Former Golden Jaguars captain, Samuel Cox, has confirmed that Guyana has been drawn in a testing League ‘B’ group for the second edition of the Concacaf Nations League, which kicks off in June.
According to Cox in an exclusive interview with Stabroek Sport yesterday, the Golden Jaguars face a challenging pool for the 2022/2023 tournament, which is littered with quality nations.
“It a tough draw, we know they are some very decent teams in our group. Of course Haiti having played them last year and before the Gold Cup and knowing their capabilities, we know that they narrowly missed out on getting into League ‘A’, so they are going to be a very tough opponent as are Bermuda having played them the last two years as well and knowing what they are capable of. And of course Montserrat who are made up of a lot of overseas players, a lot of English-based players that we are familiar with. We know that even though they are seeded as the last pot, we know that they are the best team in the last pot too.”
Guyana were drawn in group ‘B’ of League ‘B’ in the Concacaf Nations League, after the official draw was conducted on Monday in Miami, Florida, USA. Guyana (21st), has been drawn with the likes of Haiti (7th), Bermuda (19th), and Montserrat (27th).
The Guyanese ended their inaugural campaign with a record of three wins, two losses and a draw. The Golden Jaguars defeated Aruba [4-2, 1-0], as well as Antigua and Barbuda [5-1]. However, they suffered defeats against Jamaica [0-4] and Antigua and Barbuda [1-2]. Guyana recorded a draw against Jamaica [1-1].
Despite the quality of the impending challenges, Cox affirmed that Guyana is more than capable of qualifying from the group, adding that the team’s recent 1-1 performance against traditional rival Trinidad and Tobago is indicative of what the team can achieve, as they are currently in a good environment under the stewardship of manager Jamaal Shabazz.
“We definitely respect all the opponents but we go into the games in the summer knowing that we are more than capable of getting through this group and qualifying for the Gold Cup. I think we have to look at every game thinking that we can win, I think our performance against Trinidad will give the group a lot of confidence knowing what we are capable of. We are in a really good space at the moment under the gaffer Jamaal. He has got the boys playing with a new confidence, a new style and it has given players another lease on life so we don’t fear anyone and everybody is excited and we just can’t wait to get going and are looking forward to those games in June.”
