With the pivotal 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup Qualifiers against Barbados only 15 days away, the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) has confirmed that foreign-based players will be available for selection for the two match home and away series.
This is was disclosed by the General Secretary Ian Alves.
In a brief comment, Alves stated that while the composition of the final roster is yet to be confirmed, “The bulk of the foreign players from the previous matches have made themselves available for selection.”
He added that the selection of foreign players will be analyzed by the management staff which is headed by Head-Coach Marcio Maximo and GFF Technical Director Ian Greenwood, and who are currently overseeing the training of the local contingent.
The foreign players who are up for selection are Quillan Roberts, Samuel Cox, Terence Vancooten, Matthew Briggs, Callum Harriott, Keanu-Marsh-Brown, Kadell Daniels, Emery Welshman and Neil Danns. Excluding Danns, the aforementioned eight individuals featured in Guyana’s previous matchup against powerhouse Jamaica, which ended 1-1 on November 18th 2019.
The 166th FIFA ranked Golden Jaguars will battle the 162nd ranked Barbados on March 26th in what will be the 18th encounter between the two nations. Guyana will host the return leg five days later at the National Track and Field Center, Leonora.
The Golden Jaguars possess a record of seven wins, five losses and five draws in the series. Guyana, the group C runner-up in League `B’ was drawn against the Barbadians, the group `A’ winner of League `C’ following the official draw of the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup Qualifiers in Miami, USA on December 13th 2019.
The fixture will be staged utilising a home and away format during the March FIFA International Window. The previous meeting of the nations ended 2-2 at the National Track and Field Centre, Leonora on September 8th 2018. However, the match was awarded to the Guyanese after Barbados was deemed to have fielded two ineligible players. Guyana’s previous defeat to Barbados occurred on March 6th 1999.
If successful against Barbados, Guyana will oppose another traditional rival in the form of Trinidad and Tobago, one of the four third place finishers from League `A’ in their final qualifier. The two matches, which will also utilize a home and away format, will be contested during the June FIFA International Window. The other three matchups for the March 2020 Qualifiers include Guadeloupe against St Vincent and the Grenadines, with the winner facing Haiti, and Bahamas against French Guiana, with the victor battling Bermuda. The final March qualifier will witness Guatemala opposing Montserrat. The winner will tackle Cuba.
The 12 teams that have already qualified for the 2021 Gold Cup are holders Mexico, USA, Canada, Panama, Honduras, Martinique, Costa Rica, Curaçao, Grenada, El Salvador, Jamaica and Suriname.
