var teamInfo={"F74E7C85C8A39E32E0F4B2C7CB577624":"Alexandre Guimaraes is rightfully regarded as one of the finest coaches ever to lead the Costa Rica national team. The Brazilian-born tactician is the only man to guide Costa Rica safely through qualifying for two FIFA World Cups™, and this June’s tournament will be his second at the helm.

Guimaraes first arrived in Costa Rica at the age of 12 when his father, a Brazilian doctor, was commissioned by the World Health Organisation to help fight the spread of the malaria in the Central American country. The Guimaraes family settled in the capital San Jose, where Alexandre would go on to take his first steps in the world of professional football.

Thirteen years later, the current national team coach acquired Costa Rican citizenship, quickly becoming an integral part of the national side and playing in all four games during the country’s historic campaign at Italia 90.

As a player he enjoyed iconic status at Costa Rican giants Deportivo Saprissa, winning three titles during a nine-year spell at the 'Purple Monster'. After hanging up his boots in 1992, he kicked off his coaching career with successful stints at Belen and Herediano, before returning to his beloved Saprissa. The love affair continued from the bench as Guimaraes led his side to a further two league titles, in 1997\/98 and 1999\/2000.

On the back of his success with Saprissa, ‘Guima’ became the popular choice to take over as coach of Costa Rica. Following his appointment in 2000, the gifted strategist wasted no time in cementing his hero status in the eyes of the fans, leading the Ticos to a place at Korea\/Japan 2002, Costa Rica’s first appearance on world football’s biggest stage since their heroics in Italy.

Good impression
<\/STRONG>
Over in the Far East, Costa Rica’s free-flowing attacking football earned them the respect and admiration of many. A 2-0 win over China was followed by a 1-1 draw with a classy Turkey side, who would go on to finish third. In their final group match against Brazil, Costa Rica stayed loyal to their attacking instincts and took the fight to their illustrious opponents and a 5-2 defeat failed to reflect the balance of play.

In the aftermath of their performances at Korea\/Japan 2002, Guimaraes took full advantage of his burgeoning international reputation to make the move back to club management in the lucrative Mexican league, where he enjoyed a short spell at Irapuato before moving on to Dorados de Culiacan.

Meanwhile, the loss of their inspirational leader was a body blow to the Costa Rican national side, who found themselves struggling for form and confidence. The Tricolor came close to missing out on a place at Germany 2006 on more than one occasion. First the away-goals rule came to their rescue against regional minnows Cuba after their two-legged first round tie. Then during the first group phase, only a hard-fought 0-0 draw in their final game against Honduras in Tegucigalpa sent them through at their hosts' expense.

Poor results put paid to American coach Steve Sampson’s time in charge, while a nervy start to the ‘hexagonal’ final round saw Colombian Jorge Luis Pinto heading swiftly for the exit door. With the fans clamouring desperately for the return of their former coach, the stage was set for the next chapter of the Guimaraes national team adventure. Back where he belonged, ‘Guima’ was quick to steady Costa Rican ship, sealing his side’s place at the finals with a game to spare.

As he prepares his side for Germany, Guimaraes is determined to emulate Costa Rica’s performance at Italia 90, where the Ticos reached the second round. “If we want to match or do better than the side of 1990, we have to make sure everything is clearly planned out, and just focus on our preparations and tactics,” underlines Guimaraes, clearly looking to leave nothing to chance as he leads Costa Rica’s bid for more FIFA World Cup heroics.","23F2951B3C27EA49CDF6AA0A6796350C":"","A48D894461F59B01728C25D16314AB2E":"Brazil,Costa Rica","7735E6F22FA57345BFDC595703A9D154":"

Primera Division de Costa Rica
<\/STRONG>Champion (29): 1928, 1939, 1941, 1945, 1949, 1950, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1966, 1970, 1971, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1991, 1992, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03, 2004–05, Invierno 2010–11, Verano 2010–11, Invierno 2011–12, Invierno 2012–13. Invierno 2013–14<\/P>

Costa Rican Cup
<\/STRONG>Champion (10): 1926, 1928, 1937, 1941, 1944, 1948, 1949, 1967, 1974, 1977<\/P>

Costa Rican Super Cup<\/STRONG>
Champion (1): 2012<\/P>

Costa Rican Short Championships
<\/STRONG>Champion (9): 1997-1998, 1999-2000, 2000-2001, 2002-2003, 1999-2000, 2000-2001, 2001-2002, 2002-2003, 2004-2005<\/P>

CONCACAF Champions League<\/STRONG>
Champion (2): 1986, 2004<\/P>

UNCAF Club Championship
<\/STRONG>Champion (3): 1996, 2002, 2005<\/P>

Central American Champions<\/STRONG>
Champion (2): 1988, 1992<\/P>

Central American & Caribbean Champions<\/STRONG>
Champion (1): 1961<\/P>","067D9F87C96BD4F2B28E2CB1E6BE3899":"Costa Rica","C1F9C3B7B448DF0B30693C46CF342E45":"Liga Deportiva Alajuelense, commonly known as Alajuelense and nicknamed La Liga, is a Costa Rican multisport club based in the borough of El Llano, Alajuela. Although they compete in a number of different sports, Alajuelense is mostly known for its association football team. It plays in the Primera Division de Costa Rica, the top tier of the Costa Rican football league system. Alajuelense is one of two clubs to have never been relegated, along with Herediano.","A0203E0DC6D21570517EAC290512B5EC":"77","8B339FAF24182859":"http:\/\/www.lda.cr","4C3BD0B49E7780EC":"","9A8C394B65E99026":"Alexandre Guimaraes","0D38FD3F79E8DA6B":"","42F828598EA77F1B092594606465EA0D":"1959-11-7","B446C83F31D1C22B96D0F5814C545F71":"America de Cali","76B30DAB809CAA08B7EDD8277BA24A64":"Liga Deportiva Alajuelense","7BFCAC81BA3A2F91509A9E9BA49BB793CC283EF5765EDF97":"1919-6-18","51CF9836C3B39401FB9D324DD09EF7B5":"17,895","DB8BFDDC9C8E07942DF1262A4753E432":"2024-3-12","9597521584EB9A23417B8E85D33BF2A8":"Alexandre Guimaraes","F7B425C4468C1ACD":"","D773F765997BBEBADD443658B59FE9EF":"Alajuela, Costa Rica","A21C4DD268581BBF0A523D040197E428":"America de Cali,Atletico Nacional,Mumbai City FC,Tianjin Jinmen Tiger,Deportivo Saprissa,Al-Dhafra,Al Wasl F.C.,Panama,CSyD Dorados de Sinaloa,Irapuato FC,Costa Rica,CSD Comunicaciones,CS Herediano,AD Belen Siglo XXI","C48FA7B3E3429BEB6C4CA200F4E63E16":"Estadio Alejandro Morera Soto","DCFA0F6214DA56A59A53EA5778815305":"0","1D05D5348F89D6017995671358C45119":"189cm","96C6B43226915F23":"44586","A16C626949206183":"4290","DCFA0F6214DA56A5BD4BD4CF76FDDC2937B8E6BEADCA6D4E":"1","F8A44A36F46FF4E4":"Liga Deportiva Alajuelense","C94196B72475EBB6":"Alajuela","04E1633E3F850098":"1","E630D11720E4B295":"1","0FA2227E78AF1E09":"Liga Deportiva Alajuelense","CBD48FB3F5827AF4666D1459D2BC8E48":"","49B34DA36FF964E0":"","e_index":0};