The team
This team has only ever appeared in the FIFA World Cup once before and has few household names (one, actually). But with Tottenham’s Wilson Palacios (that’s the household name), at the heart of the midfield, Honduras will hope to prove they’re not here simply to make up the numbers.
The coach
Reinaldo Rueda
The 52-year-old Columbian is somewhat unknown outside Central and South America. His achievements to date are all with the Columbian junior teams, taking them to the knock-out stages in several junior World Cups. He’s playing with the big boys now, though – and it’s a whole different ball game (not literally, of course).
Player to watch
Wilson Palacious
A feisty box-to-box midfielder who would make it into most international teams, Palacious has proved himself in The English Premier League – arguably the world’s toughest league – and has already clocked up appearances for Birmingham City and Wigan Athletic, and is now playing for Tottenham Hotspur. Tottenham paid Wigan GBP14-million for Palacious’s services, which is a good approximation of his worth to the national side.
We’re on the ball
World Cup appearances: 1
Previous best: Group stages, 1982
Odds of winning: 1,000/1
Strange but true: Honduras translates literally as ‘depths’ in Spanish. An omen, perhaps?
Fixtures: Chile, June 16, 3.30pm, Nelspruit Spain, June 21, 10.30pm, Johannesburg Switzerland, June 25, 10.30pm, Bloemfontein
