WCQ: Honduras vs Canada - Thursday, Jan 27, 8pm EST / 5pm Pacific - San Pedro Sula, Honduras

[LeoH037]

I've yet to see anyone make this topic... and to be honest, given that Honduras has always been a pain in the ass for us, I'm sort of looking forward to this game more than the USA one. Nothing would be sweeter than to see our boys boss them around in their own field and get the W, and it would send a message to the other Central American teams who seem to believe their homefield advantage shenanigans will trip us up.

[ADP10]

Phonsie and Hoilett being out is a huge blow. I’d be satisfied with a draw given that and our history in Honduras

[Approve My Account Pls]

Very curious to see how Herdman will play this window as a whole. Sure we want to go at the US, but solidifying 6 pts in the other two matches against nations all but eliminated is more important in the long run.

[LeoH037]

1 hour ago, ADP10 said:

Phonsie and Hoilett being out is a huge blow. I’d be satisfied with a draw given that and our history in Honduras

I think we have enough to beat them. If anything, IMO not having Davies forces us to play more balanced.

[Alex]

1 hour ago, ADP10 said:

Phonsie and Hoilett being out is a huge blow. I’d be satisfied with a draw given that and our history in Honduras

For my own mental sanity I cannot accept anything less than a win in that god forsaken country. We won’t get another chance in wcq until 2028. Also, fh. 

[LeoH037]

for me than 8-1 wont be put to rest until we return the favour... and in front of their own supporters 

[Cheeta]

Me thinks this is actually our best chance at 3 points in this window.  Disclaimer;  That of course depends on how Herdman handles squad rotation and travel, to our best benefit of course.  This could turn into the window that all but seals the deal as it were.

As I'm expecting the team to marshall as close to Honduras (as is possible) to open the window the remaining fixtures will in effect be away to Canada/US  and then away to El Salvador/El Salvador.  That's a long "road trip" no matter how you measure it.  

 

 

[Califax]

I'm not expecting points out of this, but Osorio and Eustaquio will be key in the middle. The points will follow the mids, IMO.

Edited January 20, 2022 by Califax

[Ally McCoist]

54 minutes ago, Califax said:

I'm not expecting points out of this, but Osorio and Eustaquio will be key in the middle. The points will follow the mids, IMO.

This is our most winnable game. Why would you not expect points from this?

[Floortom]

2 minutes ago, Ally McCoist said:

This is our most winnable game. Why would you not expect points from this?

El Salvador is more winnable imo. Honduras has been bad but they have some quality and maybe the coaching change helps them a bit. El Salvador is totally bereft of quality. I don’t care how hard it is to play there, anything less than 3 points needs to be seen as failure. 
 

[Califax]

3 minutes ago, Ally McCoist said:

This is our most winnable game. Why would you not expect points from this?

I mean, I’d argue El Salvador is our most winnable game, but injuries and location is why I say that. 

Surely Honduras at home was a top winnable game but we dropped points there. 
 

as always, I hope I’m full of it. 

[theaub]

El Salvador is the most winnable game of this window.  Even with the injuries we have we still have a massively deeper squad then them and that is critical in the last game of these short windows.  Not to mention that El Salvador will likely be cooked by then.

Would be happy with a bore 0-0 draw here.

Edited January 20, 2022 by theaub

[Hawkguy]

6 minutes ago, Califax said:

I mean, I’d argue El Salvador is our most winnable game, but injuries and location is why I say that. 

Surely Honduras at home was a top winnable game but we dropped points there. 
 

as always, I hope I’m full of it. 

El Salvador has been a lot better than Honduras this tournament. 

[CanadaFan123]

3 minutes ago, Hawkguy said:

El Salvador has been a lot better than Honduras this tournament. 

What's relevant is how they've matched up against us. Honduras was a lot tougher than El Salvador at BMO.

[Ally McCoist]

8 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

What's relevant is how they've matched up against us. Honduras was a lot tougher than El Salvador at BMO.

I'd like to think we didn't that game due to purely psychological reasons. First game of the Ocho, boys didn't really know their potential. 

Since then, hasn't Honduras lost like 3 of their home games?

Edited January 20, 2022 by Ally McCoist

[Obinna]

2 minutes ago, Ally McCoist said:

Since then, hasn't Honduras lost like 3 of their home games?

Yes, but that also means they are due for a win. Honduras losing 3 home games is unheard of, but losing 4 home games is almost unthinkable. I would love for us to cause the "unthinkable" to occur, and I am expecting a win, but I am approaching this game with more trepidation than the ES match. 

Honduras are not mathematically out, so they are a dangerous animal with their backs against the wall. They have game breakers in Elis and Lozano. We can't take them lightly because of their position in the standings. 

[CanadaFan123]

4 minutes ago, Obinna said:

Yes, but that also means they are due for a win. Honduras losing 3 home games is unheard of, but losing 4 home games is almost unthinkable. I would love for us to cause the "unthinkable" to occur, and I am expecting a win, but I am approaching this game with more trepidation than the ES match. 

Honduras are not mathematically out, so they are a dangerous animal with their backs against the wall. They have game breakers in Elis and Lozano. We can't take them lightly because of their position in the standings. 

They also have a new manager with experience in qualifying Panama last go round. 

[narduch]

Holy shit this game is in 1 week.

[Obinna]

3 minutes ago, narduch said:

Holy shit this game is in 1 week.

That's insane. With all the focus on the US match I never realized it was so close. 

[TOCanada115]

2 hours ago, Ally McCoist said:

I'd like to think we didn't that game due to purely psychological reasons. First game of the Ocho, boys didn't really know their potential. 

Since then, hasn't Honduras lost like 3 of their home games?

Yes, but:

 

95th minute goal, lost 2-1 to Costa Rica

Up 2-0 in the 60th minute, lose 3-2 to Panama

Drew Costa Rica 0-0 at home

Up 1-0 and completely dominating the States at halftime, lose 4-1  

 

IMO, they are much more competitive than El Salvador, and have 2 guys up top that actually scare me a little

 

[theaub]

The real question I have with Honduras is what their home field advantage is going to look like.  Not a single mention of the national team on the ol' Diez homepage a week out so I'm thinking interest is pretty low.  

Does anyone know what capacity is there nowadays?

[Hawkguy]

4 hours ago, CanadaFan123 said:

What's relevant is how they've matched up against us. Honduras was a lot tougher than El Salvador at BMO.

I don't really think that's the case. We should have won the Honduras game by 2 or 3 goals but we couldn't hit the target. The only reason they had so many shots on so little possession is because we were pushing the play to tie the game after that penalty. 

[CanadaFan123]

15 hours ago, Hawkguy said:

I don't really think that's the case. We should have won the Honduras game by 2 or 3 goals but we couldn't hit the target. The only reason they had so many shots on so little possession is because we were pushing the play to tie the game after that penalty. 

That's not how I remember it. We were actually lucky to tie as they had the best chance of the second half when Borjan pushed the ball onto the post. I don't remember us having any clear cut chances. 

[Floortom]

3 minutes ago, CanadaFan123 said:

That's not how I remember it. We were actually lucky to tie as they had the best chance of the second half when Borjan pushed the ball onto the post. I don't remember us having any clear cut chances. 

David had a good chance that was well saved by the keeper...laryea had a good chance too right at the end that he skied.

I do agree that technically they were closest to scoring with that amazing header that Borjan miraculously saved, but we actually doubled them in xGoals

[ADP10]

The whole attendance situation really distracted me from the fact that we are one week from out first game and the roster will hasn’t been announced yet 😂