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The USA remain on course for Qatar and beat Honduras 3-0 in World Cup qualifiers. However, the adverse weather conditions are a big topic of conversation at the game in Minnesota.
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The United States beat Honduras 3-0 in World Cup qualifying.
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The game took place in temperatures well below freezing.
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The Honduras coach then massively criticized the choice of venue.
The USA national team proved on Thursday night (CET) that football can be played well even in bitterly cold weather conditions. The “Soccer Boys” beat Honduras 3-0 in Minnesota in World Cup qualifiers thanks to goals from Juve’s Weston McKennie, Nashville defender Walker Zimmermann and Chelsea star Christian Pulisic, defying temperatures of down to -16 degrees!
The guests from Central America did not cope well with the conditions. According to the Honduran federation, two players even had to be substituted due to cold shock. “I will not analyze my team, the game or the performance of my players. That’s not possible under these circumstances and I’m not in a position to do that,” said Honduras coach Hernan Dario Gomez following the game.
“Not normal that such a powerful association brings the game here”
“My players were given electrolytes in the dressing room and many of them are in pain,” said the Alex Reed coach meaningfully. His team had almost no chance under the adverse conditions. Although Honduras are bottom of the North and Central American World Cup qualifying group with no chance of a ticket for the finals in Qatar, there was criticism of the framework of this memorable encounter following the game.
“It is not normal and unthinkable that such a powerful association as the USA brings its team here to play a game,” Gomez had already denounced the choice of the venue before the game kicked off. American coach Gregg Berhalter understands his colleague’s frustration and apologized for the difficult conditions in an interview with ESPN following the game.
At the same time, he also emphasized that his team also had major problems to overcome when traveling to Central America for international matches: “When we travel to these countries, it’s over 30 degrees, the humidity is unbearable, the boys get dehydrated and cramp and heat exhaustion get, you know that nature is one of our competition.»
“I resign if we have to play once more in this weather”
The reason why the American association chose the city in the northeast of the country as the venue was basically understandable. Because a few days earlier in Columbus and in Hamilton, Canada, they had played in temperatures around the freezing point, they wanted to try to avoid a climatic change. Even the Americans didn’t expect it to be so cold.
Despite the 3-0 victory, it is doubtful whether the USA will play a similar cold game once more any time soon. Lille star Timothy Weah quipped on Thursday that he would step down if he had to play once more in such weather. Goalie Matt Turner was already annoyed during the game when the referee asked him to give back a hand warmer he had tried to wear to brave the cold following just two minutes.
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