Guess this squashes all chances of Mario Balotelli getting a royal peck from the Queen of England.
With England’s hopes of avoiding brisk World Cup elimination hanging on Italy beating Costa Rica on Friday, the unpredictable striker had cheekily asked the monarch for a dignified kind of kiss if Italy won.
Well, Costa Rica took care of that, following up its surprise win over Uruguay with another World Cup stunner, beating four-time champion Italy 1-0 to secure a spot in the next round and eliminate England in the process.
Costa Rica captain Bryan Ruiz gave his side the lead in the 44th minute, heading in off the underside of the crossbar following a cross from Junior Diaz. Goal-line technology was used to confirm the goal.
There was a frenetic end to the first half. Moments before Ruiz’s goal, Costa Rica had a penalty appeal waved away when striker Joel Campbell went down in the area under a challenge from Giorgio Chiellini.
Costa Rica leads Group D with six points, while Italy and Uruguay have three each before Tuesday’s showdown. England has zero points.