CONCACAF kicks off 2010 World Cup qualifying

The final round of World Cup 2010 qualifying is upon us for the CONCACAF region and it gets going with a vengeance on Wednesday as rivals face off across the region.  The monster matchup is a struggling Mexico side having to open qualifying at the United States.

Mexico has been having their troubles over the last year limping along under new coach Sven Goran Eriksson.  Recent losses to Sweden, Jamaica and Honduras have fans concerned as they should be.  Throw in the fact that the US is 8-0-2 against Mexico in their last 10 games on American soil and Mexico looks to have their hands full.

The Americans must get points from this game and really need to win it on home soil.  A draw would not be devastating, but a loss would throw serious kinks in the goal to qualify as difficult road tests at El Salvador and Costa Rica loom.

In other CONCACAF action, Costa Rica travels to Honduras.  The upstart Honduras side is confident of qualifying and a home win over Costa Rica would put them right in the mix.  A result for Costa Rica would confirm their favorite status to make South Africa 2010.

The other game in the region pits El Salvador at Trinidad.  It is tough to call a game an elimination game in round 1, but this certainly fits the bill.  The loser faces an almost insurmountable hill to qualify and would need to pull some major upsets to have a chance.