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Honduras Camp Focus - Mission impossible
It could have been far worse for Honduras in their 2-0 Group H defeat to Spain. The scoreline somehow stayed respectable, even if that owed as much to the European Champions’ profligacy as it did any defensive action on Los Catrachos’ part. Equally, in spite of the two defeats suffered so far, Honduras are not out of the competition yet. An admittedly unlikely combination of scores in the final round of group games, comprising a Honduras defeat of Switzerland and a triumph for Chile over Spain, could yet conspire to send the Central Americans through to the Round of 16.
Going into Monday’s meeting with the Spanish, Coach Reinaldo Rueda was in something of a quandary. His team had offered very little in the way of an attacking threat in their opening game against Chile, and that would surely have to change, but the Colombian would also have been more than aware of the danger posed by a Spain team themselves in need of a victory. Switzerland had vanquished the Spaniards by defending for their lives, keeping their discipline, and sneaking a goal on the break, and Rueda had stated his admiration for that blueprint. However, the Honduras game plan went out of the window fairly sharply when David Villa’s marvellous solo goal put Spain ahead after just 17 minutes, a blow from which Rueda’s men never even came close to recovering.
The personnel changes made by the Honduras Coach from the Chile game – designed to shake up the side’s attacking play – were curious to say the least. The addition of Marathón forward Walter Martínez did add something, as the majority of Los Catrachos’ best offensive play came through the pacy 28 year-old’s forays down the right – but his control and final ball was often lacking, and the decision to play him instead of Edgar Álvarez, rather than as well as, was baffling, especially since Álvarez had been the only Honduras player to give Chile anything to worry about the previous Wednesday. The selection of David Suazo as lone striker ahead of Carlos Pavón proved a similarly double-edged sword. Although more mobile that the struggling 36 year-old, Suazo still did not appear to be 100% fit and frustratingly lost the ball several times when opting to take on one player too many, rather than playing the easy ball to a team mate during Honduras’ rare attacks. Rueda’s third and final alteration, replacing Ramón Núñez with Danilo Turcios was a total failure, as Turcios displayed none of his Olimpia rival’s forward thinking impetus and seemed to exist only to concede cynical fouls in dangerous areas.
Elsewhere, Honduras suffered from the same deficiencies and misfortunes that had plagued them since before the competition began. Wigan’s Hendry Thomas became the newest victim of the Honduras injury curse, hampering any potential plans to use two holding midfielders to try and stifle the Spanish. This World Cup looks to have come too late for 34-year-old Amado Guevara in midfield, who, like Pavón against Chile, positively creaked around the pitch looking several yards off the pace. Right back Sergio Mendoza, a liability in the pre-World Cup friendlies and at fault for Chile’s winner, was an utter disaster again as he was torn apart by an out-of-position Villa. Rueda’s befuddling preference for Mendoza over previous mainstay Mauricio Sabillón may well be remembered as his biggest mistake.
Positives, though in short supply, could be found once again in the performance of Wilson Palacios. A class act with a fine range of passing and bite in the challenge, Palacios deserved more than he received from his teammates. In goal, Noel Valladares was courageous and athletic in his commitment to keep the score down, while substitute Georgie Welcome was the only Honduran forward to make any kind of impression, his strength making him an awkward presence for the Spanish defence to deal with.
If the miracle is to have any chance of coming to pass, Honduras are going to have to show more ambition in attack against Switzerland than they have shown thus far. Like Los Catrachos, Ottmar Hitzfeld’s team are a well-organised defensive unit, but Chile have shown that they are not impenetrable. Rueda is going to have to revert from 4-5-1 back to 4-4-2 however, and dispense with the ineffectual Roger Espinoza on the left in favour of fielding two rapid, attacking, out-and-out wingers in Martínez and Álvarez. Welcome must start up front, whether that is alongside Pavón, Suazo or the effervescent Jerry Palacios, who looked lively in his brief cameo against the Spanish. Can Honduras qualify from Group H? Stranger things have happened in World Cup history, but not many.
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