Honduras defeat New Zealand in Men's Olympics soccer
The CONCACAF side had to come from behind to defeat New Zealand and now they are one game away from booking a ticket to the quarter-finals.
The Honduras national team lost 1-0 in their opening game in the Olympic soccer tournament against Romania in Group B. They knew that only a victory on matchday 2 would keep their hopes alive to advance to the next round.
Late comeback from Honduras
The CONCACAF side were losing 2-1 in the 78th minute and Juan Carlos Obregón took advantage of a mistake from the goalkeeper to level the score. With the confidence boost, Honduras desperately looked for the goal that would give them the victory and much-needed points.
In the 86th minute Rigoberto Rivas ran down the left flank and as he entered the box, he struck a low shot to beat the goalkeeper from New Zealand to give Honduras a 3-2 win. With this result they are in second place, but since South Korea defeated Romania 4-0 all four teams in Group B have three points.
What Honduras need to advance to quarter-finals
This is currently the ‘group of death’ and all four teams will battle in the last game of the group stage to book their tickets to the next round. Honduras will face South Korea and Romania against New Zealand on 28 July. A win for the CONCACAF side will secure them a spot in the quarter-finals, but a draw will put them at risk because South Korea have a better goal difference than them, in the event that they win their match against New Zealand.