It's do or die for Costa Rica vs Ecuador

Ecuador can advance to the Round of 16 with a victory on Thursday when they take on Costa Rica in a Latin American battle in Hamburg.

Ecuador were very impressive in a 2-0 win over Poland on Friday and will likely name an unchanged line-up for their game, Agustín Delgado and Carlos Tenoirio both overcoming slight knocks to be fit.

Costa Rica will be without central defender Gilberto Martínez due to a leg injury and Alexandre Guimaraes is likely to put Jervis Drummond in his place. Needing more explosive offensive play, Guimaraes might also name Christian Bolaños to start in midfield for Danny Fonseca. A win for Ecuador would also book Germany's place in the last 16.

Facts:

This is Ecuador's second-ever appearance in the finals and advancing to the next round would be an improvement over their 2002 showing when they failed to negotiate the first stage. They will also seek their third straight World Cup victory.

Costa Rica have not advanced past the group stage since their debut in 1990, but without a victory on Thursday their task will be quite difficult.

Head to head:

The two nations have met a total of nine times in friendly internationals. The series is split evenly with five draws and two wins apiece for both Ecuador and Costa Rica.

Probable line-ups:

Ecuador: Mora, de la Cruz, Hurtado, Espinoza, Reasco, Méndez, E. Tenorio, Castillo, Valencia, Delgado, C. Tenorio.

Costa Rica: Porras, Marín, Umaña, Drummond, González, Solís, Centeno, Sequeira, Bolaños, Gómez, Wanchope.