ANGUS Eve, coach of the TT men’s football team, acknowledges that he is not totally aware of the capabilities of the French Guiana squad, as both teams square off in their 2021 Concacaf Gold Cup qualification second-round match on Tuesday, from 4.30 pm, at the DRV PNK Stadium, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States.
French Guiana were due to face Cuba on Saturday in their first-round fixture. However, Cuba had to default the game since they were unable to leave Nicaragua for the US due to covid19 related travel and visa challenges.
French Guiana are not a member of FIFA as they are an overseas department of the French Republic. Ironically, their last competitive match was a 3-1 victory over St Kitts/Nevis, in the Concacaf Nations League, on November 17, 2019.
Eve, speaking at a pre-game media conference via Zoom on Monday, said, “They haven’t played a competitive game for a while. It’s unfortunate we couldn’t see them (on Saturday).”
The TT coach continued, “The roster that they have, we could basically go back and see things that some of the players would have done in the past, but that’s basically it. We’re basically going relatively blind.
“They would have a better idea of what we do because they would have seen our game, so they have an advantage in that regard. We’re pretty confident in our game and what we’re capable of doing.
Two TT defenders suffered injuries during Friday’s 6-1 trouncing of Montserrat, in a first-round tie. Left-back Tristan Hodge was replaced by Ross Russell Jnr at the half-time break due to a groin strain, while centre-back Aubrey David needed stitches after a cut to his face, from a high boot from defender Nathan Pond.
But Eve said, “We’re still treating with them and they’re pretty much day-to-day. If any changes had to be made, we’ll have to wait until the last moment to see.”
The winners of Tuesday’s qualifier will advance to Group A of the Gold Cup, alongside Mexico, El Salvador and Curacao.
“We have to treat each match as a virtual final,” said the TT coach. “Each match is equally important. The mood in the camp is really good. The guys who came off the bench were fantastic. We have a squad of players who we trust so if somebody is injured, there is no problem for us to replace them with one of the other guys on the roster.”
Eve shifted Ryan Telfer to the left-wing position and recalled Marcus Joseph to play as the lone striker.
Telfer and Joseph, along with Kevin Molino, scored in the first half of Friday’s game while, in the second half, Reon Moore added a pair and Judah Garcia netted once.
On his team’s attacking prowess, Eve said, “We scored goals from different positions of the park. We don’t have the luxury of a Stern John, Kenwyne Jones or Dwight Yorke.
“We have to use the players that we have and get them to contribute. We got goals from five different players and five different positions.”
Telfer made his TT debut in 2019 and has played under three coaches – Dennis Lawrence, Terry Fenwick and Eve.
“It’s different coaching styles,” said Telf
