While the main focus will be getting full points in the next two World Cup qualifying matches against Panama and Mexico next month, National team head coach Leo Beenhakker is already looking ahead to the possible next assignment for the “Warriors” on their route to Germany 2006.
Beenhakker, a past Dutch National Team and Read Madrid coach, has brought on board fellow Dutchman Rob Baan to assist in the scouting assignments for the National team.
As it is now, T&T can only come fourth in the qualification which will then push them through to a home and away playoff with either Bahrain or Uzbekistan on November 12 (home) and 16. Those two teams will meet in a playoff for the Asian fifth place on October 8 and 12 and Baan will be attending both matches following which he will present a scout report to Beenhakker who will by then be well aware if T&T will be progressing to meet either of the two nations in the playoff. A scout/coach from Bahrain was also in the stands at the Hasely Crawford Stadium to witness T&T’s 3-2 win over Guatemala earlier this month
Beenhakker revealed this on Friday as he spoke on the plans ahead of the team’s departure for Panama City on Monday morning for next Saturday’s clash at the Estadio Rommel Fernández in Panama City.
“Of course we are looking at them. I arranged, together with Bruce (Aanensen) to have one of my colleague trainers in Holland, a past National coach, to go to both matches between Bahrain and Uzbekistan and we will also have both games on tape,” Beenhakker said as he addressed the media in a briefing held at the LOC 2006 Office on Friday.
“He’s a respectable Dutch coach who is working within the Federation and he was a national coach. He can analyse perfectly both teams and hopefully we will need it.”
When asked how confident he was of getting a win over Panama, Beenhakker answered: Well I’m full of confidence. If I wasn’t then I would not be here. If I don’t have confidence in the job I am doing then I have to stop it. But we are talking about football and you never know how things can go. We played them two times including one game here which was a very difficult game because they also had good possibilities then. Then we had a tight game in the Gold Cup. Of course my friend and colleague in Panama, as I understood, will be using some other players because they are out. But that is of no advantage because every guy who is playing for the first time goes like hell and in that way it will be a totally open and difficult game,” Beenhakker added.
As to whether he thinks the team has improved, the former Ajax boss said: “Within the circumstances yes. Again I have to repeat, as I said to the players, if we had the possibility to have three months together, we will play much better but of course it’s not easy when everytime you have just three days before a game. But I think that you can see that there is more discipline in the team and they are playing more like a team. Of course they make their mistakes but I don’t think you can ask more of them than what they have done up until now.
He also expressed his feelings on the caliber of local players from the Pro League and why he feels it was difficult for them to make the National team.
“It’s very difficult for the local players to make a step from the Local League to international level in three days. Of course there are some players who are talented but at the same time if you see these matches on this level and you compare it with the international football with a game versus Mexico or USA, there is a big gap and that is one of the big problems you have here. It’s difficult for local guy who is playing every week here where he has a lot of time on the pitch, a lot of space, it’s relative slow football where they have a lot of time to control the ball, to think and look around and when they make a mistake nothing happens. Then to play at a level with Mexico and USA will be impossible.”
Aside from that all, Beenhakker says he’s enjoying his job in T&T.
“First of all I like it because the way the players are working and their attitude in training and how they live together in the camp. I like that very much. But at the same time it’s very difficult for two reasons first of all being the big gap between the local level here and the international level and you cannot close that within a few weeks. Secondly, I did this job before and normally you are able to see every week most of the players playing. Because the most important part is the actual situation of the players. I feel there’s a big problem just as I understand that I cannot fly every weekend to England or Scotland or across in the USA. That’s a big handicap with me not having much contact with my players. But overall I’m still enjoying it,” Beenhakker said.