Costa Rica coach Juan Blanco said he had some surprises in store for Bermuda on Saturday night -- but he wasn't about to give away any secrets when his young team arrived on the Island yesterday morning.

Following a long, tiring journey from Central America, which started early on Monday morning and saw the squad overnight at New York's Kennedy Airport without the comfort of a hotel, players and officials were nevertheless upbeat about the task at hand.

And preparations for Saturday's first leg of the Olympic qualifying tie resumed almost immediately after their arrival with players summoned to a light training session outside their hotel.

Coach Blanco is keeping his plans for the match to himself, but having gained some knowledge of the Bermuda team from the Pan-Am Games clash earlier this year when Costa Rica scored a resounding 5-0 victory, he says he's had time to develop new tactics that he feels will be used to his team's advantage.

Speaking through an interpreter -- team organiser and executive in overall charge Edward Echeverria -- Blanco, who has been the national coach for more than five years, said he was enthused about the quality and potential of his current squad which features "90 percent'' of the players who appeared at the Pan-Am Games in Argentina.

And the bad news for Bermuda coach Mark Trott is that Blanco considers his team far superior to the Pan Am side following recent additions.

"But the fact that we beat Bermuda in Pan-Am means nothing,'' said Echeverria. "We are reminded that it wasn't easy. The Bermuda defence was solid and gave away little, we had to work hard to get the goals and it took some luck along the way.'' "Blanco feels that this team is stronger mainly because the new additions are putting out more effort and are faster and more aggressive. He believes that they are about 85 percent near peak form now and can only get better.'' Costa Rica have been made aware that Bermuda have made several changes from the Under-23 squad that went to Argentina, and might be considered less effective than they were four months ago. But the visitors won't be taking victory for granted.

In fact, Echeverria noted that a draw "wouldn't be a terrible setback'' for Costa Rica, although they intend to go all out for the win.

"We will be happy with a draw, but we are looking for a victory. We intend to go out and play our best soccer. It is very important for us to get a result to make it easier when we play Bermuda at home,'' he said.

When asked what style of play Bermuda could expect from their opponents, he responded: "Well, much will depend on this surprise our coach has. All he says is that he intends to do something new. But our strength is good positional play and passing and the players' willingness to follow instructions from the coach. It's not a plus, it's a must to follow his instructions and our players do it well.'' Costa Rica anticipate some difficulty acclimatising and reckon that this is one area where Bermuda will have an edge. But the fact that their players have just ended the domestic season and are in good shape physically should tip the scales in their favour.

Unlike Bermuda, the Costa Ricans have also played numerous competitive matches since the Pan-Am Games.

BACK TO WORK -- Costa Rica's Under-23 soccer squad quickly resumed training on their arrival at the Palmetto Bay Hotel yesterday.