Round 3 of CONCACAF qualifying is set

The favorites, except one, recovered from first match jitters and moved on in CONCACAF qualifying while one team that looked safe after the first round fell on its face and was eliminated. The three four-team groups are set. The top two teams in each group will advance to the final round of qualifying.

The United States, playing a JV squad, just needed to be on the field for 90 minutes, and that’s pretty much what they did, beating Barbados 1-0 on the road. America’s group in the next round will also include Guatemala, Trinidad and Cuba. Trinidad, a 2-1 loser in its first match, beat Bermuda 2-0 in the return leg for a 3-2 aggregate win. Guatemala and Cuba had little trouble in their series. Forecast: America should win the group, and second will go to Guatemala or Trinidad. How that head-to-head series goes will likely be the deciding factor.

 UPDATE: In Bermuda, they’re ticked because apparently Trinidad’s second goal, the one that sent them through, was scored DURING a substitution. A Bermuda sub was running on to the field when the referee whistled for the free kick that was headed in for the goal to be taken. (At least that’s what the Bermuda paper said. The Trinidad account I’ve read didn’t mention it.) The Bermuda paper said it was a miscommunication between the ref and the fourth official.

Group 2: Mexico, Jamaica, Honduras and Canada all moved on with little difficulty. Forecast: Mexico will win the group; none of the other teams can win in Mexico. Second is a tough call here. All three teams have shown moments. Canada was a big disappointment last time out, quickly falling by the wayside in this round. I’m going to go with them this time getting second. But it will be tough.

Group 3: This group will send at least one outclassed team to the final round. After Costa Rica, the other three teams in this group have spotty resumes.

 El Salvador, in a Turkey-like performance, got three goals in the final 20 minutes to pull out a stunner over Panama, which had won the first leg 1-0. After Panama scored an early goal in that game, it looked like it would be over. But El Salvador tied the game in the 70th minute, went ahead on a PK in the 83rd and won it on a goal in the 87th. By the end of the game, Panama was down to nine players, though the last got sent off three minutes into injury time. I haven’t seen an account of the game yet, but I’m guessing they were sore.

Suriname and El Salvador are the two teams to play in the first round to reach the third. After winning in Guyana 1-0, Suriname came home and won 2-1 for a 3-1 aggregate win. Knocking off Guyana isn’t exactly a stunner, but Suriname has even less of a pedigree. And finally, Haiti took advantage of an own goal to beat Netherlands Antilles 1-0 after a scoreless tie in the first game. Forecast: Costa Rica will win and El Salvador will take second, though I bet everyone in the group would be looking forward to a road trip to Haiti.