Canada take on El Salvador on Tuesday looking to make it two from two, while Honduras face a hard clash against Mexico.
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“It was great performance, a great result, and a great way to start the World Cup campaign”, Hoilett said.
“It gives us a different dynamic, especially with Junior coming into the team”, said Hutchinson. Canada first appeared in the 2nd round, beating the Island nation of Dominica 6-0 in the 2 game series and downed Belize 4-1 in the 3rd round.
“It’s something that I know a lot of us have been thinking about”, midfielder Atiba Hutchinson said this week. “Now we’ve just got to come to these places and get a result”, winger Tosaint Ricketts offered. “For us to take advantage of a victory that we have had, we can’t let it go to waste”. “I think the better feeling with our group is that we’ve got a lot of young guys that are coming down for the first time and feel confident to be able to perform in an environment like this and really enjoy the experience versus being really intimidated by it. So I think that’s where we are”.
With all the Gold Cups, World Cup appearances (Germany and Brazil are the only other countries to make it out of every group stage besides Mexico since 1994), the one place Mexico has yet to conquer in a half century is Honduras in their capital city of San Pedro Sula. “But we’ve just missed that little bit of magic”.
On the same night, Honduras were defeated 1-0 in Canada, succumbing to a strike by Cyle Larin. Friday, however, proved a pleasant surprise for Canadian lovers of “The attractive Game”.
“We are a new team”, said Johnson.
Among the 12 countries left standing in the region that covers North and Central America and the Caribbean, Canada is in one of three four-team groups along with No. 24 Mexico, No. 94 El Salvador and No. 95 Honduras.
Canada, ranked 102nd in the world, nearly doubled its lead in the 63rd minute when Johnson hammered a free kick from 35 yards out that Valladares just got a touch on before it struck the post and stayed out.
Honduras did have an excellent chance to draw level in the 76th minute when Mario Martinez’s shot from distance forced Milan Borjan to tip his shot over the goal.
Borjan then spilled another Martinez shot from well out six minutes later before having to scramble to gather up the rebound, but Canada would hold the fort from there to claim all three valuable points.
“It was a good start for us”.
“It was the most fun that I’ve had in a football match”, said defender and Vancouver Whitecaps residency graduate Adam Straith after the match. They want the chance to knock the Mexican fans, the Mexican press, the players and coaches down a peg or two.
Notes: The temperature at kickoff with the roof open at B.C. Place was 9C….
Canada arrived into El Salvador with 22 players as midfielder Russell Teibert remained home with an undisclosed injury.
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After the games on Friday and Tuesday, Canada plays Mexico home and away in March before visiting Honduras and hosting El Salvador in September.
