Switzerland finished second in their group, trailing behind Brazil.
ADVERTISEMENTCosta Rica snatched a dramatic point against Switzerland — but the Swiss still qualify for the next round after placing second in Group E.
Brazil topped the group after their 2-0 win over Serbia.
Switzerland went ahead in the first half after Swiss captain Stephan Lichtsteiner played the ball in from the right wing to the back post, Embolo headed the ball down cleverly to Dzemaili, who lashed it home.
But it was not all plain sailing for the Swiss. Costa Rica could count themselves unlucky after they started the game well and forced Sommer into a triple save, including a world-class fingertip onto the post after a Celso Borges header. Costa Rica also hit the bar after a great strike from Daniel Colindres.
In the second half Costa Rica again played well and they equalised through Kendall Waston, who headed in from a Campbell corner.
Switzerland scored what looked like the winner when Josip Drmic fired home in the 88th minute but the drama was not over as Costa Rica were awarded a penalty when Ruiz was fouled in the area. The Costa Ricans' elation, however, was shortlived as VAR overturned the decision after it showed Ruiz was offside as the ball was played to him.
Costa Rica were not done, though, and were awarded another penalty when Denis Zakaria fouled Joel Campbell — and this time it stood. Bryan Ruiz hit the bar from the penalty spot and the ball rebounded off Yann Sommer and into the goal.
Five takeaways from the game:
Costa Rica and their desire
Costa Rica are out of the World Cup, but today they gave their fans something to celebrate, and they worked for it! They came twice from behind against Switzerland and you could see how much their goals and the result meant to them and their fans by the reaction around the ground and on the bench. Costa Rica showed real desire to get something from the game, which is highlighted by the fact they conceded the second goal in the 88th minute and still managed to earn a point, you could even argue that they deserved more from the game after their approach.
Switzerland's second-half performance
Although the Swiss went ahead twice in the game, at times they were lacking in their performance. Early in the first half Costa Rica enjoyed a strong period and although Switzerland grew into the game, their second-half performance was not brilliant. For most of the second-half the Swiss seemed happy with their point and lacked any real intensity, and even though they are through they will be looking for an improvement when they face Sweden next week.
The party atmosphere
Costa Rica may be going home tomorrow, but you'd never know that from their fans in the stadium. They created a real party atmosphere throughout the game, even when they were behind. It was great to see the fans dancing and enjoying the game despite the result was not going in their favour at the time. Imagine the party they will have now after earning that point.
Two penalties in three minutes
To see one late penalty awarded is enough drama on its own, but to see two in three minutes is really uncommon. Even though the first penalty was overturned by VAR for an offside in the buildup, these penalties and the drama that accompanied them will live long in the memory. Not only were there two penalties though, the Ruiz penalty which ended up in the net was a bizarre one. Ruiz hit the penalty onto the bar, it then bounced down and hit the Swiss goalkeeper Sommer on the back and ended up in the net.
Unlikely semi-finalists
Some unlikely teams now have a chance of reaching the semi-final and this includes Switzerland, depending on results in the final group games tomorrow. Switzerland, England, Belgium, Columbia, Sweden, Senegal or Japan could reach the semis. These teams are not regular semi-finalists by any means, and there is a real chance for one of these teams to go a long way.