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GWANGJU, South Korea (Ticker) -- The student toppled the teacher. Ronald Gomez scored the opener and assisted on Mauricio Wright's goal during a five-minute span as Costa Rica cruised to a 2-0 victory over World Cup debutant China in a Group C match. Costa Rica coach Alexandre Guimaraes, who played for "Los Ticos" during the 1990 World Cup when they advanced to the second round, guided his team over a China team led by Bora Milutinovic, who coached Costa Rica 12 years ago. "He is a coach that I admire so much," Guimaraes said of Milutinovic. "I have strong feelings. I have learned so much from him. Today, I am very happy to play against his team and I am proud." After failing to capitalize on their numerous opportunities in the opening hour, the Costa Ricans finally broke through. Gomez's back heel sprung Paulo Wanchope, who had his shot blocked. But it rebounded to Gomez, whose left-footed blast in the 61st minute beat goalkeeper Jin Jiang. Gomez then collected a 65th-minute corner kick on the near side of the penalty area. The forward turned and fed Wright, who was rewarded for his stellar defensive effort throughout the match with a straightforward header. "We started very well. It is always good to start the World Cup with a victory, just like last time (at Italia '90)," Guimaraes said. "At the moment, we are very happy. But we have two very tough games to come. First of all, we think about our next game with Turkey, then we will think about the match with Brazil." Costa Rica edged ahead of Brazil atop Group C on goal difference. Milutinovic is leading a record fifth country into soccer's showcase event. He also coached Mexico in 1986, the United States in 1994 and Nigeria in 1998. All four of his previous teams reached the second round. "It's the World Cup, still have two more games," Milutinovic said regarding his chances to advance with China. "It's football, so no one knows what exactly could happen. "Los Ticos" had to wait until the 20th minute to register a quality scoring chance. Mauricio Solis dispossessed Li Tie, dribbled into the box and unleashed a blast that ricocheted off Jiang. Despite establishing its superiority during the latter stages of the first half, Costa Rica still failed to find the back of the net. Gomez had a clear sight of goal in the 36th minute, but he shanked it off the outside of his left foot. A few minutes later, Gomez wasted another chance, sending a cross well behind his teammates in the area. At the other end, China was held to just three shots on goal. Wright, the 31-year-old who was a regular during World Cup qualifying for France '98 but did not play during Costa Rica's run to Korea/Japan, thwarted numerous Chinese ventures toward the penalty area. China suffered a blow to its defense after just 25 minutes when Manchester City's Sun Jihai limped off with an injury and was replaced by Qu Bo. With just three players in the side employed by European clubs, China's loss of the defender of Sun's pedigree certainly did not help the cause of the world's most populous nation. |
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