By Rawle Toney

GOLDEN Jaguars head coach Marcio Maximo had his planned two-day physical evaluation and fitness test for the locally based shortlisted players postponed due to the delay in the return of their COVID-19 tests.
Last week, Guyana Football Federation (GFF) tested all 32 players, along with 10 staff, for COVID-19, with the Federation stating that under the protocols developed through the UEFA Assist ‘100-day Bounce-Back’ programme, training cannot begin until test results are received.

In a release yesterday, GFF said they “expect to receive further test results this weekend and hope to conduct the first wave of physical tests on Sunday.”

The evaluation and fitness test will see the national squad being split into two groups of 16, with weekly COVID-19 tests planned to monitor the wellbeing of the group as they progress through their training schedule.
Maximo is shifting gear and heading into full preparation following the granting of approval for the resumption of national team activities by the National COVID-19 Task Force.

Despite their inactivity for over a year, Maximo will be hoping to select the best local talent to team up with the plethora of overseas-based players ahead of Guyana’s March 25 clash in Port of Spain against ‘Soca Warriors’ in the CONCACAF leg of the Qatar World Cup Qualifies.

Golden Jaguars were drawn in Group F alongside Trinidad and Tobago, The Bahamas, Puerto Rico and St Kitts & Nevis.

Following their March 25 clash with Soca Warriors, Golden Jaguars will return home to roar against The Bahamas on Tuesday, March 30.

On Friday, June 4 Guyana will travel to St Kitts & Nevis for their third game and then host Puerto Rico on Tuesday, June 8.

Meanwhile, Guyana will play Guatemala on July 2, 2021 in their bid to feature at the CONCACAF Gold Cup for the second time, after qualifying for the tournament in 2019.

The country’s national team have not seen any action since their 1–1 draw with Jamaica in Kingston on November 18, 2019 and with the advent of COVID-19 months later, football globally had to shut down as governments the world over put systems in place to curb the spread of the virus.

Since football has returned, Guyana’s opposition Guatemala played Mexico on September 30, 2020 when they lost to El Tri 3-0. Guatemala then played to a scoreless draw on October 6, 2020.
Should Marcio Maximo and his troops come out successful, they will be drawn in Group C of the CONCACAF Gold Cup alongside Jamaica, Suriname and Costa Rica.

The 2021 Gold Cup will begin on July 2, 2021, with a Preliminary Round which will include 12 CONCACAF member associations competing for the final three spots in the 16-team Group Stage.

The Group Stage of the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup will kick off on July 10, 2021. The 12 CONCACAF national teams, which qualified directly through their performances in the CONCACAF Nations League group stage, the guest participant, AFC Asian Cup Champions Qatar and the three Prelims winners have been divided into four groups.

The Knockout Stage, to be played among the top two finishers in each group, will, for the first time in Gold Cup history, see teams on opposite sides of the bracket meet from the quarterfinals onwards.

In previous editions, teams have only competed against opponents on the same side of the bracket until the Final. This change will add further unpredictability and excitement to the competition, which was expanded from 12 to 16 teams for a hugely successful 2019 edition.