According to the Honduran FA, striker David Suazo will most definitely, certainly be available for the start of World Cup qualifying on June 8. But of course they'd say that.
The possibly good news for Canada this Monday is that Suazo complained of muscle soreness in his left leg following Honduras’ 1-0 loss to New Zealand in Dallas on Saturday. He spent Sunday at a clinic undergoing 'rigorous' tests and is now listed as doubtful for next weekend’s friendly against El Salvador.
The current-day verion of Suazo at 32 years of age is, literally and figuratively speaking, simply not the same Suazo who played for Inter Milan in 2007. Struggling with injuries, he made only six appearances with Catania in Serie A this season, scoring zero goals. The fact that the Hondurans are relying on him to lead their attack suggests a lack of depth up front that will be even more pronounced if he’s injured. Rounding out their forwards chosen for the first two qualifiers are the unattached Carlos Costly, Allan Lalin and Kevin Johnson from the Honduran league, and Spain-based 19-year-old Anthony Lozano.
See more bits and Concacaf-related bops after the jump. It's crunch time now and I'll try to provide news on Canada's qualifying group rivals on as daily a basis as possible, given my work schedule.
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On the subject of Honduras, apparently its FA and some sort of sports ministry it partners with in these matters are having trouble coughing up the cash to pave the parking lot at Estadio Olímpico Metropolitano in San Pedro Sula, home of the Honduran national team. What with the senior selection in World Cup qualifying and a U23-ish side heading to the Olympics this summer there isn’t money available to fix a parking lot that gets extremely muddy during heavy rain. Kind of puts the CSA’s cash flow problems in perspective.
It’s difficult to find reliable information online about the Cuban team, but according to this report the side is currently training in Brazil ahead of World Cup qualifying. The Cuban squad drew 1-1 with Corinthians U20 side last week and was scheduled to play friendlies against second-division side Sao Bento and first-division side Mogi Mirim over the weekend. The latter club notable for not only its name but the fact Rivaldo is its chairman.
If you're looking for Cuban players to watch out for on June 8, it was reportedly Ariel Martinez who scored the goal against Corinthians.
And finally, Panama is high on the trot, having just overcome Jamaica 1-0 in Kingston over the weekend. Luis Renteria, who plays his club football with Tauro in Panama, scored the winning goal. The two sides meet again in a 'return-leg' friendly this Friday in Panama. The Panama side was without most of its foreign-based players, or legionarios , for this match. Most of this bunch is based in either South America or Mexico but readers of this site should be familiar with Blas Perez of FC Dallas and Gabriel Gomez of the Philadelphia Union.