MetroStars forward Cornell Glen spoke with Soccer365's Lars Lifrak recently about his team's recent slump, his home country's chances of reaching the World Cup in 2006 and what it was like to be on the wrong side of one of the most historic games in U.S. soccer history.
365: Is there anything that you see on the field or are you just wearing down?
CG: It’s the end of the season and I guys are like kind of losing concentration and stuff. It’s not a big problem, it’s something we can get over and we will.
365: How much of a concern is it as you get towards the end of the regular season?
CG: Not too much. Not a big concern because we want to win the group. As I say it’s something we can get over, we just have to work really hard and keep focused, keep concentrating to the end.
365: The division itself, do you think Columbus is out of reach?
CG: We still have to play Columbus, so obviously we can catch them, we just have to win the last four games and hope that they lose or draw to someone else. It’s a possibility we can still win the conference.
365: Once the post season rolls around, how do you think this team is set for the playoffs?
CG: Yeah, we are confident, all the players are fit, we got Gilberto (Flores) back and everyone is just working hard to get in the team. It’s even harder to get on the team than it was back early in the season, so we are pretty much confident that we are going to do fine into the playoffs.
365: Now let’s talk about Trinidad and Tobago and the national team. I would think you feel things look pretty good to reach the finals of the qualifying round.
CG: We are in good shape right now, we are top of the group, six points from three games. All we have to do is win the next two games and we’re in. Hopefully, like in the next round, the more important round, we have to get twelve points to make it. That’s all we have to get, it’s like winning four home games and that’s it. Hopefully we’ll go out there and do well.
365: How excited were you when you saw your team’s semifinal group?
CG: Actually we got the best draw of all, we were like lucky and we were pretty happy with it. We can’t take any team for granted though because St. Vincent and St. Kitts are improving rapidly so we just went out there and played like it was the USA or Mexico we were playing against. Fortunately for us we weren’t because the conditions in St. Vincent and St. Kitts were horrible so we had to like put out everything. It’s good for the country and good for the guys. We need to make it to this World Cup.
365: What would it mean for T & T to make it to this World Cup?
CG: It would mean a lot. Everything would change, you would see a lot of Trinidadian players abroad more, it would do great things for the football. It’s like back in ’89 when the US beat us, 1-0, and made it to the World Cup, you saw how the soccer in America improved a lot, the professional league and everything, so it will help us a lot if we made it.
365: What about in the country itself, would people be going crazy during the games?
CG: I think we would have like a national holiday, it would be crazy in Trinidad if we make it.
365: The next question I have for you is about that US-Trinidad game in 1989. Soccer fans here have very happy memories of that game, what was it like for you in Trinidad?
CG: I was at home, I was like nine years old. It was just horrible. The whole country was depressed for months. As I said, we need to make it to the World Cup soon to get the country behind soccer. We need to make it to this World Cup.
365: Do you feel that soccer is getting better in your country?
CG: Things are improving, I wouldn’t say they have improved, but it’s slowly improving. It’s going to get better. The guys are more into it and willing to work much harder. The team is more together and more united than any other team. I think this World Cup is going to be a good chance for us to make it, you know, you get a vibe in the camp and stuff? There are four teams going to the World Cup from CONCACAF so it’s going to be even easier for us, but we’re not going out there to play for the fourth spot or anything, we’re going out there to win.
365: Thanks Cornell.
CG: Thank you.