Good evening everyone! The big game in Group D is set to take place later between England and Italy, but before all that Uruguay and Costa Rica have the chance to get their tournaments off to a perfect start in Fortaleza. Copa America holders Uruguay will be expected to beat a Costa Rica side who many believe will not win a game in Brazil.

Uruguay manager Oscar Tabarez will see this match as a must-win, with England to play next Thursday, before a final group clash against Italy on June 24. The South Americans are the favourites to progress from the group, but they remain behind the likes of Brazil, Argentina, Spain and Germany to lift the World Cup on July 13.

URUGUAY STARTING XI: Muslera, Pereira, Lugano, Godin, Caceres, Gargano, Rodriguez, Arevalo, Stuani, Forlan, Cavani

COSTA RICA STARTING XI: Navas, Gonzalez, Umana, Borges, Duarte, Bolanos, Diaz, Gamboa, Tejeda, Ruiz, Campbell

As expected, Luis Suarez does not make the starting lineup for Uruguay. The attack will be led by Diego Forlan and Edinson Cavani, who have scored 57 international goals between them. Forward Cristian Stuani has also made the starting XI, after impressing during their recent friendlies. Egidio Arevalo, Walter Gargano and Cristian Rodriguez make up the midfield, while Diego Lugano partners Diego Godin in the centre of defence

Joel Campbell leads the Costa Rica attack, with support coming from captain Bryan Ruiz. There is plenty of experience in the side with Celso Borges, Junior Diaz and Michael Umana all starting, while goalkeeper Keylor Navas should prove tough to beat, following an impressive season at Levante

The build-up to today's match has been overshadowed somewhat by the fitness of Uruguay's top goalscorer Suarez. The Liverpool forward only returned to full training yesterday, after undergoing knee surgery on May 21. There were also doubts over Forlan's participation in the match following an upset stomach that forced him to miss training on Wednesday. He managed to return to training later the next day and has been deemed fully fit to start.

Uruguay have won the World Cup twice in their history, with only Brazil, Italy and Germany lifting the trophy on more occasions. They were hosts of the first World Cup in 1930 and ended up beating South American rivals Argentina 4-2 in the final. Their next success came in 1950, where they stunned hosts Brazil 2-1 in the final at the Maracana. That match was seen as one of the biggest upsets in football history and has been labelled as the 'Maracanazo', which roughly translates as the 'The Maracana Blow'.

Since that triumph, they have reached the semi-finals on three occasions, finishing fourth each time. Indeed, they were losing semi-finalists last time around, as the Netherlands beat them 3-2 to reach the final, before they lost the third-place playoff by the same scoreline to Germany.

They may have struggled on the World stage in recent years, but Uruguay are the reigning Copa America champions and have won the tournament a record 15 times in their history. The last championship was held in 2011 and despite only just getting out of the group stages, they saw off Argentina in the quarter-finals and disposed of Peru in the last four to reach the final where they claimed a 3-0 victory over Paraguay.

This is only the fourth time that Costa Rica have qualified for the World Cup finals and they have only made it past the group stages once before. In their first appearance in 1990 they beat Sweden and Scotland on their way to the last 16, were they eventually fell to a 4-1 defeat to Czechoslovakia.

In the build-up to today's match, Uruguay have won their two most recent friendlies. They claimed a 1-0 victory over Northern Ireland at the end of May, before easing to a 2-0 win over Slovenia last week. Costa Rica's preparations for the tournament haven't gone as well though, as they were beaten 3-1 by Japan before drawing 1-1 against the Republic of Ireland in their final warm-up match.

As we edge ever closer to kick off, I have picked out some of the key players from each side that could make the difference in today's match. Let's start with Costa Rica, whose captain is widely regarded as his country's best player.

Bryan Ruiz: The Fulham man is one of the most experienced players in the Costa Rica side and has the quality to cause the Uruguay defence some real problems this evening. He may not have set the Premier League alight, but has scored some stunning goals for the Cottagers. After spending the past few months on loan from PSV Eindhoven, Ruiz will see this tournament as a perfect opportunity to showcase his talents.

