PASADENA, California. – Mexico as the 2015 Gold Cup champions. That’s the last memory Jamaica have of El Tri.
After an impressive run to the final last summer, the Reggae Boyz fall short in their hopes for the title after being defeated 3-1 by a Mexican team that eventually claimed the rights to represent CONCACAF in the 2017 Confederations Cup.
Although a title is not at stake for this Thursday clash, there is the same sense of urgency as Jamaica face the imperative to step up their game after losing 1-0 to Venezuela in their Copa America Centenario opener.
It’s simply a must-win for the Reggae Boyz.
"We go into this game with full-on confidence, even knowing the task at hand," said Jamaican and Houston Dynamo forward Giles Barnes. "The coach says we have to be very aggressive in front of the ball, we have to be very disciplined tactically. The preparation for this game has been very good, everyone is fully fit so we are looking forward to this game.”
For Jamaica’s German coach, Winfried Schafer, even though there are some learnings from that 2015 Gold Cup final that they might take into consideration entering into Thursday’s match, they are focusing on not repeating the same mistakes that cost them against Venezuela.
"The final for 20 minutes was very good, and then one or two mistakes and we lost the match [vs. Mexico in the 2015 Gold Cup final]. But we have highly motivated players, and the last match is the past,” Schafer said. "We analyzed our match after losing against Venezuela. We talked about mistakes, not only the red card because after that we had chances and I think we play very good.
“What we do in the training we have to do on the field ... we can work more together as a team.”
The big question for Jamaicans is if Leicester City’s captain Wes Morgan, who recently won the Premier League title with his club team, would be the natural replacement for Rodolph Austin who will be suspended for this match after his straight red card against Venezuela.
Morgan came in as a substitute in the 40th minute of the last game after New York Red Bulls left back Kemar Lawrence went down with an injury.
"He was celebrating a championship in England, in Thailand. It's not possible to just come to us and play football,” Schaefer said when questioned about Morgan not being used as a starter versus Venezuela.
“He needed good training, good fitness. I think tomorrow he can play."
With the urgency of getting three points to stay alive in the tournament – given that a loss would virtually eliminate them – Jamaica know that the key against the Mexicans would be to control the possession of the ball and be effective in the counterattack.
“We have to understand and be patient because Mexico will want to control the ball, that’s what makes that team confident, the possession,” said Barnes.
“So it’s about taking the opportunities when we have them and be more aggressive with the ball. The main key for us is to be tactically aware. We have to stay mentally tuned in."
