Each day between May 10 and the day before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup on June 11, FoxSoccer.com analyst Jamie Trecker will preview each of the 32 teams playing in South Africa and tell you everything you need to know about each nation represented at the world's greatest sporting event.
Country: Honduras
Nickname: Los Catrachos
Honduras is well known to American fans because the USA plays them so often. On the world stage, the country is currently better known for its politics; you might recall that a key World Cup qualifying match against the U.S. was nearly called off after a coup ousted the sitting president.
The irony is that while the match was played -- and Honduras lost, 3-2 -- it was the U.S. who helped the Hondurans qualify for their first World Cup since 1982 by drawing Costa Rica in the final match of qualifications.
But first, a little soccer-specific history: Honduras is one of the few places to have fought in something called the “Soccer War.” A loss in the qualifying round for the 1970 World Cup ignited a six-day war against next-door El Salvador, sparked in part by riots in the aftermath of the game. The war was actually a bit more complex than that -- it related to arcane immigration issues -- but the point is that these folks take their football seriously, even if they aren’t very good at it on the world stage.
This is actually the best Honduran team in ages. If they were in a weaker group, they might make some noise.
PAST WORLD CUP SUCCESS: None. This is only the second time Honduras has made the big dance. In 1982, they held hosts Spain to a 1-1 draw in the opener, which was pretty amazing.
REGIONAL SUCCESS: Slim. The high water mark was a fluke win in the 2001 Copa America, where they knocked out Brazil 2-0 in the quarterfinals (if you remember correctly, that whole tournament was a bit of mess and overshadowed by security concerns, with Canada and Argentina pulling out, so let’s keep that in perspective). They’ve won the UNCAF Cup twice (1993, 1995), but haven’t really established themselves as a consistent force in the region. Best meaningful result of late was their third place finish in last year’s Gold Cup.
LEAGUE OVERVIEW: The 10-team Liga Nacional is dominated by three clubs: Olimpia, Motagua and Real Espana. Olimpia is by and away the most decorated team, having won the old CONCACAF Champions Cup twice.
MANAGER: Colombian Reinaldo Rueda. Interestingly enough, Rueda never played professional football: His reputation was secured during his tenure with Colombia’s youth teams.
KEY PLAYERS: They have some folks who can play. David Suazo (Genoa) has been solid for them up top and Carlos Pavon (Real Espana), now a creaky 36, doesn’t act his age. Tottenham’s Wilson Palacios is probably going to arrive worn out from England, but he can get the ball upfield. Hendry Thomas and Maynor Figueroa will be familiar to EPL fans as well; they both play (sometimes) at Wigan. Missing: Carlo Costly (Vaslui), who had been deadly in CONCACAF in big games. Costly was named as an alternate as he is recovering from a foot injury.
FIFA RANKING: 40th. Highest was 20th (2002), lowest was 95th (1998).
FIRST ROUND OPPONENTS: Spain, Chile and Switzerland.
HEAD TO HEAD AGAINST SPAIN: They famously drew Spain in 1982 1-1 in their only World Cup appearance to date. That’s also the only time they’ve met the European champs.
HEAD TO HEAD AGAINST CHILE: Honduras is pretty familiar with Chile, having played them five times over the years. They are 2-0-3 against the South Americans, most recently beating them 2-0 in a friendly staged in Ft. Lauderdale.
HEAD TO HEAD AGAINST SWITZERLAND: Honduras has never faced the Swiss.
HOW THEY QUALIFIED: An American draw with Costa Rica combined with their 1-0 win over El Salvador gave them the third and final slot, sending the Ticos to a playoff with Uruguay (which they promptly lost).
PERCENTAGE CHANCE TO PROGRESS: 15%. They aren’t going to beat Spain. They probably aren’t going to beat Chile either. Everybody beats the Swiss, so why not them too?
TO WATCH: Honduras is a defense-first side, playing at times with seven men behind the ball. Nonetheless, they do have a few guys that can hurt you up top.
ROSTER
Goalkeepers: Ricardo Canales (Motagua), Noel Valladares (Olimpia), Donis Escober (Olimpia)
Defenders: Victor Bernardez (Anderlecht), Maynor Figueroa (Wigan), Oscar Garcia (Olimpia), Sergio Mendoza (Motagua), Emilio Izaguirre (Motagua), Johnny Palacios (Olimpia), Mauricio Sabillon (Hangzhou Lucheng), Osman Chavez (Platense)
Midfielders: Edgard Alvarez (Bari), Julio Cesar de Leon (Torino), Roger Espinoza (Kansas City Wizards), Amado Guevara (Motagua), Ramon Nunez (Olimpia), Wilson Palacios (Tottenham), Hendry Thomas (Wigan), Danilo Turcios (Olimpia)
Forwards: David Suazo (Genoa), Georgie Welcome (Motagua), Carlos Pavon (Real Espana), Walter Martinez (Marathon)
TOMORROW'S TEAM: Greece
