National senior men's football coach Angus Eve will have his hands full over the coming months, having been tasked with the responsibility of preparing both the country's Under-20 and senior men's teams.
Screening sessions for the U-20s began on Saturday at the Ato Boldon Stadium in Balmain, Couva, and from some 400 registered players, Eve worked with only 100, having to adhere to the COVID-19 protocol and ensure safety.
Technical director Dion La Foucade has been working alongside Eve and his staff to assess and select players ahead of the CONCACAF Qualifiers, mid-next year.
Because of the need to follow the COVID-19 protocol, Eve and his staff have had to conduct their sessions in alphabetical order, on Saturday working with players with surnames that begin with A, B, C and D. And on December 18, he will work with players with last names beginning with E to K from 8 am.
Screening sessions will continue on December 21 for players with surnames beginning with L to W from 9 am at the Couva venue. But the question is whether Eve will be able to handle the workload, with the national senior team training expected to resume in January.
Training for the senior team was stopped more than a month ago for two main reasons, one is the unavailability of contracts to staff members which is in the process of being sorted out, Guardian Media Sports has been reliably informed, and the other is because the FIFA-appointed Normalisation Committee which is managing the T&T Football Association (TTFA) is strategically planning a programme for football for next year, according to Amiel Mohammed, TTFA's general secretary.
Mohammed said: "It's more sitting down and analysing the strategic plan ahead, especially from a financial point of view. And then once we know we've come out with something, then if it's sustainable over a period of time, rather throughout 2022.
"We know that the TTFA recently activated the bankruptcy and insolvency process and then at the same time we've been doing a review of how things look for 2022. It's projected to be a very busy calendar."
Eve, on Saturday did not answer his cell phone, but La Foucade said the coach, considered one of the better youth coaches in the country, will have to manage his time wisely to cope with both teams.
Guardian Media Sports has been told that a number of international friendly matches have been planned for the senior team next year, as the team prepares for the CONCACAF Nations League.
With the U-20s, Eve is also scheduled to have a session for players returning home from abroad for the Christmas holidays on December 27, and will also have to work with players from the sister isle of Tobago at a date to be determined.
Eve is also set to leave local shores, either at the end of February or early March next year, to conduct a series of overseas screenings for international players.
SOURCE: T&T Guardian