Elimination Threat Looms Over Ecuador and Honduras

After both lost their openers in the World Cup's Group E, Ecuador and Honduras meet tonight at the Arena da Baixada in Curitiba with zero points and a lot to prove to their fans and countries. The meeting will take place at 11 pm (UK time) after group leaders France and Switzerland finish their game. Should the game between the Euros finish a draw, if any of the two teams loses here this would mean almost certain elimination from the World Cup.

Colombian Standoff

Tonight's match will pit two Colombian coaches, Honduras' Luis Fernando Suarez and Ecuador's Reinaldo Rueda. Their teams have met five times in the last eight years but always in friendly matches and never in a tournament. The five encounters saw three Ecuador wins, one Honduras win and one draw. Honduras' Suarez has quite the advantage tonight, as he served as Ecuador's coach in the past, becoming a national hero when he led the team to the Round of 16 where they lost 1-0 to England due to a David Beckham freekick.

On the flip side of the coin, Ecuador's Rueda coached Honduras from 2006 to 2010, bringing them to the 2010 World Cup where they finished in the group stage with one point. His current Ecuador gave a good display in the game against Switzerland, managing to cling onto a 1-1 score until Switzerland's Haris Seferovic turned the wheel around.

Fight for Survival

Ecuador is the clear favorite for tonight given their experience and good performance against Switzerland. Then at the same time, Honduras has absolutely nothing to lose – if anything, the team wants to bring their nation the pride of at least one World Cup victory, something they did not manage to do yet. Whatever happens, these teams set the stage for a mouthwatering game tonight.