Head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson said he hoped picking a squad packed with several experienced players will enable the Jamaica Reggae Boyz to hold onto the top spot in Group A of League A following their Concacaf Nations League match against hosts Mexico on Sunday.
The Jamaicans have five points in the three-team group and hold a one-point lead over the Mexicans, who face Caribbean Football Union side Suriname on Thursday in Paramaribo before their group stage finale against the Boyz in the high altitude of the Azteca Stadium.
Heimir Hallgrimsson retained only seven players from an international friendly against Trinidad & Tobago that the Boyz drew 0-0 on March 14 on home soil at Kingston’s National Stadium.
The Iceland-born coach said he expects to see better decision-making and execution from his side against the Mexicans.
“We were not happy with how we played, a lot of technical mistakes, but those players haven’t played together, so there were misunderstandings between players,” he said at a news conference on Tuesday. “But there were a lot of long balls, way too many. There was a lack of patience on the ball and a lack of confidence in creativity on the ball.
“Our tactics will be solely for this Mexico camp. So we will have some things that we would like to emphasize in our attacking and then other things in our defensive game. This is a totally different team with more experienced players used to playing at the highest level, used to playing national teams games.”
The 23-member squad includes the experienced defensive trio of Dexter Lembiksia of English Premier League club side Wolverhampton Wanderers, fellow EPL defender Ethan Pinnock of Brentford, and Kemar Lawrence, who plays for Minnesota United in Major League Soccer in the United States.
England-born midfielder Jonathan Russell, who plays for English League 1 club Barnsley, has also earned a spot in the squad for the match in Mexico City.
A notable omission is the recent Chelsea signing, teenaged forward Dujuan Richards, while West Ham United forward Michail Antonio and Philadelphia Union goalkeeper Andre Blake is also out due to injuries.
Heimir Hallgrimsson said more opportunities for players plying their trade at home will be offered in the future in an attempt to find out the depth of talent available, but the match against the Mexicans was a huge assignment.
“We want to see how they will do playing with more experienced players,” he said. “I think that they will take a step up by playing with better players around them.
“Not that others were bad, but just because we want to see these guys. There were positions that we needed, so we looked to the guys we just started work with. In the future, we will not take so many from the local league, but let’s see how they do.”
The Jamaicans hope to win to gain a place in the CNL Finals in June in the American city of Las Vegas, and an automatic berth into the subsequent Concacaf Gold Cup in June and July in the United States, a path Hallgrimsson said will be ideal for his side.
“This is just a different assignment, a different task,” he said. “Of course, that is the priority, and it is highly important for us. It would help us a lot to go to the semi-finals. That would give us two preparation matches for the (Concacaf) Gold Cup. It is always better to play official matches rather than friendlies.”
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