Marcus 'Lobo' Joseph, Molik Khan and Kevin Molino called up for Trinidad and Tobago Gold Cup qualifiers

INTERIM head coach of the TT senior football team Angus Eve has trimmed his provisional 60-man squad for the Concacaf Gold Cup qualifiers to 26.

Notable absentees for July 2 clash against Monsterrat are AEK Athens midfielder Levi Garcia and KV Mechelen defender Sheldon Bateau. Both players are unavailable.

However, there were some new and returning faces to the national line up which Eve believes can provide ample support towards the team’s qualifying campaign.

The likes of Columbus Crew midfielder Kevin Molino, Marcus "Lobo" Joseph and promising 17-year-old talent Molik Jesse Khan were all added to the squad to bolster TT’s chances of Gold Cup qualification.

Eve released his 26-man team during a training session at the Ato Boldon Stadium in Couva on Wednesday.

The squad also includes several players who were part of the first round of TT’s unsuccessful 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification bid, under then-coach Terry Fenwick.

Goalkeepers Adrian Foncette and Nicklas Frenderup have been selected, along with defenders Aubrey David and Radanfah Abu Bakr. Midfielders Khaleem Hyland, Joevin Jones and Kevin Molino have been named and striker Ryan Telfer.

The team left Trinidad at 2 am on Thursday for the qualifiers which will be held in Florida, USA.

On his selection, Eve said, “There’s a blend of players who have been playing with the squad and some new ones who would have come in; who I know their capability and what they could bring and the freshness and vitality they can bring to the team.”

Eve selected three additional players to the usual 23-man contingent as a preventative measure owing to any unexpected hiccups on the journey.

“We have 26 players because of all these covid19 restrictions and flights and stuff like that. I thought it fit to take three players extra so that they would be in the camp doing the same work with the team.

“It would be an easier transition in case any problems crop up like illness or injury. We’d have them on the ground already instead of scrambling for players,” he added.

Since he was appointed national senior team coach on June 15, Eve has been using TT’s recent performances under Fenwick as a measure. These matches allow him to observe the players closely on the pitch to see who would make an immediate impact at the qualifiers.

Eve said his selection of a more locally-based team is geared towards keeping the group tight and getting the guys in specific positions that he wants them to play in.

In the long term, he said that a lot more of the national players would be fused into the team.

He said, “That was the reason for not having too many players come in from away (abroad) and having this group who’ve actually been training here. So I can fuse, in a short space of time, the players and pick players in specific positions to complement what we have here.”

Molino was scheduled to play for his new Major League Soccer club Columbus Crew on Wednesday night. Eve hopes the midfielder can get some more minutes on the ball, having played only 20 minutes in his debut for the team on Saturday.

He remains quietly confident that Molino would be able to stay injury-free if gets more time on the pitch thus enabling him to be released from his club and available for selection against Montserrat.

“He (Molino) tells me he’s always learning and is willing to learn. We were in communication up to last night (Tuesday). We’re praying that he can go through the game and put more minutes and mileage under his legs. He’s looking forward to come back to play with us.”

On the 17-year-old Khan, who plies his trade with domestic club W Connection and now on trial in the US with the New York Red Bulls, Eve has high expectations for the young man.

When asked what he would bring to the team, Eve replied, “Freshness. I’m a firm believer in developing youth players. The ability that he has, he has shown that he can play at the highest level in Trinidad.

“He’s not afraid. Now he has experience at Red Bulls. If you look at him, his physical structure, he can stand up to the rigours. His technical ability is very good. He’s not a scrub, he’s not here to ride along. He’s here as a part of the team pushing for a position on the team,” he said.

SQUAD

Adrian Foncette (Police FC), Nicklas Frenderup (Ranheim I.L), Marvin Phillip (unattached), Radanfah Abu Bakr, Aubrey David (Deportivo Saprissa), Justin Garcia (Defence Force), Curtis Gonzales (Defence Force), Triston Hodge (Switchbacks F.C), Alvin Jones (unattached), Jelani Peters (Pittsburgh Riverhounds S.C), Ross Russell Jnr (Terminex La Horquetta Rangers), Jesse Williams, Andre Fortune, Judah Garcia, Neveal Hackshaw (Indy Eleven), Khaleem Hyland (Al Batin F.C), Joevin Jones (Inter Miami F.C), Molik Khan, Kevin Molino (Columbus Crew S.C), Reon Moore (Defence Force), Duane Muckette (unattached), Ryan Telfer (Atletico Ottawa), Michel Poon-Angeron (unattached), Hashim Arcia (Defence Force), Marcus Joseph (unattached), Isaiah Lee (Terminex La Horquetta Rangers)