The Hondurans’ determination to finish the tournament with a win was evident straight from kick-off, as Darwin Diego broke the deadlock for the Central Americans in the second minute.
With a quarter of an hour played, Alex Laureano doubled their advantage following a powerful run down the right flank, while a brace from Mikel Santos gave them a comfortable lead at the break.
After the interval Joel Banegas was unfortunate not to add his name to the scoresheet when his deflected shot hit the post, but he would later set up Santos to complete his hat-trick.
Honduras had further good chances through Banega and Paolo Belloni but wayward finishing prevented them finishing with a higher margin of victory.
Santos became the fifth player to grab a hat-trick at this competition, following on from Iceland’s Helgi Gudjonsson, Korea Republic duo Kim Gyuhyeong and Lee Jiyong, as well as Cape Verde’s Ricardo.
In the bronze medal match, Iceland take on Cape Verde Islands, at 6pm local time, while the showdown between Korea Republic and Peru will decide gold and silver.
Both matches are scheduled for Wednesday 27 August at Jiangning Sports Centre Stadium.
Ends
Story reproduced courtesy FIFA.com
Image courtesy Getty Images

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