A win is Great, A Tie is Good and a Loss is Reality

It could be a very significant day for the Canadian Men’s soccer team on Tuesday. For the first time in over a decade, it seems like there is a bit of fresh air underneath this program. Canada has a chance to bury their Central American rivals with a win. It is a significant day because Canada has a chance to put them in a great spot to qualify for the final group of six.

That’s why the win in Havana was so critical. Thanks to the 1-0 win over Cuba and Panama’s 2-0 upset win over Honduras, Canada has a chance to be six points clear of third place by tomorrow night.

The only way that becomes possible is if Canada defeats Honduras and Panama defeats Cuba. (Very likely) It would be something that most young Canadian soccer fans have never experienced before. Most young soccer fans have images of Canada playing down to the other teams level.

However, if Canada were too defeat Honduras on Tuesday, it would be anything but playing down to their opponents. The reality is, a Canadian win tonight and this Canadian team will become contenders for the 2014 World Cup, instead of pretenders, which they have been for several years now.

Honduras will be coming into BMO Field angry. Their players and their fans both

Know that 2-0 losses at home are unacceptable. This Honduras team is way better than Cuba. Therefore, if this Canadian team, will half to bring their A+ game in order to get the win.

The dangerous thing about tonight’s game is that a loss could be deadly to Canada’s World Cup chances. Unless there is a tie, it’s going to be a six-point swing for one of the teams. Either Canada will be six points up, or Honduras and Canada will be nodded up at three with the return leg in Honduras still to come.

The bottom line, tonight’s game will be a test for Canada. Honduras is at the right challenge level for Canada. They’re not as good as USA or Mexico; however, they’re a bit better than the Costa Rica or Jamaica.

I feel that like the game on Friday, tonight’s game could go a long way for Canada’s qualifying chances. I believe that a loss for Canada tonight and their confidence might go down the drain. In contrast, a historic win tonight and the hype could start to build at rate Canada has never seen before.

Tonight’s game really could go either way. I don’t expect it to be too high scoring. The last time these teams met Canada found themselves on the winning end of a 2-1 game. World Cup Qualifying games are usually played tightly with fewer chances. For me, it comes down too a win is great, a tie is good and a loss is the harsh reality.

The game starts at 4:30PT/7:30ET and can be seen on Sportsnet One