(from left) JFF president Michael Ricketts; Concacaf president Victor Montagliani; Lyndon Cooper, St Lucia FA president; Bermuda FA president Mark Wade, and JFF general secretary Dennis Chung share a photo opportunity.
contributed
Concacaf president Victor Montagliani has underscored the significance of the Nations League, particularly for players from the smaller islands in the Caribbean, as it provides them with a platform to compete against higher-level opposition and develop their skills on the international stage.
Montagliani, who was on a visit to the island, along with Bermuda and St Lucia Football Association presidents Mark Wade and Lyndon Cooper, believes that the tournament, which started in 2018, has been a game-changer for the region, offering crucial opportunities for exposure and growth that may have otherwise been limited.
In fact, the Canadian emphasized the role it plays in not only improving the competitiveness across the confederation but also in attracting heritage players to the Caribbean islands in particular.
“You've had coaches coming to want to coach here; you have players who never would have thought of playing for a country that they play for having the opportunity. Why? Because up until the Nations League, all you can offer them is one game every four years or two games every four years. That's not much of an international career. Now a player can play in the Nations League, can go to the Gold Cup, obviously a World Cup qualifying, and they have more of a body of work to attach themselves,” Montagliani said during a press conference at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel on Wednesday.
Jamaica in Nations League action against Honduras.
“And at the end, the player wants to sell himself or herself because, don't forget, we also have it on our women's programme in terms of our road to the Women’s Gold Cup, which is in essence the Nations League. So, if you play five, six internationals a year versus one, you're going to be seen more, and so you see more players wanting to play international football because of it,” he added.
Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz have used the tournament to test their mettle against the region’s best teams—United States, Canada, Mexico, and Panama.
However, for other Caribbean nations like St Lucia, Bermuda, St Kitts and Nevis, and even Suriname, who will contest the quarterfinal stage for the first time, the Nations League has been a vital part of their football development, as it assists in nurturing young players who will form the core of their squad for years to come.
Montagliani pointed out that this kind of consistent international exposure is invaluable for teams aspiring to qualify for major tournaments like the World Cup or the Gold Cup.
“I know a lot of my presidents say all the time that they're getting calls from guys saying, ‘My dad was from wherever, and I play in League One or the championship.’ So it's really opening the doors to more players, more coaches, but also to more aspirations for the local players,” Montagliani reasoned.
“I just saw a great story about a 14-year-old goalie making his debut for Turks and Caicos in the Nations League group, so what I'm saying is that it gives an aspiration to a young player to say, ‘If Michail Antonio is playing at West Ham and he's playing for Jamaica now, that could be me down the road,” he shared.
Suriname celebrate their Nations League quarterfinal feat.
However, when it comes to the prospect of Jamaica hosting a future tournament or a knockout round of the Concacaf Nations League, Montagliani tempered expectations. He acknowledged that while Jamaica is a football-loving nation with passionate support, the infrastructure—most notably the National Stadium—currently isn’t up to the standard required to host a tournament of such magnitude.
“First and foremost, the National Stadium needs to be at the level that it sounds like it wants to be at. After having those discussions today (Wednesday), they tell me it's about a three- to four-year window here (for the Stadiums development). So when that happens, we can have those conversations,” he declared.
“But the reality is, just like FIFA, FIFA lives on one competition, the World Cup... that's 95% of its budget. Concacaf’s Gold Cup is about 80% of our budget. So the reality is, it's okay to move it around as it relates to a game or two, maybe even a group, but to have the significant majority of it outside a market that doesn't generate top dollar is not only unrealistic, but it's irresponsible as well. So we need to balance both,” Montagliani noted.
Montagliani went on to compare Jamaica’s situation with the Dominican Republic, in particular, as the Spanish-speaking Caribbean nation is further ahead in terms of infrastructure development, resulting in its hosting numerous club and youth tournaments.
“What's happened is that through One Concacaf funding and through FIFA, you're starting to see a lot of other nations that didn't have any facilities now having facilities as well. So it's not a bad thing, because back in the days, you only maybe had two or three of our member associations having the ability to host a U-17, and that was great for Jamaica.
“But now you have a lot of member associations that have that ability to do it, and we're spreading it around. Not to say that we would not host here (in Jamaica), but now we have more options, which is a sign of early development,” Montagliani stated.
Cayman Islands players celebrate a goal in the Nations League.
He continued: “We are building our own facility in the Dominican Republic, the home of football, where we will have pitches and a small little stadium and facilities. So, you know, we're going to be using that as well for events. The good thing about that is that we can go anywhere now, and so it pushes you (Jamaica) to build your standards.
“Before, if you were the only one in town and you had no incentive to really push the standards to a top, top level, that’s fine, but now you almost have to, because if you don't, you won't even get looked at in the RFP process. But the good news is that we no longer limit it to two or three options.”
As Concacaf continues to expand the reach and impact of the Nations League, Montagliani reiterated his commitment to ensuring that all member nations, regardless of size, have access to opportunities that will help them grow.
“Having our One Concacaf programme increases not only funding but also accountability and responsibility. You can't just keep giving people fish; you need to teach them how to fish as well, and I think we've done a good job with that. In the end, it's always about the football, and really, one of the biggest successes I think that turned around this organisation is the Nations League,” he ended.
Sherdon Cowan is a five-time award-winning journalist with 10 years' experience covering sports.
