A tribute to McDonald and a northern sucker punch at the Morera

The Morera Soto dressed up to honour Jonathan McDonald, who played his final fifteen minutes as a starter before being substituted and received the fans' tribute at half-time. What was not in the script was the result.

Ismael Rescalvo's Alajuelense had the ball but came up against a well-organised San Carlos and a commanding José David Vega in goal. There was controversy when Deylan Paz was only shown a yellow card for a heavy challenge on Jeikel Venegas, a decision upheld by VAR.

The decisive moment came in the second half from a set piece: Washington Ortega saved a Kenneth Cerdas free kick, but the rebound fell to Jefferson Rivera, who made no mistake inside the box.

It was a second straight defeat for Alajuelense, who had been beaten by Firpo in the Central American Cup. Walter Centeno's side climbed off the bottom and up to sixth.