Rueda: Honduras to play for honour
Reuters - Thursday 24 June 2010, 21:39
BLOEMFONTEIN, South Africa, June 24 (Reuters) - Honduras
will be playing for "honour and dignity" in their final Group H
game against Switzerland after a disappointing World Cup
campaign, coach Reinaldo Rueda said on Thursday.
The Swiss are looking for victory by two goals to make it
into the last 16, a result that could see European champions
Spain out of the tournament.
Honduras still have an outside mathematical chance of
progressing on goal difference if they win and Spain lose to
Chile. Yet even in that scenario, Honduras would need to
overturn a four-goal deficit on Spain.
Rueda said he wanted the squad and the media to change their
mindset for the last group game.
"They (the media) all say Honduras is happy simply being in
the World Cup. This is something we have to overcome and we
haven't. The group has to demonstrate on the pitch that this is
not the case," he told a news conference.
"I think this is a match of honour, of our dignity. We have
to try and meet the expectations we have generated back home. We
wanted to come here and play better. We haven't done very well
so far."
Honduras lost both their previous games, to Chile and Spain,
without scoring. "We are now going through difficult times as a
national squad, this is painful and it is sad," Rueda said.
However, he said Thursday's surprise victory by Slovakia
over world champions Italy showed that nothing was impossible.
"What we've seen today, Italy versus Slovakia, it teaches
you a very good lesson in terms of footballing culture. I think
Honduras has its own challenge and pride, we have not been able
to express ourselves on the pitch."
The 53-year-old said he had a fully fit squad to choose from.