MIAMI, Florida – The Final Round of Concacaf World Cup Qualifying kicks off on Thursday with three players looking to continue the great goal-scoring prowess that they displayed during Concacaf WCQ for Russia 2018.
Even though he did not even play in the Final Round of Concacaf WCQ for Russia 2018, Canada FW Cyle Larin still finished the cycle tied as the sixth-leading scorer with four goals.
Larin did all of his damage in the Second and Fourth Rounds of qualifying, scoring a goal in each game as Canada defeated Dominica 2-0 and 4-0 in the Second Round, before tallying a goal in Canada’s 1-0 win over Honduras and their 3-1 triumph over El Salvador in the Fourth Round.
Needless to say, in Concacaf WCQ for Qatar 2022 Larin has already picked up where he left off.
The 26-year-old has seven goals through the first two rounds of qualifying, scoring a hat trick in a 5-1 First Round win over Bermuda, a goal in the 11-0 victory against Cayman Islands, another goal in the 7-0 win over Aruba, followed by a goal in each leg in Canada’s 4-0 aggregate win over Haiti in the Second Round.
Another top goalscorer in qualifying for Russia 2018 was Christian Pulisic of the United States. The attacker finished as the third-leading scorer for the cycle with seven goals and led all players in scoring in the Final Round of qualifying with five goals.
Pulisic broke out as a 17-year-old for the national team, scoring a brace in the 6-0 win at Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in the Fourth Round of qualifying.
He then carried that momentum into the Final Round, scoring in the 6-0 home win over Honduras, followed by a brace in a 2-0 home win against Trinidad and Tobago, another goal in a 4-0 home win against Panama and capped by the lone U.S. goal in a 2-1 away defeat to Trinidad and Tobago.
Honduras FW Romell Quioto is also back and will be looking to add to his totals. The 30-year-old CF Montreal man was the fourth-leading scorer in qualifying for Russia 2018 with six goals, including four in the Final Round.
Quioto found the back of the net in two crucial home wins for Honduras in the Fourth Round, scoring the second in a 2-0 victory against El Salvador and the match-winner in a 2-1 triumph over Canada, a goal that ultimately qualified Honduras for the next stage.
Quioto was just as lethal in the Final Round, with goals in the 3-1 win versus Trinidad and Tobago, the 2-2 draw at Panama, the 1-1 home draw with the United States and the crucial game-winning goal in a 3-2 victory against Mexico on the final matchday, earning Honduras a place in the Intercontinental Playoff.
After thrilling fans with their goal-scoring exploits four years ago, this trio of dangermen will be looking for more as their teams take aim at Qatar 2022.
