NYCFC defender Rónald Matarrita reportedly suffered a grade one hamstring tear that will sideline him at least two weeks, forcing him to miss out on representing Costa Rica at the World Cup.
La Nación was the first to report Matarrita was hurt during training and Costa Rica is taking advantage of the chance to replace him on the 23-man roster ahead of the team’s Cup opener Sunday.
It’s a tough blow for Matarrita, who most recently posted on Twitter Tuesday he landed in Russia with the Costa Rican national team and looked forward to making history.
Ya en Rusia🇷🇺 con muchas ganas de volver hacer historia!! 🇨🇷🏆⚽️@FIFAWorldCup #puravida #DiosEnMi #RM22 pic.twitter.com/aKL5FYeCOd
— Ronald Matarrita (@MatarritaRonald) June 12, 2018
His father has since posted on Facebook that Matarrita instead will miss the World Cup due to his injury.
Los Ticos will still feature numerous Major League Soccer players, including Marco Urena (LAFC), Francisco Calvo (Minnesota United), Kendall Watson (Vancouver Whitecaps), David Guzman (Portland Timbers), and Rodney Wallace (NYCFC).