Latest update May 8th, 2024 12:59 AM
Mar 21, 2024 Sports
Kaieteur Sports – Guyana is set to take on Cabo Verde today at 3:30pm in the inaugural FIFA Series, launching at the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
This match marks the first-ever meeting between the two nations, and Guyana’s second time facing a team from the Confederation of African Football (CAF), having played to a 2-1 defeat to Ethiopia last year.
The Golden Jaguars enter the match as underdogs, ranked 157th globally by FIFA, in contrast to Cabo Verde’s 68th position.
Cabo Verde, led by coach Pedro Brito, reached the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations this year, where they narrowly lost 2-1 on penalties to South Africa.
This encounter will be Cabo Verde’s first match since the Africa Cup of Nations, while it marks the return of Guyana’s team to the pitch since their 6-0 victory over Antigua and Barbuda in the Concacaf Nations League last November.
Guyana’s Omari Glasgow, a standout talent, played a crucial role in topping Group B of League B, remaining undefeated.
Glasgow, 20, has emerged as Coach Shabazz’s talisman, leading the team in goals scored.
With 20 appearances for the Golden Jaguars, Glasgow, who competes with Major League Soccer (MLS) side Chicago Fire (Next Pro team), has netted an impressive 14 goals since his debut in March 2021.
Glasgow’s stellar performance positions him as a potential all-time leading goal scorer for Guyana, trailing just four goals behind Nigel “Powers” Codrington.
Joining Glasgow in the frontline of Shabazz’s attack are Ryan Kheedoo, Deon Moore, and Stephen Duke-McKenna.
Darron Niles, in fine form for Slingerz FC in the Guyana Football Federation (GFF) Elite League, has earned his place in the squad.
Captain Daniel Wilson, Ryan Hackett, Elliot Bonds, Nathan Ferguson, Kadel Daniel, Jalen Jones, Quincy Adams, Colin Nelson, Curtez Kellman, Jeremy Garrett, Kevin Layne, Amos Ramsey, Liam Gordon, Marcus Simmons, Leo Lovell, and Rashuan Ritch comprise the rest of the outfield players, while Quillan Roberts, Akel Clarke, and Jamaine Cumberbatch serve as goalkeepers.
Cabo Verde will turn to Ryan Mendes, who plays in the Turkish Premier League with Fatih Karagümrük S.K, but also familiar with the Middle East conditions, having played three seasons with Al Nasr, the current club of Portugal legend, Cristiano Ronaldo.
Bebé is also expected to suit-up for Cabo Verde, since the La Liga player with Rayo Vallecano, is a key member of the squad, along with Jovane Cabral, the Olympiacos forward.
Upon the team’s arrival in Jeddah, Shabazz emphasized the significance of the moment for Guyana’s football, urging the players to recognize that they represent not only themselves but the entire nation and Concacaf.
“And I want you to keep that with you,” Shabazz urged the players, “Because it’s so easy to lose focus…And when I say focus, I mean the here and the now. We have to live in the here and now.”
Following today’s match, Guyana will face Cambodia on March 26 before returning home to prepare for their World Cup Qualifiers encounter against Panama on June 6.
These matches are part of a new initiative approved by the FIFA Council in 2023 where in every even-numbered year the world governing body will host matches across the six confederations.
Dubbed the FIFA Series, the first-ever staging will allow football nations the opportunity to compete against teams outside their confederation.
According to FIFA, “The ultimate objective of the FIFA Series is to allow more international football interaction, making a concrete contribution to global football development. The pilot edition will feature 20 member associations playing in four locations across three continents.”
Algeria, Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia and Sri Lanka will be the host nations for the first FIFA Series.
GRA catch EXXON trying to hunch GUYANA over 11 BUS dollars in one shot!!!!
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