Wednesday is crunch time in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying

World Cup qualifying games over the last weekend have set the race to qualify in the CONCACAF group on a knife’s edge.

The top 3 teams qualify for the World Cup and at this point no team is a safe bet to qualify, as it’s neck and neck among the top four teams.  The fourth place team does get a last chance to qualify by playing a home and away against the 5th place team in South America qualifying.  That could mean the fourth place team has to beat the likes of Argentina, who is currently in 4th place in South America qualifying, just to get to the world cup.

What happened this weekend?

The big news in CONCACAF this weekend was that 4th place Mexico beat 1st place Costa Rica 3-0 in an away game in Costa Rica.  Failing to win at home as Costa Rica did is perhaps the mark of doom in CONCACAF, but we shall see; Costa Rica was atop the heap before this last match.

Elsewhere the home sides won, USA beating El Salvador 2-1 and Honduras beating Trinidad and Tobago 4-1.

Where do the teams stand now?

The top four teams are all within a single point of each other so any point earned in the final qualifying games could make the difference. Qualifying could be down to a single goal, whether a single strike on goal hits the post, or is inches better and bulges the net.  The rankings will be decided on goal differential in the case of a points tie.

On the other side of the ledger, El Salvador and Trinidad & Tobago are just one loss from being mathematically eliminated.

What are Wednesday’s critical matches?

Playing in front of home crowds with nothing less than their countries World Cup participation on the line, El Salvador and Trinidad & Tobago will be desperate to win Wednesday; anything less means they are eliminated from the World Cup.   Both teams have quality talent and their motivations should be at a peak, if they’ve maintained their morale.  Still,  neither the USA nor Costa Rica can afford to lose to these teams given the tight points race among the top 4 teams, so we can expect to see some passionate play all around.

The Mexico – Honduras game should have it’s own fireworks. This is a game that neither team can afford to lose, handing their top 4 rival a boost up the ladder, though either team might survive a draw.  Resurgent Mexico seems unlikely to play for a draw at home, the passion of their players and fans will demand nothing less than victory.

Predictions?

I’ll post my game predictions here tomorrow well before kick-off.

Sound off!
What are your predictions?  Do you think El Salvador or Trinidad & Tobago can keep their dream alive?  Is Mexico suddenly for real, oir could they collapse in front of their home crowd?  Will the USA take care of business with steel drums playing in the  background?  Share your thoughts and predictions in the comments below.