Trinidad and Tobago men's football team coach Angus Eve says the Soca Warriors will be treating their 2023/4 Concacaf Nations League A game against Guatemala like a final when the two teams meet from 9 pm on Friday at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo.
T&T currently sit atop the six-team Nations League group with a maximum six points from two matches and will be looking to secure a top-two spot which guarantees a quarter-final place. Panama and Guatemala (both four points) are second and third respectively.
"We haven't done anything as yet," Eve said, as he addressed the media in a pre-match press briefing at the match venue on Thursday.
"We see this game as a final. We see it as a game that we need to win – and not lose – so that we can first maintain our position in (Nations League A). And then, the possibility of us going on to the quarter-finals with a win is great. The guys understand the expectations."
Eve has "mixed feelings" about the absence of the injured striking pair of Malcolm Shaw and the Greek-based Levi Garcia, as both players give T&T a "strong, physical presence up front."
However, he said: "Winning those first two matches has now given us the freedom to express ourselves a bit more. We are going to take the game very seriously and be in a positive frame of mind. The boys want to do well for their country and we'll be going into the game with no fear.
"The most important thing for us is to qualify for the quarter-finals and stay in Nations League A and maintain our rankings. We're close to doing that and everything else will be a bonus at this stage."
T&T were knocked out of the group stage at the 2023 Concacaf Gold Cup. Meanwhile, Guatemala advanced to the Gold Cup quarter-finals before falling 1-0 to a Jamaican team that defeated T&T by a 4-1 margin in the tournament's group stage. T&T and Guatemala had their own tussle before the Gold Cup, as the Soca Warriors got a 1-0 friendly win on June 11 courtesy of an Alvin Jones penalty.
Eve said a lot has changed since then, and he credited the 103rd-ranked Guatemalan team for their 1-1 draw with Panama in their Nations League encounter on September 10. T&T are ranked 98th.
"I think they are well-coached. The Fifa rankings are a bit deceiving because (Guatemala) were having some issues for a little while. Ranking means nothing. They drew with a Panama team that got to the Gold Cup final. They themselves got to the quarter-finals and we were booted out at the group stage."
Like Eve, Guatemala coach Luis Fernando Tena paid respect to his opponents. He said Guatemala were the underdogs heading into Friday's encounter.
"I know it's going to be a difficult game. T&T has had a good tournament, inclusive of the game against El Salvador. It's going to be a bit harder," Tena said via a translator.
"They are presently on a good course. We understand that T&T will be the favourites. In football, there is also time for surprises."
Tena expects the hosts to set up defensively.
"It's a key game for us. We know that T&T wants to win to qualify for the quarter-finals. Even a draw wouldn't serve us well. A draw may benefit T&T better than us because they already have six points.
"I think it will be a similar match like T&T versus Curacao. I think T&T has a defensive style of football which we will be playing against. They are very solid in defence and they also know how to play very well with their quick players up front."
In their first game of this Nations League A campaign, T&T eked out a 1-0 victory over Curacao at the Hasely Crawford Stadium thanks to a late goal from 19-year-old striker Nathaniel James. The 2023 TT Premier Football League (TTPFL) top-scorer has moved to Jamaican champions Mount Pleasant Football Academy alongside his T&T teammate Kaile Auvray. Eve sees great potential in the teenage attackers.
"You are seeing the potential of the young men Nathaniel and Kaile," Eve said. "These young guys are the future of the team and they are getting the opportunities now."
Eve also spoke about the qualities of 34-year-old AC Port of Spain winger Tyrone Charles, a surprise inclusion in the 23-man squad.
"We looked at Tyrone in the final of the TTPFL Cup against Defence Force and he has been very consistent in the league," he said. "We saw him transfer to AC Port of Spain without scoring many goals in the Concacaf Caribbean Cup. I think he has enough to add something to the group."
Eve says his team will go after three points, but they will do it their way.
"We're going to play the game to what we seek. There are different styles and thoughts on how football should be played.
"We are not producing top-class players – meaning our players haven't been playing at the highest level for a very long time. We have to use the resources we have and we have to use the players we have. We believe that we have to play a particular style to get the results. Hence the reason we have six points today."
From 9 pm on Friday, Guatemala and T&T will stake their claim for a Nations League quarter-final spot.
SOURCE: T&T Newsday