TRINIDAD AND Tobago men’s football team training session will be an open affair today, at the Hasely Crawford Stadium in Mucurapo, from 5 pm.
And this arrangement was made for the local fans to see the national squad, dubbed the “Soca Warriors”, in their preparation for back-to-back friendly internationals, against Argentina (June 4 at La Plata, Argentina) and Iran (June 8 at Sao Paulo, Brazil).
A media release on Tuesday from the TT Football Association (TTFA) noted that fans will have the opportunity to meet the players for photo opportunities and autographs at the end of the session (approximately 7pm).
TT captain Kenwyne Jones said, “it’s been a good few days of preparation for us and every player is really up for the challenge ahead in these two matches. I’d like to think also that the public at large is keen on getting behind the team as this is all preparation for the future competitions like the Caribbean Cup, Gold Cup and of course the most important of them all which is qualification for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.”
The Cardiff City striker added, “we all know these two games will be anything but easy but it’s where we want to be in terms of the challenges we are facing when it comes to playing at this level of the game. We’ll be doing our best to ensure we are ready for it and hopefully the fans can get behind the team and certainly we’ll be looking forward to having some of them, especially the younger ones, coming out to see the boys on Thursday.”
Central FC midfielder Ataullah Guerra is vowing to raise his level, listening to the appeal from coach Stephen Hart for some of the home-based players.
“I know we have to raise our game because this is a great opportunity for the country. We have never played Argentina in a friendly at this level and everybody’s talking about (Lionel) Messi and these guys. So that in itself is a huge incentive for every player to want to give his best in the training and the match next week,” Guerra said.
“I think everyone in the team is preparing mentally for the game and we will be putting in the extra efforts in training and trying our best to follow the coach’s instructions. We will prepare for the way he wants us to play and what he expects of us in the roles that we must perform for these games,” Guerra added.