Hallgrimsson’s master plan
Reggae Boyz coach focused on youth as part of 2026 road map
Published:Wednesday | February 22, 2023 | 1:08 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
IN OUTLINING the path to the 2026 World Cup, national head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson emphasised the need for immediate investment in cultivating young talent, which he believes will be key to qualification.
Hallgrimsson was speaking yesterday at a press conference at the Jamaica Football Federation headquarters where the administration outlined matches for the upcoming March and April windows, as well as to locally launch the 2023-24 home and away jerseys with new kit sponsor Adidas.
Jamaica are slated to take on Trinidad and Tobago in a two-game series on March 4 and 11 at home in preparation for their Concacaf Nations League tilt against Mexico on March 26. Jamaica will also face Guatemala on April 15 in New York as part of their Gold Cup preparations.
More than a month has passed since Hallgrimsson arrived in Jamaica to start his first full year as national team coach and he has been using it to adapt to the local football culture and scout the Jamaica Premier League to assess the local talent on offer. There was also a two-day camp with the local players and some schoolboy footballers including standout Dujuan Richards.
As he charts the course towards World Cup qualification, Hallgrimsson outlined the need for immediate investment in youth, the coach seeing them as critical to ending the more-than-two-decade wait for a finals appearance.
“It is deceiving to say 2026 but the preparation to qualify for that one starts in less than a year, the investment, and the preparation has to start now. So it is really deceiving to think about 2026 that we have plenty of time. And if we look back on the last world Cup, the players that were the most impressive, were about 21 years old. And then we think ‘what are we doing for the players that will be 21 in 2026’, and we have to step up there,” Hallgrimsson said.
“We really have to step up there because those are the players that will be on top of their game in three to four years.”
Hallgrimsson outlined his plan for international matches up to the 2026 World Cup and where the resources would be needed to achieve the goal. A major point of emphasis for him was a qualification to next year’s Copa America tournament where the top six Conacacaf nations by way of the 2023-24 Nations League campaign would be determined.
PLEASANTLY SURPRISED
In the short time that Hallgrimsson has been in Jamaica, he said he was pleasantly surprised by not only with the speed of some of the talent in the local league, but also the technical ability.
“We have a lot of talent here around the world, we have a lot of talent here in Jamaica, so we have to start working really hard to improve these guys, coaching for the youngsters so we can have a good possible team in 2026,” Hallgrimsson said.
The groundwork done by Hallgrimsson includes comprising a document of available and prospective national team members as well as the plan to set up local camps with select premier league players.
“It is necessary to be clear and transparent about how we would like to play, how we would like to behave, how we would like to dress. So it is a lot of things so when you come into the national team, you know what is expected of you,” said Hallgrimsson.
“But it takes time to introduce and that is why we have camps before matches so we can work with the players, not only because of game preparation but to get to know them as persons.”