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DAVID SCARLETT

TRINIDAD AND Tobago men's football team coach, Angus Eve, expressed his satisfaction with his squad’s performance after their 1-0 victory over Bahamas in the 2022-23 Concacaf Nations League on Monday.
The win marked TT’s first ever triumph in the Nations League after six games played in the competition – including four in the 2019-20 edition.
During the post-game media conference, Eve said, “I thought the exercise was a good one. When a team is playing away from home, this is how they play in international football. The only thing Bahamas tried to do is stop us from scoring.”
The former TT midfielder and captain continued, “They rarely had any ambition; I thought we had most of the play (but didn’t capitalise by scoring more goals). Despite that, we had more cohesion (than in the game against Nicaragua) and the play, ball retention and defensive work were better.
"I don’t think Marvin (Phillip) had any shots to save. So, all in all, it’s a good result because we’re now second in the group.”
Nicaragua lead the four-team standings with four points from two games, followed by TT and Bahamas (three points apiece), and St Vincent and the Grenadines (one).
Eve also mentioned that the possession game played was not the plan, but the players had to adapt to the Bahamian team’s defensive set-up.
“They played six at the back and three in the midfield, so it was difficult to break them down,” he said. “They (also) played very deep and didn’t allow us to get in behind them with our pace. We were forced to play in front of them for most of the game. When we got to the flanks, we weren’t clinical enough in the final part of the game.”
The TT coach praised his team for showing more fight than in the 2-1 loss to Nicaragua on June 3. The squad selected for this fixture was almost identical to the one that played in the Courts Caribbean Classic in March. He highlighted attacking midfielder, Duane Muckette, as one of the standout performers in the team’s victory.
“Muckette brought guile; he played in the pocket and ushered other players into the game. He’s a natural number ten,” Eve expressed. “We have other guys like Molino who are unavailable due to injury, so Duane yielded continuity to the team and linked well with Levi (Garcia) and the other front players.”
Eve pointed out, “We’re still in a rebuilding stage and we’re introducing young players like (John-Paul) Rochford who are improving. The older players who were playing for a long time are no longer a part of the squad because we’re trying to freshen up the team and continue building. The (Concacaf) Nations League is part of that process, then we need to be in the (Concacaf) Gold Cup, consistently competing at that (high) level.”
Trinidad and Tobago’s next fixture in the Nations League will be away to St Vincent and the Grenadines on Friday. Eve confirmed that he will be present after missing the game against Nicaragua due to personal matters. In preparation for the encounter, he stated that the technical staff will review the footage of their opponents’ previous matches and analyse what needs to be done to secure a victory away from home.
He added, “This tournament is very difficult. We have four matches in ten days and the traveling is extremely taxing. So, we are ensuring that the players are recovering well before we fly out to fight again.”
TT’s battle against the Vincentians will be broadcasted live on Flow Sports at 3 pm.
In related news, the TT team will leave for St Vincent on Wednesday morning but there will be three changes to the roster, with Joevin Jones and Marcus Joseph (who played against Nicaragua) returning to the fold, as well as central defender Andre Ettienne.
Striker Nicholas Dillon, who was a substitute against the Bahamas, as well as the unused pair of Radanfah Abu Bakr and England-born midfielder Michael Kedman, have been omitted.
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