Lopez is not just facing a marathon trip halfway around the world to play for his country but is also facing one of the most daunting away fixtures imaginable.

The 27-year-old will travel with the Costa Rican national team to San Salvador to take on arch-rivals El Salvador next Thursday (Australian time) in a match which promises to be one of the most explosive World Cup encounters being played around the globe next week.

While both countries are safely through to the final six nation qualifying stage in the North American/Central American and Caribbean confederation (CONCACAF) - to say that the two countries are bitter rivals is something of an understatement.

Lopez, who will miss the Victory's next match against Central Coast next Friday night as he makes his way home, is looking forward to the encounter but is also understandably a fraction nervous as well.

"It's an away game and we are going to face very tough conditions," he said.

"I heard there have been a lot of threats from the people of Salvador and I think (world governing body) FIFA will be watching because it is going to be dangerous."

Lopez described the rivalry as a "cultural thing" between the two countries but says he has been assured there will be no safety issues for the Costa Rican players.

"We are safe and we will have security but it’s good to play in that atmosphere because you will have so much more pressure on you and that is where the good players show out."

Lopez has now played for his country on 25 occasions and having missed out on playing at the 2006 World Cup finals, he is determined to be part of the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa.

But while Costa Rica has the perfect record - five wins from five matches - in their current qualifying campaign; Lopez said it will be much tougher in the final stage when not only will Costa Rica again have to face El Salvador but also much stronger nations such as the United States, Mexico and probably Honduras and Trinidad and Tobago, who qualified for the last World Cup.

Only the top three nations from that final group will progress to the World Cup, although the fourth-placed nation will go into a home and away play-off against the fifth-placed team from South America - the path the Socceroos' faced during their previous two World Cup qualifying campaigns against Uruguay.

"So we must do it because there are a lot of chances (to qualify)," Lopez said.

Lopez, who is enjoying life in Australia and his first season in the A-League, admitted the long flights to and from Costa Rica was the toughest part of maintaining his international career while playing his club football on the other side of the world.

"And you have to adjust to a 16 hour time difference in just one or two days so it is very tough but you get used to it," he said.

But Lopez says the travel and some of the intimidating away venues during qualifying will be all worth it if he gets to represent his country and indeed his club and the Hyundai A-League on the world's biggest sporting stage come South Africa in 2010.

"Australian football is getting better and better and if I got to go to the World Cup by playing from here it would be great," he said.