Joeys take on Costa Rica in final friendly

The Joeys will finalise their FIFA U-17 World Cup preparations on Monday morning [AEDT] when they take on Costa Rica in a friendly.

The match at Estadio El Teniente – a former FIFA World Cup and Copa America venue - will be the Joeys’ only friendly in Chile before taking on Germany the following week.

Joeys head coach Tony Vidmar said he was looking forward to seeing the Joeys in a game situation.

“This will be our last game before we face Germany,” Vidmar said.

“We’ve been in Chile now for four days, and the boys have been slowly acclimatizing to their environment.

“Costa Rica will be an opportunity for all the squad members to have a hit out and test themselves before the 2015 U-17 FIFA World Cup begins.”

The Estadio El Teniente – Spanish for ‘the lieutenant’ – has a long and rich association with football in South America.

It was one of four stadiums used to host the 1962 FIFA World Cup in Chile, and has seen greats like England captain Bobby Charlton take the field.

Earlier this year, it was used as a venue for the Copa America, where it saw Ecuador triumph over Mexico, and Venezuela upset Colombia.

The Joeys will then begin their FIFA U-17 World Cup campaign against Germany on Sunday 18 October, before taking on Mexico on Wednesday 21 October, and then wrapping up the group stage on Saturday 24 October against Argentina.