Sindo Lores to maneuver through the defense. U21 Bulgaria's players went to the stands to thank the travelling support. The fan's backing had helped spurr the team on to a fine performance that won them the match.