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Hallgrimsson will be happy with a ‘good performance’

Published:Monday | September 26, 2022 | 12:10 AMLivingston Scott/Gleaner Writer
Heimar Hallgrimsson.
Heimar Hallgrimsson.

If the decision had been left to new Reggae Boyz head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson, he would not have chosen the Lionel Messi-led, two-time World Cup champions Argentina for his first assignment.

The Jamaican senior men’s team will face the South American giants in a friendly international tomorrow in the United States, and the Icelandic coach pointed out that playing such high-quality opponents as the world’s number four-ranked team will more than likely expose the weaknesses of the Jamaica team.

Nevertheless, he said his observations will help guide him in terms of the improvements he will need to make going forward.

“This would not be my first pick. This game will expose a lot of things. But it is good to face a strong team like Argentina. They will probably expose all our weaknesses, so we will know after the game what we need to improve. I can then evaluate what we can change and what we can improve,” he told The Gleaner.

Although his main objective in this first match is to learn as much as he can about the group, he said he is always seeking to win, no matter how marginal his chances are.

“My aim with this group it is to observe, to learn and evaluate, and then decide what to do after.

“But then the system is also about how you can produce a win. A good performance would be good for me on this first camp, but of course, you would like to win every game.

“It’s a really strong opponent for me, but we should, and will, go every time to win every game,” he insisted.

Hallgrimsson, who is just a mere two weeks into the job, has had only two training sessions to implement his system and plan tactics for the match.

However, he declared that he will look to start out with a system familiar to the Boyz, as there is not enough time to implement his ideas.

“For this game we will probably use what they have done before. That is most effective, because it is difficult to change a lot of things when you play strong opponents,” the Reggae Boyz coach said.

Nevertheless, he knows what to expect from the South Americans and only wants a good performance from the Boyz.

“If you talk about Argentina, their game is more or less the same with statistics. They have the ball possession, up to 70 per cent on an average.

“So for me, it is the performance. There are no points to be gained in this, only FIFA points if we do well.”

livingston.scott@gleanerjm.com