Still No Rhythm From Heimir Hallgrimsson’s Reggae Boyz
Jamaica head coach’s wait to win a game continues after Qatar defeat
Heimir Hallgrimsson’s tenure as coach for the Reggae Boyz is not going to plan, with his latest setback today’s 2-1 friendly defeat to Asian champions Qatar inside the Stadion Wiener Neustadt in Austria.
The former Iceland head coach, who took over the hot-seat at the start of the year, saw his troops lack firepower and the ability to deal with pressure against a largely experimental Qatar side, to make it a winless run of nine matches for Jamaica.
Having stuttered twice at home in friendlies against a youthful Trinidad & Tobago side in March, Hallgrimsson finally won over some fans for the spirited 2-2 Nations League result in Mexico.
However, the 56-year-old was once again tactically outfoxed. This time by his opposite number Carlos Queiroz. The Portuguese, who replaced Spaniard Felix Sanchez as Qatar’s new head coach in February, has been given a tough task to turn things around following their insipid displays at the FIFA World Cup finals that ended in three defeats.
Queiroz, the former Portugal and Real Madrid boss, snubbed experienced players and introduced new faces to his pre-CONCACAF Gold Cup training camp in Austria at the end of May. Qatar are preparing to be the guest team at the prestigious tournament in North America for only the second time.
Popular players such as Akram Afif, goalkeeper Saad Al Sheeb, Karim Boudiaf, captain Hassan Al Haydos, Abdulaziz Hatem, Boualem Khoukhi and Pedro Miguel were overlooked for the camp for a trio of friendlies that kicked off with a 1-0 defeat to a Croatia B team.
Defensively-minded Queiroz stuck to his favourite 4-3-3 formation to face Jamaica, with his players coming out all guns blazing against the physical presence of the Boyz.
Hallgrimsson’s 19-player squad saw a handful of last-gasp changes, notably the absence of England-based midfielder pair Daniel Johnson and Delano Splatt.
Jamaica rested some of their star players for the back-to-back friendlies, including England Premier League star strikers Mikhail Antonio (West Ham United), injured duo Leon Bailey (Aston Villa) and Bobby Decordova-Reid (Fulham). Their absence propelled Chelsea-bound teenager Dujuan “Whisper” Richards with a perfect chance to prove his worth.
With the onus on grabbing goals, Dunbeholden FC striker Demario Phillips and Miami FC attacking midfielder Lamar Walker were called up while Hallgrimsson opted for a 4-4-2-2-2 formation full of attacking options.
With Qatar showing their intention from kick-off, the action started to be generated at the wrong end of the pitch for Jamaica with shotstopper Jahmali Waite equal to Ahmed Fatehi’s fifth-minute shot on target.
Defender Homan Ahmed, set up by Yusuf Abdurisag, made the breakthrough with his left foot to give Qatar a long overdue lead on 31 minutes. With Ghanaian-born striker Mohammed Muntari tucking the ball past Waite from close range to double the lead eight minutes later.
Phillips replaced the ineffective Cory Burke during the half-time interval, and the Boyz upped their game following what must have been a rousing half-time team talk from furious Hallgrimsson.
Yet 17-year-old Richards, who has been a goal machine at the schoolboy level, failed to live up to the hype against Qatar who lie sixth in the Asian rankings behind Japan, South Korea, Australia, Iran and Saudi Arabia.
He was outshone by Shamar Nicholson, who snatched a goal back on 61 minutes from a spot-kick. Hallgrimsson sensed success was within his grasp, especially after Mostafa Meshaal fluffed his chance to score just before the penalty was awarded.
Three prompt changes, to try to continue the second-half improvement, were implemented. Debutante Di’Shon Bernard, this week released from Manchester United, and Javain Brown joined the defence with Kevan Lambert thrown in to bolster the midfield and revert to a more traditional 4-4-2.
Yet keeper Salah Hassan, who had made his only international appearance against Jamaica in August’s 1-1 stalemate, was not kept busy between the sticks and only had to make three saves throughout the friendly.
This dismal result means the Boyz have picked up just one victory in their past dozen games, suffering five defeats while only keeping a solitary clean sheet.
Hallgrimsson has to make things click soon to earn the respect of fans, pundits and indeed the Jamaica Football Federation.
He gets a chance to record his first win in six matches when the Boyz play Jordan on the same pitch in Vienna on Monday (7am Jamaica time), before a revamped squad arrives in the United States on 20 June to tackle their Gold Cup campaign.
JAMAICA | Waite – Bell, Mariappa, King (Bernard, 65), Lembikisa (Brown, 65) – Latibeaudiere, Russell (Lambert, 65) – Parris (Johnson, 83), Richards – Burke (Phillips, 45), Nicholson. Subs: Blake, Boyce-Clarke, Cover, Walker
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