Uruguayan experts to assess local pros.
By: Ian Prescott (Express)
Foreign AID
While Wim Rijsbergen, the suspended Trinidad and Tobago national football coach, often harped on the inadequate quality of footballers coming out of the local T&T Pro League, his replacement Francisco Maturana has pledged to make a proper assessment before deciding which of them he will work with during the 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign.
This was one of the major developments coming out of a meeting yesterday with officials of the T&T Pro League which was held to discuss their programme for the 2008 calendar as it relates to the campaign.
Maturana, along with assistant coach Anton Corneal, manager David Muhammad other members of the technical staff, as well as Pro League Chairman Larry Romany, CEO Dexter Skeene, other staff members and club representatives met for exactly two hours at the Pro League' Office, Valpark Shopping Centre.
Afterwards, Larry Romany, the chairman of the T&T Pro League, described the meeting as totally beneficial to both parties. When asked if the quality of players in the local Pro League had improved, Romany said: "Yes, we asked him about that. He said he had already seen four or five players he was interested in, but will be in a better position to say how good they are after an evaluation of the 21 or so local players who he will be working with. He said he would bring in some coaches from Uruguay to do the evaluation."
Romany further added that both parties were able to come to an agreement which will allow the technical staff to have access to national players on training days and international playing days, without severely disrupting the club schedule. A proposal was also made to have Maturana meet with club coaches, so that he could instruct them on what specific training would be required to bring national prospects up to international status. Also pleased with the meeting was assistant national coach Alvin Corneal.
"The meeting was a very positive one," Corneal told TTFF Media. "It was really about harmonizing our plan with the League as it relates to the international campaign for the country's senior team in 2008 onwards for the 2010 qualification bid. At the end of it, all parties were on the same page and were firm on implementing what is best for the national programme and of course the League."
Later in the week, Maturana will announce a provisional training squad to resume preparations next week leading up to the March 26 friendly international with Jamaica in Kingston and a proposed friendly against El Salvador here at a date to be confirmed in March.
TTFF head, Pro League meet.
T&T Guardian Reports.[/size]
The T&T Football Federation’s technical staff attached to the national senior team met with officials of the T&T Pro League yesterday to discuss its programme for the 2008 calendar as it relates to this country’s 2010 World Cup qualifying campaign. Both parties left the meeting table pleased with the discussions on the initiatives and measures to be put in place from here on.
Senior team interim head coach Francisco Maturana along with assistant coach Anton Corneal, manager David Muhammad, other members of the technical staff as well as Pro League chairman Larry Romany, CEO Dexter Skeene, other staff members and club representatives met for some two hours at the Pro League office at Valpark Shopping Centre.
“The meeting was a very positive one,” Corneal said. “It was really about harmonising our plan with the league as it relates to the international campaign for the country’s senior team in 2008 onwards for the 2010 qualification bid. At the end of it, all parties were on the same page and were firm on implementing what is best for the national programme and of course the league,” Corneal added.
Maturana will later in the week announce a provisional training squad to resume preparations next week leading up to the March 26 friendly international against Jamaica in Kingston and a proposed friendly against El Salvador in T&T at a date to be confirmed in March.
In related news World football governing body Fifa has picked its team that will inspect facilities where Nigeria intends to host next year’s Fifa U-17 World Cup championship.
Head of youth competitions and Fifa vice president, Jack Warner will lead a team that includes executive director, Fifa competitions division Jim Brown, senior manager, Fifa stadiums and security Adnan El Guindy, John Schumacher of Fifa competitions, Emmanuel Maradas of Fifa communications and Enrique Byrom of the accommodations office. There will also be representatives from Fifa marketing and Fifa TV. Warner leaves T&T today for Nigeria and then depart for Zurich Wednesday.
Top officials of the Nigeria 2009 LOC are already working round the clock to ensure that every facility and equipment at the centres that Nigeria is proposing for the competition is in great shape ahead of the visit. The final competition will take place in October 2009.