Honduras and Ecuador are fighting against elimination as they faceoff on Friday in Group E. Both teams took losses in their opening matches and are now in a must-win scenario if they want to extend their World Cup play past the group stages. Ecuador are strong favorites in this game. They went up 1-0 on Switzerland, giving fans hope, before losing 2-1. Meanwhile Honduras must find a way to up their confidence after getting blown out 0-3.
To make matters worse for Honduras, they will be playing without central midfielder Wilson Palacios. He was sent off after earning two offenses after walking over Paul Pogba during the France match. Victor Bernardez is also expected to not be available after suffering a knee injury in the opening match. Now other players will be forced to step up quickly. Andy Najar is expected to play a large role in the game and make a mark on the international stage.
Honduras never expected to qualifying for the World Cup in the first place. The team fell victim to faulty goal-line technology in their first game and were simply outclassed as a result. The team showed some defensive promise that could help hold off Ecuador. They were able to break up France's flow throughout the game and looked poised to at least earn a scoreless draw. If they have any chance at winning this matchup, they must do the same again.
Ecuador is the favorite simply because they appear ready to withstand the pressure and stay poised under the high-intensity game. The team has no injuries to speak of which gives them a full range of their roster. Ecuador looked very impressive against Switzerland in their opening match despite the loss. Coach Reinaldo Rueda does not expect to change the team's lineup or their plan of attack heading into the Honduras faceoff. Ecuador's biggest task will be defending the passing attack from Honduras. The team must use their strikers to withstand the scoring efforts.
If France and Switzerland draw then Honduras is out. Their chances of advancing are not strong, but they withstood qualifying when most ruled them out, so Ecuador must come matching their intensity if they want to avoid an upset.
