Aguilar: Costa Rica Ready for Korea DPR Rematch at Poland 2026

Patricia Aguilar believes it was written in the stars. During the draw for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Poland 2026™, the Costa Rica coach watched as her team was placed in Group E alongside reigning champions Korea DPR. It is a rematch of a painful encounter at Colombia 2024, where Las Ticas suffered a 9-0 defeat. For Aguilar, this new meeting is a golden opportunity to demonstrate how far her side has progressed in two years.

Costa Rica are making their fifth appearance at the U-20 Women’s World Cup, and Aguilar is determined to make history. The 35-year-old tactician spoke to FIFA about her team’s preparation, the influence of rising star Sheika Scott, and the upcoming clash with Korea DPR.

Preparation and a New Generation

Aguilar expressed confidence in her squad’s readiness. “We’re doing well. If you put them all together, we’ve had about seven weeks of preparation with the players,” she said. “I think we have a very good generation. The girls from 2009-10 are coming in strong and have joined the players from 2006-08, who are the base of the team, so I think we’ve been able to put together a good, competitive team.”

The blend of youth and experience is central to Costa Rica’s plans. Aguilar highlighted the importance of players like Sheika Scott, who has already gained valuable experience at the highest levels.

Sheika Scott: A Key Asset

“She’s a very important player for the team because of what she brings – the experience she’s gained, including playing in Champions League and FIFA matches with the senior national team,” Aguilar explained. “She also understands the dynamics we’re facing; she was at the last World Cup in Colombia, so she’s returning to this level once again. She’ll join the other players here who are performing quite well. So we hope to see all the players in top form and be very competitive.”

Lessons from Colombia 2024

The 9-0 loss to Korea DPR left a lasting impression on Aguilar. “The game against Korea [DPR] really hit me hard – it left a huge impression on me. It’s like your pride as a coach takes a hit, because you’re clearly never prepared for that kind of game, that kind of situation,” she admitted. “There comes a point during the game when you’re frustrated and you just want to help your team more.”

However, Aguilar also drew positives from the tournament, particularly the team’s response in their final group match, a 1-0 loss to Argentina. “Something that also left a mark on me as a coach was how we bounced back in our third match,” she said. “It would be very selfish or wrong of me as a coach to tell them it was a bad World Cup – because, in reality, it wasn’t a bad World Cup. We played quite well in the first and third matches; it’s just that in the second one, we didn’t put on our best performance, or one you’d expect from a World Cup team.”

Building a Faster, More Resilient Team

The experience in Colombia provided crucial insights for the future. “From a coaching perspective, it taught us a lot. The rotation of players is key because the physical toll is immense,” Aguilar noted. “And now, it’s clear that you have to be highly trained in very high-level sprinting, so those are insights we took away – that we need to prepare a team that’s faster, more resilient, more explosive, and capable of constantly handling that kind of intensity for 90 minutes.”

Motivation and Ambition

Aguilar praised her players’ mentality, which she has worked to cultivate. “I think their resilience and that drive to do things differently – that’s something I’ve tried to instill in them ever since they’ve been with me—that if we want to do something different, and lift women’s football here to a new level, we have to do things differently in training and in games,” she said. “I would say their passion, too. The passion to do things right. They’re not here for money, or for awards, or for anything else – they’re simply here because they love the country where they were born.”

Looking ahead, Aguilar is optimistic about Costa Rica’s chances. “I think that if we manage to find the best 21 players in this age group – and I believe we can do it – we can make it happen,” she said. “We’re convinced of that, and we’re committed to training for it. It’s part of the motto we’ve had since we began preparing for the Central American and Caribbean Games: that if Costa Rica is to make history at a Women’s World Cup, this is the opportunity to do just that.”