Wanchope announces international retirement

Paolo Wanchope put on a brave face after seeing his Costa Rica side crash out of the World Cup with a second straight defeat.

The 29-year-old striker, who scored twice in his team’s 4-2 defeat to Germany but failed to hit the back of the net against Ecuador, will end his international career against Poland.

“I will not continue with the national team after this World Cup,” he said. “One has to know when to stop and my time has come. I can no longer make certain sacrifices and I prefer to stop now.”

The 3-0 defeat against Ecuador left Wanchope and Co with no points, and no hope of advancing to the knockout stage.

“It’s no drama,” said Wanchope, who is Costa Rica’s all-time leading scorer. “This is not the end of the world."

“Of course, it is difficult to digest but football is like this, some teams win and others lose. We expected to progress through to the next round when we arrived in Germany but it was not to be.”

Wanchope was particularly impressed by Ecuador’s performance.

“Ecuador are a very experienced side,” he said. “They are very well organised and they took advantage of the chances they had and we didn’t, that was the difference. I wish them the best of luck in the tournament.”

However, Wanchope believes that should Ecuador meet England in the knock-out stages, they will face a mighty task.

“I watched England’s first game against Paraguay,” he said. “I think England will grow as the tournament progresses, they will show more intensity in their next encounters.

“They have also recovered Wayne Rooney and I think it’s good for football, one always wants the best players to be fit.”

The former Derby, West Ham and Manchester City frontman, who currently plays in his homeland with Herediano, will play his last international against Poland.

“We really want to win our last game,” he said. “It’s something we owe to our fans.”