Joel Campbell: It has been quite a season for Campbell, who has impressed on loan at Olympiacos. The most memorable of his 11 goals for the Greek outfit came in their brilliant 2-0 victory over Manchester United in the Champions League last-16. There is much speculation as to whether he will return to parent club Arsenal for next season, but a good tournament may see Arsene Wenger give him a chance to shine at the Emirates.

Keylor Navas: If Costa Rica are to make it out of the group stages, then their goalkeeper Keylor Navas will have to be at his very best. The 27-year-old kept seven clean sheets in 14 qualifying matches and has impressed for Levante during his two years in La Liga.

Diego Forlan: The 35-year-old may be approaching the twilight years of his illustrious career, but there is no doubt he still possesses the quality to make the difference for his country. Now playing for Japanese outfit Cerezo Osaka, Forlan will feature in his third World Cup for Uruguay, having burst onto the international stage 12 years ago with one of the goals of the 2002 tournament against Senegal. Four years ago, his five goals in South Africa saw him finish as the joint top goalscorer and he will hope to repeat the feat once again, in what is likely to be his final World Cup.

3 - Diego Forlan has scored three of Uruguay's last five goals at the #WorldCup. Canny. #URU — OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 14, 2014

Diego Godin: The Atletico Madrid defender has enjoyed a successful season and chipped in with some vital goals for his club. He scored the equaliser in Atletico's 1-1 draw with Barcelona on the final day of the season that saw them win the La Liga title, and his header looked to have given his side victory in the Champions League final, before Real Madrid fought back to claim a 4-1 win over their city rivals. He was part of a backline that conceded just 26 goals in the league all season and will be hoping to transfer that form over to the national side.

Edinson Cavani: As well as boasting Diego Forlan and Luiz Suarez in their attack, Edinson Cavani is another forward that is no stranger to finding the back of the net. After scoring 104 goals in three seasons at Napoli, he earned a move to French champions Paris Saint-Germain for £55m last summer. His first season in Paris has been a success, as he scored 25 goals in all competitions to help the club retain their Ligue 1 title. He also scored twice as PSG claimed a 2-1 win in the Coupe de Ligue final against Lyon.

PREDICTION: Even without Suarez in the starting XI, Uruguay should get their World Cup campaign off to a winning start this evening. They have quality throughout the pitch and it will be hard for Costa Rica to stop the attacking threat of both Forlan and Cavanni. Anything other than a victory will be seen as a disaster for Tabarez's side and they should pick up a crucial three points that will put England and Italy under pressure when they meet later. My prediction is a 3-0 win to the Uruguayans, with both of their big-name strikers getting on the scoresheet.

The players are out on the pitch and we have just heard the national anthems of each country. Group D of the World Cup will be kicking off in just a couple of minutes.

KICKOFF! We are underway at the Estadio Castelao!

As you would expect Uruguay have seen a lot of the ball in the opening stages and are looking to dictate the tempo of the game. Costa Rica look under pressure already, with Campbell slightly stranded upfront on his own.

We are still yet to see a clear cut effort on goal for either side, but the Uruguayans are completely dominating the possession. They are looking to push their opponents back deep inside their own half and get their full backs in behind quickly.

Following that shaky start Diaz gets free down the left wing and whips in a low cross that Godin puts behind for a corner.

The resulting set piece comes to nothing, as Duarte pushes Lugano to the floor, with the referee giving a free kick to Uruguay.

CHANCE! Costa Rica are starting to see a lot more of the ball and it is played into the middle where Ruiz gets above Godin, before putting his header high over the bar. The South Americans might not have it all their own way today.

GOAL DISALLOWED! Uruguay have the ball in the back of the net, but it is ruled out for an offside. From a free kick, the ball is whipped into the box and headed on to Godin, who is standing beyond the last man as he pokes the ball into the far corner.

