Toluca to travel to Honduras despite unrest

After reports broke claiming that it would not travel to Honduras for a CONCACAF Champions League match against Marathon, Toluca announced that the game in the unstable Central American nation would continue.

"Despite the complicated situation that is ongoing in Honduras ... Deportivo Toluca will have no problem whatsoever competing in their fifth CONCACAF Champions League match against Marathon to be played next Thurs., Oct. 1," read a statement on Toluca's Web site.

Honduras President Manuel Zelaya was forcibly removed from office on June 28 and replaced by Roberto Micheletti. Zelaya was banished from the country and not allowed to return, but Zelaya sneaked back into Honduras last week and sought refuge in the Brazilian Embassy in Tegucigalpa.

Zelaya's return spurred the interim government to shut down airports and border crossings as well as schools and many business. Rioting has broken out Tegucigalpa as supporters of both Zelaya and Micheletti have taken to the streets.

Still, Toluca seem adamant about going to Honduras.

"We will definitely travel to Honduras on Wednesday," club president Fernando Corona told the club's Web site. "We will play Thursday against Marathon and will return to Mexico on Friday."

Corona said he was assured of his team's safety by Honduran officials.

"During the day, no guarantees of the team's safety were given," Corona said. "But in the afternoon we got an official note from the Secretary of Public Safety of Honduras, as well as CONCACAF, in which we were assured that during our stay in that country, Deportivo Toluca would have all the security necessary, so then we only needed to accept."

Toluca's match in Honduras is not the only soccer game that is seemingly threatened to take place. The U.S. is scheduled to play at Honduras on Oct. 10 in a World Cup qualifying match. As of Monday, the U.S.-Honduras game was still set for San Pedro Sula despite the country's political upheaval. --Goal.com