With less than a day remaining before Guyana’s first-round playoff fixture against Grenada in the CONCACAF Gold Cup Prelims, Golden Jaguars Head-coach Jamaal Shabazz, who is currently unable to travel with the squad, declares that he expects a very competitive matchup against ‘Spice Boys’.
This was stated during a pre-match press conference yesterday. According to Shabazz, who is awaiting his US visa application, “Obviously Grenada has played in tier 1 or league ‘A’ in CONCACAF so they will be no pushovers for sure. They have like us a couple of players playing in the UK so we have that respect for them. We have always had decent results against them historically. Over the last 15 years, we have had good results against Grenada so it’s now a fear factor but it’s one of mutual respect and knowing that it’s going to be a tough game for both teams and I think our desire to take the game, our level a bit further. We rebounded from a fair outing in the first set of nations’ league matches and then we came back well in the last two. Now the icing on the cake is for us to get past Grenada. This is our focus at this time.”
He further stated, “Of course, it’s a very important game for the country, not just for the team because it gives us an opportunity to go past Grenada, go past the winner of Guadeloupe and Antigua and Barbuda and get into the group stage of the CONCACAF Gold Cup. That is our goal and it keeps us very focused and motivated as a result.”
Guyana will oppose Grenada tomorrow at the DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. If successful, the Golden Jaguars will play the winner of the Guadeloupe/Antigua and Barbuda fixture for a place in the Gold Cup. Trinidad and Tobago was initially slated to face-off against Guadeloupe but was subsequently elevated to the main tournament, after Nicaragua was found guilty of fielding an ineligible player in eight matches during their 2022/2023 Nations League campaign. Antigua and Barbuda was selected to replace Trinidad and Tobago after being the team with the highest points in League B not to qualify for the Gold Cup Prelims.
According to Shabazz, “I felt that the players could have come in with more but we have to appreciate particularly the boys coming out of the UK they had a long season and they had to get some rest and some vacation, but that being said and having seen all the sessions on video I think the guys have pushed, have worked hard. We still have some niggles and knocks. I feel we are two-three days away from what could be the performance that we really want so it’s a work in progress, the guys have accepted the challenge and everybody seems to be pushing and giving their best. Of course, it’s a competitive environment and everybody wants to be in the starting team. This is what we are happy about, we want to have that problem of players pushing and competing to be in the 11.”
Meanwhile, team captain Samuel Cox said, “I think following the last camp, the success that we had in the two games and the vibe that was created certainly we have come into this camp with optimism, with high hopes in what we can achieve and we look at the two possible games, first of all, we look to Grenada and I will echo what the ‘gaffer’ has just said, I feel that the rivalry we have had with them over the years and the belief that we have within the squad we feel the game is in our hand. The boys worked really hard over the past two weeks in Jamaica and over here in Florida with the sessions that have been put on by coach Dover and the sports science department.”
He further said, “The boys see themselves in a good position and we feel we can really get a result here and following that the belief and the spirits go up and we look to the second game and anything is possible. We believe in ourselves, we have a mission to achieve.”