CHANCE! What a chance for Cavani! Forlan plays a long free kick into the box that is missed by the defence. It ends up falling kindly for the PSG striker, but he lashes his effort wide of the post.

Costa Rica start to build some forward momentum and end up winning a thrown in on the far side, but the move breaks down when Campbell's touch is poor, as he allows the ball to drift out of play. They have got into some good positions and look to be posing their opponents some problems, particularity in the air.

Valverde is lucky not to pick up a booking for a tough challenge on Rodriguez. He has given Uruguay a free kick on the far side that Forlan will take.

PENALTY TO URUGUAY! Forlan does whip the ball into the box and a penalty is given for a foul on Lugano, who is hauled to the floor by Diaz.

Cavani steps up and makes no mistake with his penalty, as he fires the ball into the bottom corner and out of the reach of Navas. That goal will be a huge boost to the Uruguayans, who can begin to take full control of this match now.

Uruguay look full of confidence and Cavani whips in a cross from the left that is only half cleared by the defence. It drops to Forlan, but his strike on the volley is poor and flies high over the bar.

CHANCE! What a strike from Campbell! The forward finds himself in space 30 yards out from goal and he lets loose with a stunning drive, that misses the top corner by inches. If that was on target then there was no chance Muslera was getting anywhere near the ball.

We have already seen some crunching challenges in this match and Valverde goes in with a poor tackle on Godin. The referee has been lenient and once again keeps his cards in his pocket.

Costa Rica win a free kick 30 yards out from goal that is whipped into the box by Ruiz. The ball bounces around before eventually falling to Gonzalez, but his strike is deflected behind for a corner.

Ruiz takes the corner, but it is just too long for Gonzalez, who can't rise high enough to make contact with the ball at the back post. There seemed to be some shirt pulling by the Uruguay defence, but this time it went unnoticed by the referee.

Uruguay are very much on top and have been keeping hold of the possession between their midfielders. It must be hard for Costa Rica, who will not want to be chasing the ball for the rest of this match in such tough conditions.

Ruiz is dropping very deep for his side, as he tries to get them back into the match. They will want to get him further up the pitch, with Campbell only seeing rare glimpses of the ball.

Caceres and Rodriguez combine brilliantly down the left before finding Forlan in space on the edge of the box. The striker gets it onto his right foot and looks to curl the ball into the far corner, but his effort is poor and he ends up scuffing the shot wide of the post.

CHANCE! Gonzalez almost brings Cost Rica level just minutes from half time, but he can't quite stretch enough to head the ball in at the back post from Ruiz's corner.

SAVE! Forlan is close to doubling Uruguay's lead, as he fires in a strike from just outside the box that takes a deflection and looks like it's heading into the top corner, before Navas brilliantly tips the ball over the bar.

We are going to have two minutes of stoppage time.

At half time in Fortaleza it is Uruguay who lead thanks to Edinson Cavani's penalty. His side have been the more dominant, but Costa Rica are by no means out of this match yet.

A look at the stats show that Uruguay have shaded the possession slightly, with 52% of the ball. They have also created more chances, with seven attempts compared to Costa Rica's four strikes on goal.

7 - Uruguay have now scored in seven consecutive #WorldCup games, their best run since 16 in a row between 1930 & 1962. Pedigree. — OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 14, 2014

That goal for Cavani means that he has scored 22 goals for his country in 63 appearances. He still has some way to go to match Luis Suarez's record of 38 goals, but he has proved that he can be relied upon in the Liverpool man's absence.

Talking of Suarez, he is on the bench this evening and could come on for a few minutes later in the second half. His team won't want to risk him if he is not fully fit, especially with their clash against England to come next Thursday.

The players are making their way back out onto the pitch and the second 45 minutes will be getting underway shortly.

Costa Rica take the kick off and get the match back underway.

