Former Golden Jaguar midfield dynamo, Kayode McKinnon, has affirmed that the management team of the national programme must be on the same wavelength ahead of the start of the World Cup Qualifiers if they are to create the ideal environment for our players to compete.
This was disclosed during an exclusive interview with Stabroek Sport. According to McKinnon, the emphasis of the programme for everyone involved within the confines of the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), is to have a shared vision, noting that this allows for clear objectives to be established.
He elaborated, “I am truly happy to see football return in a massive way. The focus right now, needs to be getting everyone [federation, staff and players] on the same page. This allows us to have clear goals, create a high-performance environment, and instill pride and ambition in our players to compete.”
Asked how often the team and coaching staff should be tested during this current health climate, McKinnon opined that daily health checks should form part of the guidelines and protocols established during this period as a means to ensure the safety of all players and staff.
“I would hope the systems and guidelines are observed daily. The players and staff should have daily health checks to make sure everyone is safe. This may include but not [be] limited to daily temperature checks, symptoms monitoring, and testing when necessary. This will allow a quick response and removal if someone does show symptoms, thus ensuring the highest level of safety possible”, he added.
According to McKinnon, the option of isolating players during this training period, once financially viable and possible, should be explored, as to ensure that the training period is not hindered in any capacity. He added that the contamination of any individual during this training window could have adverse effects on the programme’s continuation.
He further noted, “Should an encampment occur given the nature of the virus? Presently the team is not encamped so should [members] return to their respective homes after every session? If financially possible, the players should be isolated for the full duration of this developmental period to make sure nothing slows down the process. As we know it only takes one person to shut down an entire programme. We would prefer not to have interruptions since we are already starting late and have big goals.”
The Golden Jaguars have been drawn in Group-F in the first stage of the Concacaf World Cup Qualifiers, a pool which contains traditional rival Trinidad and Tobago, St. Kitts and Nevis, Puerto Rico and the Bahamas. Guyana will open their campaign away to Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday March 25, before hosting the Bahamas on March 30.
In their third match, Guyana will travel to St. Kitts and Nevis for Friday June 4, before ending their group round at home on Tuesday June 8 against Puerto Rico. Upon the conclusion of the first round, the second stage will consist of the respective group winners facing off in a home and away series during the latter stages of June.
The winner of Group-A will oppose Group-F, whilst Group-B battles Group-E and Group-C engages Group-D.
The eventual victors will advance to the final round in September which will consist of eight teams. Following the conclusion of the final round, the top three teams will qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The fourth-place finisher will contest the Confederation Playoff. Guyana’s best showing in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers occurred in the 2014 edition, when it qualified for the third round.
