Sydney FC v Deportivo Saprissa
On a freezing night at Toyota Stadium, Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa defeated Sydney FC 1-0 in an a match that did little to raise the temperature of the subdued 28,503 crowd.
Christian Bolanos scored in the 47th minute for the CONCACAF champions from a long ball from defence and the Costa Ricans could easily have extended their lead on the counter as Sydney desperately pushed for an equalizer in the closing stages.
Sydney's task was made all the harder when defender Alvin Ceccoli was sent off with ten minutes to go for an adjudged elbow on the Saprissa goalkeeper. Dwight Yorke attempted to pull the strings from a deep-lying midfield position for Sydney but lacked support from his team-mates in an uninspired and one-paced midfield.
FC Sydney's Kazu Miura failed to make much of an impression in front of his home fans and Saprissa will now take on European Champions Liverpool in Yokohama on Thursday.
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