Following the Trinidad and Tobago Football Association’s (TTFA) decision to move their World Cup qualifier against Guyana to the Dominican Republic, former Golden Jaguar international, Kayode McKinnon, opined that the ‘Soca Warriors’ choice can be viewed as positive for the Guyanese despite the unfamiliarity.
This was disclosed during an exclusive interview with Stabroek Sport. According to the Linden native, “I think it offers some level of comfort to Guyana but both teams are away from familiarity. I believe the result will be determined by who execute their task physically and cognitively most effective for 90-plus minutes.”
McKinnon noted that while he is not armed with the facts behind the decision to move the Bahamas fixture to the Dominican Republic, he believes any decision that benefits the team must be explored and utilised. He added, “I’m not sure and don’t have any details on that matter but whatever helps the team to gain much needed results at this stage, must be top priority.”
According to McKinnon, due to the lack of international matches, it is hard to ascertain the quality and progress of the team, noting that it will be interesting to witness the approach employed by the management team for the impending contest, as well as the chemistry that was built during this period.
The Golden Jaguars have not competed on the international circuit for more than 470 days, with their previous encounter occurring against Aruba on November 15, 2019, in the Concacaf Nations League.
He explained, “Unfortunately, Guyana have not played any meaningful games to truly measure where they are after such a long layoff. It will be very interesting to see how we approach the games and what type of chemistry can be built in this short window to drive positive results. I wish the team and staff nothing but the best because anything is possible.”
Guyana is slated to open their Group-F campaign against the Soca Warriors on March 25 in the Dominican Republic. Guyana will also host the Bahamas in the Dominican Republic five days later, after opting to move the fixture due to logistical reasons.
In their third match, Guyana is scheduled to travel to St Kitts and Nevis for their engagement on Friday June 4, before ending their group round at home on Tuesday June 8 against Puerto Rico. Only the group winner will progress to the second stage of the qualifiers
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, as they romped to the third stage of qualifying. This is the penultimate section of the confederation’s qualification process.
