Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz has as good a chance as any of the remaining four teams left in the 2023 edition of the CONCACAF Gold Cup Tournament.
That’s the view of Head Coach Heimir Hallgrimsson.
The Icelander told the media during a pre-game press conference on Tuesday that though the Jamaicans respect Mexico, they are ready to bet on themselves advancing.
The two teams meet in the second of two semi-finals at 10:00 pm (EST) on Wednesday inside the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada, with the winner punching a ticket to Sunday’s final inside the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
The other semi-final will be contested between Panama and host USA at 7:30 pm (EST) at the Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, California.
“We know we have a good squad, we know we have good players who can do good things and this is a team in the making, so we are thinking further than this [Wednesday’s game against Mexico]. We want to improve until forever, so we are thinking [about] 2026, but it’s good to have success now and we want to go and win this tournament. We have said that from the beginning and we think we have the same chance as anyone else in the semi-finals,” Hallgrimsson said.
And for Reggae Boyz Captain, veteran goalkeeper Andre Blake, now at his fifth Gold Cup Tournament, the goal of the team is clear. “Experience teaches wisdom and I’ve gathered a lot of experience over the years playing in the Gold Cup and it just helps me to be relaxed, to be calm and to know that you have been in that situation before and it kind of helps you to pull through.”
He added: “We want to win the game, we don’t get to beat Mexico a lot, they are a very, very good team and like I said earlier we will have to be up to the task. We respect them but we are going to bet on ourselves and we are going out there and putting our best foot forward and hopefully that’s good enough.”
The teams last met earlier this year in March when they played out a thrilling 2-2 result inside Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium. And the last time Jamaica made it to the final, Mexico was the victim in a 1-0 loss on a Kemar Lawrence free-kick late in the game.
Hallgrimsson doesn’t expect too many chances in style and formation from the rendition offered then.
“It’s a few player changes, not many from the game in Azteca, it’s similar players, similar formation and more or less I think similar style and a little bit more direct than the coach before, otherwise it’s the same players with the same qualities.”
Blake agrees. “For me every Mexican team is the same. They are always organised, very tough to play against, very tactical, as coach said, third man runs, so we know that once we are playing Mexico it’s always going to be a tough game and one that we always have to make sure we are up to the task.”
The Jamaicans have been solid in all four games played thus far. They registered a 1-1 result against the Americans in the tournament opener in a game where Leon Bailey missed an open goal after having his penalty shot blocked by goalkeeper Matt Turner. That goal would have given the Reggae Boyz a 2-0 lead and a lot more work to do to get back into the contest.
The two-time finalist then defeated Caribbean neighbours 4-1 before blanking ST Kitts and Nevis 5-0 to finish runner-up to the US on goal difference.
In the quarter-final knockout game, Amari’i Bell got the all-important goal in the 51st minute to secure victory and a perfect five-from-five record over Guatemala in Gold Cup history.
A factor that has served Jamaica well in this tournament is that goals have come from many sources, instead of just a few. No fewer than nine players have got their names on the score sheet.
Mexico opened with a 4-0 win over Honduras in Group B, defeated Haiti 3-1 in their second game, before losing 0-1 to guest team Qatar in the final group stage game. In the quarter-final they blanked Costa Rica 2-0 to set up a repeat semi-final clash against Jamaica.
The Reggae Boyz are expected to parade their usual starting line-up with Blake being guarded by Damion Lowe and Di’Shon Bernard in central defence, flanked by Bell on the left and Javain Brown or Dexter Lembikisa on the right.
Kevon Lambert and Joel Latibeaudiere should form the dual pivot in central midfield with Bobby Reid and Demarai Gray on the flanks, with Michail Antonio and Bailey in attack.
But regardless of which players start the game, Hallgrimsson knows that each and every player is fully aware of the task at hand against the regional powerhouse.
“We know the strengths, we’ve gone over their strengths… powerful team, high pressing, a lot of energy on the ball, a lot of off-the ball running, third man running into spaces, so we need to be really careful when playing them… it’s going to be a tougher game, higher pace than it was against Guatemala and we’ve gone over how we want to approach this game,” he said.