No chances to talk of yet at the start of the half, but we have seen a glimpse of Suarez on the Uruguay bench. He seemed to be doing up his laces, which could hint at an appearance in this match sooner than we thought.

YELLOW CARD! Lugano picks up the first booking of the match for a lunging tackle on Campbell.

CHANCE! Huge chance for Costa Rica. Bolanos plays in a brilliant free kick to the back post that is met by Duarte. His powerful header is kept out by the keeper, before he places the rebound wide of the goal.

We may very well have an upset on the cards, as Costa Rica level the scores. Gamboa does fantastically well to reach a long ball down the right wing, before whipping a cross into the middle. Bolanos is unable to make proper contact with the ball at the front post, but it falls kindly to Campbell, who keeps his composure to fire a strike into the corner past the keeper.

YELLOW CARD! it's not going Uruguay's way at the moment and Gargano is booked for a clumsy challenge on Ruiz.

I don't believe it! Costa Rica have taken the lead with two goals inside of three minutes! Duarte almost scored moments ago, but this time he makes no mistake, as he is picked out by Bolanos's free kick, before placing a diving header into the far corner of the net.

SUBSTITUTION: Uruguay make a double change, with Gonzalez and Lodeiro coming on for Gargano and Forlan.

CHANCE! Costa Rica almost score a sensational third goal, as Campbell curls a wonderful strike from long range just wide of the top corner. The Uruguayans are rattled and it surely won't be too long until we see Suarez.

This has not been a confident defensive display by any means from Uruguay. Their opponents have looked stronger from set pieces and Ruiz comes close when he beats Godin in the air before heading the ball over the bar.

CHANCE! Cavani hasn't been involved much in this second half, but he comes close with a powerful header that is beaten away extravagantly by Navas.

Uruguay are starting to pile on the pressure and Umana does well to head behind Pereira's right-wing cross. They can't make the most of the corner though, as Costa Rica are able to clear the danger.

SUBSTITUTION: Costa Rica make a change, with Cubero coming on for Tejeda.

SUBSTITUTION: The Uruguayans also change things around, with Hernandez replacing Rodriguez.

That substitution was Uruguay's last of the match, which means that we will not be seeing Suarez this evening. He surely must be well short of fitness, as his country certainly need a man with his goalscoring record at a time like this.

YELLOW CARD! Caceres is third Uruguayan to pick up a booking this evening for a reckless high challenge on Gamboa. He is only shown a yellow card, when many referees would have quite easily sent him off.

SUBSTITUTION: Costa Rica captain Ruiz heads off for the final minutes to be replaced by Urena.

Urena has only been on the field for a couple of minutes, but he has surely secured a priceless victory for Costa Rica. He latches onto Campbell's inch-perfect ball into the box, before sliding a first-time effort into the corner past Muslera.

Uruguay look absolutely stunned and I don't think anybody could have predicted this. They have been poor throughout this second half and have barely threatened their opponents' goal.

SUBSTITUTION: Costa Rica make their final change of the match, as Barrantes replaces Bolanos.

We are going to have five minutes of stoppage time. Is that enough for Uruguay to somehow get back into this match?

Campbell has been brilliant for Costa Rica this evening and he does well to keep the ball in the corner as his team runs down the clock. They are just two minutes away from a sensational victory.

RED CARD! Uruguay are going to lose this match and their players have lost their cool, as Pereira hacks down Campbell by the touchline and is deservedly sent off.

What a start to this World Cup. Costa Rica have stunned Uruguay in Fortaleza this evening. A brilliant second-half display sees them pick up a crucial three points that puts them in charge at the top of Group D.

It looked as if Cavani's penalty would set Uruguay on their way to a comfortable three points, but their opponents fought their way back to claim a memorable win. Pereira's sending off late on also means that he will miss his country's crucial match against England next week.

I'm afraid that's all we've got time for here following an amazing match. Coming up next is England's meeting with Italy. You can catch live commentary of that game right here at Sports Mole. I hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend. Goodnight!