Real Salt Lake’s Douglas Martinez Starts, Beats Haiti In Olympic Qualifying Tournament
Mar 19, 2021, 4:11 PM
Douglas Martinez #12 of Real Salt Lake looks on with his teammates before a corner kick against Minnesota United during a Group D match as part of the MLS Is Back Tournament at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex on July 17, 2020 in Reunion, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Real Salt Lake striker Douglas Martinez started for Honduras this afternoon against Haiti. Honduras won 3-0, Martinez however, failed to score.
In a remarkable twist just minutes prior to kickoff it was announced that the Haiti team had failed COVID-19 protocol and half of the squad did not present their tests to the lab until yesterday. Meaning, those players that were yet to receive their results from the lab were unavailable. Haiti played the fixture with 10 men.
Major development for this Honduras/Haiti @Concacaf Olympic qualifier. COVID-19 protocols were not observed by Haiti and half the squad's test were given to the lab just yesterday. They will play with 10 men and a field player will be in goal. We're live on FS2 in about 10 min
— Tyler Terens (@TNTerens) March 19, 2021
As expected, Martinez was active and dangerous up top for Honduras. He was involved in a number of attacking chances but unfortunately was unable to get on the end of any deliveries.
Nonetheless, it was three points for Honduras who got off to the perfect start as they hope to qualify for the upcoming Tokyo Olympic Games.
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Their next match will take place Monday, March 22 against El Salvador with kickoff scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Then, their final group stage game will be on Thursday, March 25 at 8 p.m. against Canada.
If Honduras finishes in the top two of their group, they will then qualify for the semifinals. If they win their semifinal fixture they will not only play in the final of the qualifying tournament but they will also qualify for the Tokyo Olympics.
