The powerful 25-year-old central defender has proved his reliability at international level under Reinaldo Rueda. Born in the northern city of La Ceiba, the birthplace of more than a few Honduran internationals, Norales took his first steps as a professional with Club Deportivo Vida and then signed for Marathon, helping them to the 2008/09 Apertura title.
Commanding in the air and an imposing presence on the ground, Norales gained plenty of experience with his country’s youth teams. A member of the Honduras squad at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Netherlands 2005, he was an inspirational figure in the side that won the 2008 CONCACAF U-23 championship and went on to represent the region in the Men’s Olympic Football Tournament Beijing 2008.
That same year he was handed his first full international cap in a 2-0 win over Paraguay and although not a first choice for his country, he held down a regular place in the Honduras squad during the final phase of qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™.
Norales’s next aim is to win a place in the starting XI for the finals and show the watching world that he has the ability to disarm even the most lethal strikers.
