2024-04-16 19:50:47
Text: Editorial Cuba Noticias 360
The Confederation of North, Central America and the Caribbean (CONCACAF) will not postpone the World Cup qualifiers for the second time due to the pandemic, so the countries involved in the first round and most affected by health restrictions will have to negotiate among themselves.
On other occasions Cuba has given up playing away games for not guaranteeing basic conditions, but in this case it is justified. Cuba will debut on March 24 in Guatemala City and four days after hosting Curaçao in Havana, it has just been confirmed that this second meeting will also take place in the “Chapina” capital as a “local” team.
“They have already spoken to us and we are willing to support them. “They will take care of all the expenses, the Federation will not invest anything, other than human resources and some time to help them with what they need,” said the president of the Guatemalan soccer federation, Gerardo Paiz, referring to the request of the Cuban federation, according to the “Fútbol Centroamérica” site.
The two games will be at the Doroteo Guamuch Flores national stadium. But in June this phase will be completed and it is expected that by then Cuba will be able to host the British Virgin Islands and will be able to play in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
These two Cuban rivals have also requested to play their domestic games away from home in March. Both countries have a mandatory 14-day quarantine for people entering the country. These five teams form group C. Only Guatemala and Curacao, in addition to being favorites, will be able to play normally at home. If Curacao manages to recruit players from its foreign leagues, it will have the best chance of winning the group and advancing to the second round because it also has a famous coach: the former Chelsea and Real Madrid coach, the Dutchman GuusHiddink.
The six champions in the same number of keys from the first round will face each other and the three winners will advance to the final octagonal in which Costa Rica, the United States, Honduras, Jamaica and Mexico are already located. Cuba’s qualifying hopes will depend on being able to count on men like Marcel Hernández, who performs outstandingly in the Costa Rican professional league, and Onel Hernández, in the English Premier League, but, at least at this stage in March, it seems impossible.
However, it is expected that there will be no problems with having the majority of the seven hired through the Cuban Association in Honduras, in Guatemala itself, in Brazil and the Dominican Republic, and it could even give Guatemala a scare.
Cuba has not played an international match or even a friendly match since November 2019 when a disastrous season between the Nations League and the Gold Cup concluded.
Added to this disadvantage is the instability in training, exacerbated by the appearance of Covid-19 cases in the Pedro Marrero stadium concentration. The football authorities must redouble controls on health protocols to preserve participation in the Concacaf qualifiers.