Michail Antonio, Leon Bailey and Ravel Morrison will not be available for Jamaica’s World Cup qualifying opener against Mexico on Thursday as the Jamaica Football Federation tries to navigate a Covid-19 minefield laid by the United Kingdom and other European countries.
With Jamaica at risk of not having its English-based players available for its World Cup qualifying matches because of the United Kingdom’s red-list restrictions, the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) says it has adopted a strategy that will help players returning from red-listed countries avoid lengthy quarantine periods that could ultimately hurt their respective clubs.
According to the current coronavirus re-entry rules, individuals returning from red-list destinations face a mandatory 10 days of hotel quarantine on return to England. The matter is compounded by the fact that Premier League clubs have argued that in addition to the 10 days’ quarantine, the players will also need more time to regain fitness and could miss a number of games.
However, with the World Cup qualifiers set to begin this Thursday, the JFF believes it has found a way to avoid those challenges.
“With three matches in the first window of the World Cup Qualifying campaign and the uncertainties surrounding players based in England, the Jamaica Football Federation has entered its vast player pool to compose the current squad of players,” the federation said in a statement Monday.
“Some of the players will be utilized in the two away games versus Mexico and Costa Rica, while some will only be activated for the home game against Panama. There are others who will play critical roles in all three encounters.”
As such, the squad selected to play Mexico on September 2 will assemble in Mexico City on Tuesday. Some members will fly directly to the Mexican capital from their host country while the rest will be flown by charter flight along with the technical and administrative staff. The players based in the USA arrived on the island on Sunday. The flight leaves Jamaica at 1 pm on Tuesday.
Most of the players based in England are scheduled to arrive today (Monday), the JFF said, some of whom will be activated for the first game.
After the game on September 5 versus Panama at the National Stadium, the majority of the England-based players will return home on September 6. The squad to play Costa Rica on September 8 will leave for San Jose by charter flight on the same day.
Please see attached the full list of invited players for the three games. Players with an asterisk will be available to represent the country on September 2 against Mexico.
The JFF said it is satisfied that the best available players have been called up despite the extraordinary challenges and is fully confident that both players and staff will give an excellent representation for the Qatar Motivated campaign.
Andre Blake *, Dillon Barnes*, Dennis Taylor*, Ethan Pinnock, Damion Lowe*, Adrian Mariappa * Pending, Liam Moore, Alvas Powell*, Wesley Harding, Kemar Lawrence *, Amarii Bell, Ravel Morrison, Daniel Johnson, Devon Williams *, Kevin Stewart, Bobby Reid, Junior Flemmings *, Leon Bailey, Jamal Lowe, Michail Antonio, Kemar Roofe, Cory Burke *, Shamar Nicholson *, Oniel Fisher *, Blair Turgott * Norman Campbell *, Ricardo Morris*, Anthony Grant *, Tyreek Magee *, Lamar Walker *, Peter Vassell *, Javon East *, Romario Williams *, Javain Brown *, Richard King *.
Leighton Levy is a journalist with 28 years’ experience covering crime, entertainment, and sports. He joined the staff at SportsMax.TV as a content editor two years ago and is enjoying the experience of developing sports content and new ideas. At SportsMax.tv he is pursuing his true passion - sports.
Palace star Olise would have hit 20 goals without injuries, says Andersen
Michael Olise would have scored at least 20 Premier League goals if he had stayed fit throughout the entire season, believes his Crystal Palace captain Joachim Andersen.
Olise continued his excellent form as Palace stretched their unbeaten run to six games with a deserved 3-1 win at Wolves on Saturday, opening the scoring with a curling finish and later adding an assist for Eberechi Eze.
The creative midfielder – who has been linked with Manchester United and Chelsea in recent weeks – has been involved in 15 goals in just 18 league appearances this campaign (10 goals, five assists).
That is his best return in a single Premier League season, bettering the 13 goal contributions he managed in 37 outings in 2022-23 (two goals, 11 assists).
Speaking to Palace's website, centre-back Andersen said: "Imagine if he played all 37 games!
