Honduras vs Grenada

BBVA Compass Stadium is the venue as Honduras and Grenada go head-to-head in their opening 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup fixture.

Beating FIFA’s #160-ranked nation could prove decisive to Honduras’ hopes of avoiding back-to-back Gold Cup group stage eliminations for the first time since 1998. Despite finishing the 2019 Gold Cup group stage campaign with a +2 goal difference (G:6, L4), one-goal margin defeats to Jamaica and Curacao saw Honduras bow out of the competition early on last time out. Heading into proceedings as overwhelming favorites to claim all three points, ‘Los Catrachos’ have dismantled Grenada in both of their previous Gold Cup H2Hs, prevailing by over 3.5 goals on each occasion. However, since a 4-0 thumping of Trinidad & Tobago in the CONCACAF Nations League in November 2019, Fabián Coito’s men have gone winless in their subsequent seven outings (D4, L3) if considering just 90 minutes of play.

Meanwhile, Grenada have qualified for the Gold Cup via the CONCACAF Nations League, as this will be their first appearance at the final tournament since 2011 and only third ever. But the ‘Spice Boys’ lament a disastrous Gold Cup record, having lost each of their last six matches in the competition by an aggregate score of 25-1. Indeed, Grenada’s heaviest Gold Cup defeat came at the hands of Honduras (7-1), with four of their remaining five tournament losses yielding the identical 4-0 scoreline. None of Grenada’s last five competitive matches have ended as a draw (W2, L3), with four of those results (win/loss) seeing the sides separated by a single goal. Lackluster attacking displays have seen Michael Findlay’s team net under 1.5 goals in seven of their last eight competitive outings, which further derails their chances of making any surprise here.