Scotland 0-1 Costa Rica - BBC Sport
Marco Urena scores the only goal as Costa Rica ruin Alex McLeish's return as Scotland manager.
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Marco Urena scored the only goal as Costa Rica ruined Alex McLeish's return as Scotland manager.

In the first friendly of McLeish's second stint in charge, Urena finished smartly on 14 minutes after a fine cutback by Bryan Oviedo.

Bryan Ruiz hit the bar after the break for the visitors, having been afforded too much space on the left.

Matt Ritchie drew a fine stop from Keylor Navas with the hosts' best chance of the match.

The Scots face Hungary away on Tuesday night, while Costa Rica take on Tunisia as the Central Americans continue their preparations for the World Cup in Russia.

For the hosts at Hampden, there were international debuts for Scott McKenna, Scott McTominay, Oli McBurnie and Kevin McDonald in a new look, experimental Scotland side.

As McLeish tries to build momentum, this was the first of a series of friendlies before the Uefa Nations League matches in September.

Despite a freshness in manager and squad, the crowd was low.

The hosts made a disappointing start, something they struggled to shake off for the most part.

They lacked tempo and an experienced Costa Rican side looked comfortable on the ball, exploiting space effectively.

The visitors were allowed to settle quickly and promptly used that to their advantage.

Scotland were brutally exposed on their right-hand side as Callum Paterson was beaten and Urena easily slotted home from Oviedo's centre.

McLeish's side tried to respond immediately when Ritchie swung in a corner and Paterson showed his real strength, in attack. He met the cross with a header but misdirected past the upright.

McBurnie then showed a glimpse of what he has to offer, driving toward goal after a pass from Andrew Robertson, but he was denied by Navas.

Robertson again squared for McBurnie and the striker went down under Oscar Duarte's challenge but appeals for a spot-kick were waved away.

The Costa Ricans consistently seemed to carry threat when they advanced, although that dissipated as the match wore on.

Daniel Colindres tried his luck with a volley that Robertson blocked on its way to goal.

The first half was not the swaggering performance that manager McLeish had asked for pre-match.

After the restart, though, Scotland appeared to have more intent with Costa Rica having to defend their goal with increasing regularity. They did so adequately for the most part.

Indeed they almost added a second when Ruiz got on the wrong side of Robertson, who completely misjudged his run. Ruiz turned toward goal and cracked a shot off the crossbar, to the relief of keeper Allan McGregor.

The best Scotland chance fell to Ritchie, who surged towards Navas but saw his drive palmed over by the Real Madrid man.

Paterson almost created the breakthrough for the marauding Robertson but Liverpool's left-back nodded his back-post header beyond the upright.

It was a friendly match and an opportunity to test some uncapped players and integrate new faces. Of those, McTominay and McBurnie did the most to suggest they have something to offer.

However, McLeish will surely demand more as he looks to remodel this national side and generate belief among players and supporters that a major finals can be reached for the first time since 1998.

The boos at full-time suggest there is much work to be done.
• None Attempt blocked. John McGinn (Scotland) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked. Assisted by Callum Paterson.
• None Offside, Costa Rica. Óscar Duarte tries a through ball, but Yendrick Ruiz is caught offside.
• None Attempt missed. Andrew Robertson (Scotland) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Callum Paterson with a cross.
• None Attempt saved. Matt Ritchie (Scotland) left footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal. Assisted by Andrew Robertson with a cross. Navigate to the next page Navigate to the last page