"He would have scored 20 or 25 goals if he was playing like this. He's a crazy player and we're lucky to have him, and hopefully he will score again next weekend."
Palace have won seven (38.9 per cent) of the 18 Premier League games in which Olise has featured this term, compared to five of 19 without him (26.3 per cent).They have also averaged one goal more per game when Olise has been involved (1.9) than they have without him (0.9).
While Olise's return from a hamstring injury has been a major boost for the Eagles, the appointment of Oliver Glasner has also had a transformative impact.
Since he took charge of his first Premier League game in February, only Manchester City (nine wins, 29 points) and Arsenal (nine wins, 28 points) have bettered Palace's six victories and 21 points.
Asked what has changed under Glasner, Andersen said: "Everyone is happy and everyone understands what we need to do on the pitch, everyone knows their role.
"I think you could see it from the first games, even though we didn't get the results straight away. I think we were a little bit unlucky with some of the results.
"It's just fantastic to see how everyone is understanding his messages and getting on board with what he wants."
Cole Palmer 'one of the best in the world' - Reece James
Cole Palmer has been hailed as "one of the best in the world" by team-mate Reece James after playing his part in Chelsea's thrilling 3-2 win at Nottingham Forest.
England international Palmer superbly assisted Mykhailo Mudryk's early opener in Saturday's Premier League contest, before Willy Boly's swift leveller and Callum Hudson-Odoi's second-half curler put Forest in front.
Chelsea pulled off a remarkable late turnaround, however, as Raheem Sterling levelled up on 80 minutes and fellow substitute James assisted Nicolas Jackson's winner two minutes later at City Ground.
Palmer's assist means he has directly contributed to 31 goals in the Premier League this season, which is the joint-most in the division alongside Aston Villa's Ollie Watkins.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the late win at Forest, captain James said: "Cole Palmer is one of the best in the world, I think personally.
"At [Manchester] City he didn't play as much as he would like but he has come here and taken the chance with both hands."
Palmer is just the fourth player in Premier League history to score 20 or more goals and provide 10 or more assists in his debut campaign for a club.
The others on that prestige list are Andrew Cole with Newcastle United in 1993-94, Jurgen Klinsmann with Tottenham in 1994-95 and Mohamed Salah with Liverpool in 2017-18.
The 22-year-old, stood alongside James, said of his colleague's comments: "I wouldn't go that far! But it's nice to hear.
"It's all new to me. This is my first season playing properly in the league. It was a very important win and now we focus on the next one."
Chelsea have now won three Premier League games in a row and are level on points with sixth-place Newcastle United.
Since Boxing Day, only Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool have picked up more points than Chelsea's 35 in the Premier League, while only leaders City have suffered fewer defeats.
James, who was making his return from a five-month absence, added: "We learn every day.
"We're still young but we are improving and we're coming strong at the end of the season. Slowly but surely we are finding our feet and reaching a level."
Granada 0-4 Real Madrid: Diaz stars in crushing victory for LaLiga champions
Newly-crowned LaLiga champions Real Madrid earned an emphatic 4-0 win over relegated Granada on Saturday, breaking a single-season club record after making it 29 LaLiga games unbeaten.
Carlo Ancelotti's side continued their superb form following their Champions League semi-final win over Bayern Munich, reaching 90 points in the league and moving 15 clear of second-placed Girona.
Fran Garcia broke the deadlock with an easy finish after a long series of passes in the 38th minute before he set up Arda Guler to slot home and extend the advantage just before half-time.
Brahim Diaz made it 3-0 in the 49th minute with a shot into the near post, and the former Manchester City attacker scored his second nine minutes later off a Luka Modric pass from the right.
A much-changed Madrid were in control throughout as Los Blancos moved to 29 league matches undefeated, surpassing their best unbeaten run in a single campaign under John Toshack in 1989-90.
Granada, meanwhile, were already relegated after Mallorca's 1-0 win at Las Palmas as their LaLiga stay came to an abrupt end on Saturday.
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