Deportivo Saprissa

Match report

Saprissa claimed a narrow 2-1 victory over Alianza in the Group Stage of the CONCACAF Central American Cup on Wednesday evening. The hosts took an early lead through M. Torres before the visitors levelled via J. Garces. O. Sinclair's late strike secured the three points despite a second-half scare.

Torres opened the scoring in the nineteenth minute, catching the defence off guard. Alianza responded well and earned a yellow card for N. Williams in the thirtieth minute. K. Arboine and A. Mendoza also picked up bookings before the break.

Alianza changed their approach after the interval. They brought on A. Frias and B. Hernandez in the sixty-ninth minute and Garces equalised immediately in the seventieth. The visitors looked dangerous on the counter and should have too much for them if they kept their shape.

Saprissa coach G. Chiari made a defensive substitution in the fifty-sixth minute. Mendoza was replaced in the sixty-eighth minute, and Guzman came on for the visitors in the seventy-fifth. Saprissa sat deep and soaked it up before finding their rhythm again.

Sinclair scored the winner in the eighty-eighth minute to end Alianza's clean-sheet run. The hosts dominated possession at 65 per cent and registered 122 attacks compared with 76 for the visitors. Saprissa hit nine shots on target but only converted two.

The result extends Saprissa's recent winning run, which included victories over San Carlos and Umekxit. Alianza's search for a win continues after their draw with Umekxit and a narrow victory over Arabe Unido. The hosts now sit clear in the group standings.

Prepared from match data

Key numbers

Possession, % 65 – 35

Shots on target 3 – 4

Shots off target 9 – 3

Attacks 122 – 76

⚽ 19' M. Torres — Goal 🟨 30' N. Williams — Yellow card 🟨 39' K. Arboine — Yellow card 🟨 54' A. Mendoza — Yellow card ⇄ 56' G. Chiari — Substitution ⇄ 68' A. Mendoza — Substitution ⇄ 69' A. Frias — Substitution ⇄ 69' B. Hernandez — Substitution ⚽ 70' J. Garces — Goal 🟨 73' M. Torres — Yellow card ⇄ 75' D. Guzman — Substitution ⇄ 80' Y. Ortega — Substitution ⚽ 88' O. Sinclair — Goal ⇄ 90+1' M. Torres — Substitution

Match events

19' 1:0 Deportivo Saprissa Goal M. Torres
30' 1:0 Deportivo Saprissa Yellow card N. Williams
39' 1:0 Deportivo Saprissa Yellow card K. Arboine
54' 1:0 Alianza FC Yellow card A. Mendoza
56' 1:0 Alianza FC Substitution G. Chiari off: M. Rodriguez
68' 1:0 Alianza FC Substitution A. Mendoza off: B. Walters
69' 1:0 Alianza FC Substitution A. Frias off: J. Garces
69' 1:0 Deportivo Saprissa Substitution B. Hernandez off: A. Soto
70' 1:1 Alianza FC Goal J. Garces assist: R. Perdomo
73' 1:1 Deportivo Saprissa Yellow card M. Torres
75' 1:1 Deportivo Saprissa Substitution D. Guzman off: O. Sinclair
80' 1:1 Alianza FC Substitution Y. Ortega off: G. Rangel
88' 2:1 Deportivo Saprissa Goal O. Sinclair assist: N. Williams
90+1' 2:1 Deportivo Saprissa Substitution M. Torres off: J. Brenes

Statistics

65 Possession, % 35

3 Shots on target 4

9 Shots off target 3

122 Attacks 76

9 Corners 5

10 Free kicks 16

0 Offsides 2

3 Yellow cards 1

0 Red cards 0

9 Goal kicks 10

20 Throw-ins 21

All statistics

4 Blocked shots 0

0.19 Shot accuracy 0.57

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