Today Honduras hopes to steal some of the magic apparently given to Switzerland, and beat Spain in a Group H match that proves definitive for both teams in future Cup standings. A loss for either team would mean elimination, something that seems unbelievable for many Spain fans (the team has rallied 47 wins in its last 49 matches).
But there’s another story floating around Tegucigalpa, namely that of the Palacio Brothers, a group of three brothers that all play for the Honduran squad. This is history being made: the first time a biological trio has ever played in the World Cup.
Jhony and Wilson, the younger two brothers, made the cut for the squad and oldest Jerry was called upon by head coach Reinaldo Rueda after player Julio Cesar de Leon was injured in a primary match. Hours before landing on his plane in South Africa, Jerry Palacios told FIFA: “We've talked about it and we're aware of how much it means.” His face lights up with a warm glow. “In fact, I was on the initial list of 30 players, but I didn't make the final cut. To be playing for Honduras in our first World Cup in 28 years is incredible, but being able to share it with my brothers is a gift from God, and something that our children and grandchildren will never forget."
Of course, he’s right.
At 28, Jerry is a midfielder who plays for Hangzhou Greentown in China. At 23, his brother Jhony is a central defender for Olimpia, the current Honduran champions. But it’s Wilson, 25, who’s the best known of the trio, playing English football with Wigan Athletic and Tottenham Hotspur.
Jerry explains the occurrence of his World Cup entry: "I was in China watching pictures from the World Cup when the phone rang. I was surprised to see that it was Wilson, and when I answered he said, 'I've got 'Professor' Rueda here and he wants a word with you'. Naturally I felt sorry for Rambo [de Leon] because we're close friends, but at the same time I thanked God for the chance to fulfil two dreams: playing in the World Cup, and doing so with my brothers," Jerry said with a smile.
In addition to three siblings in South Africa for the World Cup, Milton and Orfilia Palacios brought up three other children in the densely populated municipality of La Ceiba. Their only daughter Miriam, Milton Junior, himself a footballer who played in a couple of qualifiers for the Cup in Germany in 2006, and Edwin, who would not be 18.
Edwin’s story is a deeply tragic one. As he was beginning his career in the Honduras youth squads, he was kidnapped by criminals after the Palacios household was raided and subsequently murdered, despite a ransom fee being paid. On the tragedy Jerry said: "Edwin guides us from heaven. Everything we do is for him, he is our inner strength and the source of our faith. I'm sure it'll be bittersweet for my mother, but we're a strong family who believes in God and we feel that the best is always ahead," he said.
As the Honduras team prepares to play a heavily favoured Spain, they can at least definitively say that they have personal stakes in the match and are playing for something other than just success on the World stage. Certainly the brothers would have already made Edwin proud, but imagining a victory has proven a treasure they would love to achieve. Jerry knows it will be tough, but he acknowledges with refreshing optimism that “anything can happen,” and then channels the proof of his brother Wilson. “When he was a boy, [Wilson] would say that one day he’d play for Honduras in a World Cup, and he has done just that, which shows that in life nothing is impossible.”
Tags: