The Bahamas’ senior men’s national football team was unable to capitalize on their chances early in the game against Guadeloupe on Saturday afternoon as they fell 2-0 in the CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football) Gold Cup Preliminary Round – First Round at the DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States of America (USA).
The Bahamas got the ball on the right flank on a Guadeloupe error just 24 seconds into the game. A cross into Guadeloupe’s 18-yard box saw Bahamian Wood Julmis perfectly head the ball to Guadeloupe’s goal. However, Guadeloupe’s goalkeeper Yohann Thuram made a fantastic save. The ball was still live, and Marcel Joseph crashed the goal but Thuram made another acrobatic save as he denied The Bahamas a goal on the scoreboard.
The Bahamas had another early opportunity as Julmis got the ball just outside the six-yard box and took a shot at the Guadeloupe goal in the ninth minute of the game. His left-foot shot was on target but was denied by Thuram once again.
Those three shots at goal were the best chances The Bahamas had in the game. Head coach Nesley Jean said the missed opportunities could have changed the outcome of the game.
“We caught Guadeloupe by surprise on several occasions but we just failed to capitalize when the opportunities were presented. We had three opportunities to score in the first half but we did not execute well in terms of getting those easy points. We will need to build more confidence of the players to just take a shot – take every single opportunity. A missed opportunity could mean the game and that’s what we saw here. The guys became a little fatigued in the second half, so, again, we need to work on playing with the same level of intensity until the last whistle blows,” Jean said.
In the first half, The Bahamas held Guadeloupe to four shots at goal while they had three off their own. However, Guadeloupe had 56 percent of the possession time compared to The Bahamas’ 44 percent.
Coming out of halftime, Guadeloupe picked up the intensity and Team Bahamas looked a little tired. In the 61st minute, The Bahamas’ defense broke down a little as Guadeloupe’s Matthias Phaeton was left unmarked. The ball was blocked in his direction on the left side of The Bahamas’ 18-yard box, and he used his right instep to send the ball ricocheting off The Bahamas’ goalkeeper lan Lowe’s left foot and into the back of goal. Guadeloupe went up 1-0.
Six minutes later, a cross from the left wing into The Bahamas’ penalty area by Guadeloupe saw the ball coming off Raphael Mirval’s head and out of Lowe’s reach into the top-right corner of the goal. Guadeloupe went up 2-0 at that point.
It was not the result that Jean and the team wanted but he was glad that they were able to get the international exposure.
“The team played well against a team that has been exposed to higher levels of competition, so I’m proud of them,” said Jean. “The team can definitely work on remaining focused and playing for the full 90 minutes. We competed well but as time progressed, our performance fell in the second half, so if we can improve on that, I think we can definitely go up against any team. I’m still proud of what they did on the field. We are a young team, so we can only grow from here as we continue to compete internationally.”
The Bahamas came off an emphatic scoreless draw against Trinidad and Tobago in early June. For the first hour on Saturday, The Bahamas battled but could not keep up with their counterparts. Jean said his team will get better.
“I’m extremely happy to get a chance to showcase our talent. Last year, the whole world was basically at a standstill. As we play more, we’re able to improve on our skills. We will only get better from here. I am confident in my players and I know we could compete internationally. Look out for Team Bahamas in the future,” Jean said.
For now, competition for the senior men’s national team will slow down. The next competition for them is likely to be the CONCACAF Nations League, set to start in September or October.
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source https://thenassauguardian.com/the-bahamas-falls-2-0-in-gold-cup-action/
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