With the Golden Jaguars scheduled to face-off against powerhouse Guatemala in the first round of the 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup Qualifiers, national head coach Marcio Maximo, has labelled the Central American outfit as one of the strongest teams in the qualification tournament.
This is according to a release from the Guyana Football Federation (GFF).
“Guatemala is one of the strongest teams in the preliminary groups. They have a good style, similar to El Salvador, Costa Rica, Mexico, Honduras and will be challenging for us but I think it’s a challenge for us because it will raise the level of our game and serve as a motivation to do extra, to make an extra effort to try and surprise Guatemala,” said Maximo.
Guyana’s attempt to earn a second appearance in the confederation’s flagship tournament will go through Guatemala following Concacaf’s maiden draw on Monday which was conducted virtually in Miami. The Guyanese are ranked 166th internationally, while their opponent, the 1967th Concacaf Championship victors are ranked 130th.
If successful against the Guatemalans, the Guyanese will oppose the winner of the Guadeloupe and The Bahamas encounter in the second qualifier. The victor in the second qualifier will progress to group-C. The preliminary round, which will be contested utilizing a direct elimination format, will be staged from July 2nd-6th next year in a centralized location in the United States.
“We have a chance to qualify, of course. We have changed the style of the team. The team is faster in offensive transition and we have done some improvement in the defensive structure to have more consistency. We will have to reduce the pace of the game for Guatemala and I think if we do good marking with a good, solid defensive system, we can have a surprise for Guatemala. Why not? We will approach the match with confidence,” said Maximo.
According to Maximo, Guyana has the required quality of international and locally based players to become successful in the qualifiers. “What we are doing in Guyana is real development because we will use our Guyana-based players in the process in good numbers. That’s why I believe in the few years coming, Guyana will be a powerful force in the Caribbean. A good combination of Guyana and international-based players is necessary to achieve success. International players are very important for their experience with the group. Quality Guyana-based players serve as a good motivator for young players to play football in Guyana and increase the followership of football in Guyana. That’s why we compete and develop at the same time,” said Maximo.
He noted that while the current pandemic has affected the team’s preparation phase, “We have been sending weekly fitness programmes for the Guyana-based players and we hope that they have been following the programme. If not, we will have time as we have at least three months to prepare the players and I think that’s enough time to prepare our Guyana-based players for a competitive selection process.”
Meanwhile, President Wayne Forde said, “The Guyana Golden Jaguars have had to claw their way through many challenges on and off the field over the years and coming up against Guatemala in the Concacaf preliminary round, is not by any means an insurmountable challenge. We have to respect the quality this team will present on the day but I would say whatever we lack in quality – we will surely make up with courage and grit.”
He added, “Our boys were unlikely to be in this position given the poor start to their Nations League campaign but they all dug very deep and redeemed themselves, which is a true reflection of the character of this team and its leadership under Coach Máximo. It will require an extraordinary undertaking to be ready for Guatemala in 11 months and I am confident that this entire Nation will answer that call. It will be difficult but not impossible…!”
Round One
Matchup #1: Haiti vs St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Matchup #2: Guatemala vs Guyana
Matchup #3: Trinidad and Tobago vs Monserrat
Matchup #4: Cuba vs French Guiana
Matchup #5: Guadeloupe vs Bahamas
Matchup #6: Bermuda vs Barbados
Round Two
Matchup #7: Winner Matchup #1 vs Winner Matchup #6
Matchup #8: Winner Matchup #2 vs Winner Matchup #5
Matchup #9: Winner Matchup #3 vs Winner Matchup #4
