Following the confirmation of Guatemala as Guyana’s first round opponent in the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup Qualifiers, former captain Christopher Nurse is of the opinion that the Golden Jaguars possess the quality to overcome the challenge of the Central American outfit.
According to Nurse, 36, in an exclusive interview with Stabroek Sport, “Guatemala is a good team. We faced them in 2012 at Providence and we lost 2-0. But it is a challenge I feel we are capable of overcoming. Our overseas based pool of players are competing at a level that provides them the readiness to compete against professionals from any nation and that gives us a decent chance of success.”
Guyana’s aim of securing a second appearance in the Gold Cup will have to go through Guatemala following Concacaf’s maiden draw on Monday. The Guyanese are ranked 166th internationally, while their opponent, the 1967th Concacaf Championship Victor is ranked 130th. If successful against the Guatemalans, the Guyanese will oppose the winner of the Guadeloupe and Bahamas encounter in the second qualifier.
The victor of 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 in a centralized location in the United States. However, history is on the side of the Guatemalans who are undefeated against the Golden Jaguars. The Central Americans prevailed 3-0 in 2010 and 2-0 in 2012.
According to Nurse, Guatemala’s National Football League in contrast to Guyana, is home to 12 professional teams, with each team possessing 22 players on their respective rosters.
He expounded, “When the fixture was announced the first move I made was to research the number of the teams and the activity of the domestic league in Guatemala. Twelve professional teams were competing. Each team roster approximately 22 players, that’s 264 active ‘professional’ footballers in Guatemala before exploring the diaspora. In addition Guatemala’s low FIFA ranking coincides with a period from 2016 – 2018 when they were banned from competition.”
Nurse elaborated that while Guyana’s population is significantly smaller than their opponent, the lack of local structure and developmental environment has hindered the sport.
“Whilst our population is 17 times smaller, we need a domestic league, clubs, teams that can harness produce and expose ‘professional’ players on a consistent basis. No occasional tournaments, we need a daily environment that can maximize the talents of the youths. For many years I have said that given what we are lacking domestically, Guyana’s relevance and ability to compete and be recognised on the international platform is absolutely astounding, and the players and coaching staff deserve a magnitude of accolades, the talent continues to be ever present. The question is when the facilities, operations and facilitators will advance to meet the ever increasing evolution and demands of the game and its players.”
He added, “They have an active league with active players who are match fit, international fixtures are realistic and progression in readiness. We have neither of the above domestically. Covid 19 started March 2020, Guyana domestic league has been inactive since May 2019, correct me if I am wrong. In the absence of Covid…. we still are missing major components on the pathway to success. It’s time we address the core issues. The players need to be able to live the dream with a professional league in Guyana. International football will always be present and we will always have a pool of players to compete. The local players need our help right now. Everything else is a distraction. No one is hearing them cry.”
The Golden Jaguars recorded their maiden appearance in the 2019 edition. The Guyanese finished third in their pool, following a record of two losses and a draw. Guyana went down to hosts and eventual runner-up the United States 4-0, before going down to Panama 4-2. In their final match, the Golden Jaguars drew 1-1 with Trinidad & Tobago.
