Johnny Acosta

Johnny Acosta Zamora (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈʝoni aˈkosta]; born 21 July 1983 in Ciudad Quesada) is a Costa Rican football player, currently playing for Herediano, and for the Costa Rica national football team. He plays as a defender.

Club career

Acosta made his professional debut for Santos de Guápiles in the 2004/05 season and left them in 2010 for Alajuelense with whom he won three league titles. In January 2013, he moved abroad to have a six-month loan spell at Mexican second division side Dorados.

International career

A relatively late newcomer to the national team set-up, Acosta made his debut for Costa Rica in a March 2011 friendly match against Argentina aged 29. He has represented his country in seven FIFA World Cup qualification matches and played at the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup and the 2011 Copa América. On 6 September 2013, he scored his first goal for Los Ticos in a 3–1 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying victory against the United States in San José.

In June 2014, Acosta was included in Costa Rica's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup and made his debut in the competition during the round of 16 match against Greece as a substitute after the sending off of teammate Óscar Duarte. He was in the starting line-up for the quarter-final against the Netherlands, where he helped the team to a clean sheet in a 3–4 penalty shootout loss.

International goals