Corneal – No room for Ghana to play.
By: Shaun Fuentes (TTFF).[/size]
With just under a day to go before this country’s opening game at the FIFA Under 17 World Championship in Korea against Ghana, head coach Anton Corneal says he already has in mind what his starting eleven will be for the match at the Cheonan Sports Complex which is expected to have a capacity crowd of 26,000 fans.
Corneal was speaking after T&T’s official match venue training which ended just around 8:30pm on Saturday in front some of the parents of the players who arrived in Seoul earlier in the day and took the two hour bus ride over to the stadium.
Midfielder Leston Paul is set to skipper the team but Corneal preferred not to reveal much about his choices.
Goalkeeper Glenroy Samuel also had a message for Ghana and spoke about his first meeting with his mother in two weeks since being away from home while team manager Christopher Gouveia gave his views on the experience so far, a mere day before taking on the world.
The tournament itself kicked off today with impressive wins for Brazil over New Zealand while past T&T opponents Peru and Costa Rica also came away with impressive results with the latter holding Togo 1-1 and the South Americans stunning hosts South Korea 1-0.
On Saturday the T&T team also viewed Ghana in action on a DVD recording and skipper Paul and his teammates had their eyes glued to the projector screen as Corneal made his points and recommendations. And after having most of the day off, the mood changed as the team got into game focus mood as it headed to the match stadium, a half hour drive from the Onyang Springs Hotel. The 45-minute session was full of energy as the players concluded with a light jog across half field singing the chorus line of Maximus Dan’s “Fighter”.
“The spirit is very much up at the moment and it was nice of the families to come over to the session and the players were happy to see them. It changed the mood a bit. The field was in great condition and that was encouraging for the players, I am pretty much sure of the starting eleven unless injury steps in or some other outside reason. I think the players pretty much have an idea of who is going to start also. It’s no hidden secret. It’s also about what’s best for the country at this time,” Corneal told TTFF Media.
And looking at Ghana, Corneal commented, “They were technically pretty decent and individually gifted and played the game quickly. But they have been allowed to play and I think that’s where the difference can be because I don’t think we will allow them that much room.
“We looked at not just Costa Rica today but also Peru who shocked the hosts and I remember us playing Peru and being very good against them the second time around. I expect us to compete at this level. To win the tournament is asking a lot but I still believe we can progress,” he added.
Manager Gouveia is quietly confident ahead of next week’s matches against Ghana and Colombia three days later.
“It’s been an exciting and challenging experience and I expect the boys to rise to the challenge. The whole journey with these boys has been one that you can really say ‘Thank God’ for having. They have shown the commitment that is required and I am simply trying to work behind the scenes, making sure that everything is in place so that they can all do their job properly,” Gouveia added. “I don’t want to speak too early but I think the boys are very much up for Monday’s opening game. We will play with a lot of heart as our team song from Kes says. The boys will give of their best and we can only hope for a positive result at this point,” Gouveia said.
And Samuel, the youngster with the responsibility of guarding the goal, says he’s fearful of no opponent.
“All I have to tell Ghana is to look out because 21 lions will be coming at them. From the guys on the field to the bench and even the staff. I think we were very excited to be on the match ground today. It’s playing really nice and I hope we can play to get a winning result. We are also comfortable at this time because my mom came today and the other guys had their family members here. So it helps overall with everything that’s happening now,” the lad from Laventille added.
Shaun Fuentes in Cheonan, August 18, 2007. Photos show scenes from today's training session.