Ndiaye targets spot in Everton's Goodison folklore
Iliman Ndiaye feels privileged to be part of the final Everton squad to play at Goodison Park, as the Toffees prepare to resume their Premier League campaign at home to Brentford.
Everton will leave Goodison for their new 52,000-seater stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock at the end of the 2024-25 season.
A run of one defeat in seven matches (two wins, four draws) has boosted the Toffees' hopes of surviving the current campaign in the top flight, and Ndiaye – a pre-season arrival from Marseille – says being part of club history was a key attraction when he joined.
"Obviously, I wanted to be part of that history of playing in the last-ever season at Goodison Park," Ndiaye told the club's website.
"So many things have happened here, it's full of history and we are the last players to represent this club here, so it's important we give everything we have.
"Then, the new stadium that is coming, I think that excites everyone. It's seriously impressive.
"The players who have been here for a long time and the players who have just arrived, I know we are all ready to give more than 100% to have the best season possible and go into the new stadium in a good place."
Brentford are six points clear of Everton in 11th, just three points adrift of Manchester City in third, though all their 16 points have been won on home turf.
Sepp van den Berg has played in nine of their 11 Premier League games this term after arriving from Liverpool, and the defender has heaped praise upon Thomas Frank for making him feel welcome.
"For me, Brentford was one of the first clubs interested and, as well as getting the chance to play in the Premier League and live in London, it was speaking with Thomas Frank," he said.
"The first meeting we had, he was asking me some straight questions: 'Why do you want to play for Brentford? Why do we need you at Brentford?' It was so direct, it was like a proper job interview!
"Of course, the football part has to be right as well – and it was. But Thomas just made me feel like I was really wanted here."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Everton – Jarrad Branthwaite
Since the start of last season, Everton have a win percentage of 35% and have earned 1.3 points per game in the Premier League when Branthwaite starts, compared to a 17% win percentage and 0.8 points-per-game without him in their starting XI.
Indeed, the Toffees have lost just one of the last eight league games in which he has started (five wins, two draws). The England international made his first start since August last time out in their goalless at West Ham, which was a massive boost for Dyche.
Brentford – Bryan Mbeumo
Only Mohamed Salah (14), Erling Haaland (12), Cole Palmer (12) and Bukayo Saka (10) have been directly involved in more Premier League goals this season than Mbeumo (nine – eight goals, one assist).
He has, though, played more minutes without a goal involvement in the competition against Everton than any other side (528 – 13 shots, five chances created). He will be determined to set that record straight at Goodison Park.
MATCH PREDICTION – EVERTON WIN
This match should offer an interesting clash of styles. Only Crystal Palace (0.089) average a lower xG per shot figure than Everton (0.093) in the Premier League this season, while Brentford are the side with the highest xG per shot in 2024-25 (0.149).
The Bees have seen 44 goals scored across their 11 Premier League games so far this season (22 for, 22 against), the most of any side.
Indeed, only Newcastle United in 1999-00 and Arsenal in 2011-12 have both scored and conceded 20+ goals in fewer games from the start of a campaign in the competition (10).
Brentford have, however, lost all five of their Premier League away games this season; only in 1924-25 and 1961-62 (both nine) have they ever lost each of their opening six or more away matches of a league campaign.
Everton have lost only two of their last 10 Premier League games at Goodison Park (six wins, two draws), while they also have three straight wins against Brentford in the competition, after failing to win any of their first three against them (one draw, two defeats).
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Everton – 40.5%
Brentford – 32.5%
Draw – 26.9%
Bayern finances could thwart deal for Leverkusen's Wirtz
Bayern Munich's financial position could thwart a move for Bayer Leverkusen star Florian Wirtz, but the club are hopeful Jamal Musiala will pen a new contract soon.
That is according to Bayern chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen, who discussed the club's squad-building plans in an interview with German outlet Abendzeitung.
Wirtz has attracted interest from a host of Europe's biggest clubs after helping Leverkusen to an unbeaten title triumph in 2023-24, winning the Bundesliga's Player of the Season award after scoring 11 goals and providing 11 assists in the competition.
Wirtz has four goals and two assists in the league so far this term, while only Alex Grimaldo (35) and Kevin Stoger (33) have bettered his 26 chances created in the Bundesliga and his figure of 3.9 expected assists (xA) puts him second to Grimaldo (4.22).
Bayern's tendency to swoop for Germany's brightest and best has led to them being linked with Wirtz, but Dreesen says finances will dictate their ability to make a move.
"It must always be in Bayern's interest to have the best German players with them," he said.
"But it is also true that Uli Hoeness always said Bayern must act in an economically sensible way. He would not agree with us if we did not observe both of his fundamental pillars."
Since the start of last season, Wirtz leads all players in the Bundesliga for successful dribbles, with 112. Second by that metric by Musiala, who has completed 109 for Bayern in that time.
Bayern are set to open talks over a new deal with the attacking midfielder, whose current deal with the Bavarian giants expires in 2026.
"It's no news that we naturally want to extend with one of the top players in the world who is in our ranks," Dreesen said.
"Jamal Musiala has developed excellently with us, he is a player who inspires the crowd, who creates a spectacle due to his individual class, who can turn a game around.
"I very much hope that these first really good talks that Max Eberl and Christoph Freund have with Jamal will ultimately lead to an extension.
"I don't want to put this in a corset in terms of time. The important thing is that it comes to that, even if it doesn't happen by the end of the year. Jamal Musiala is one of the faces of the future for FC Bayern."
Dreesen is also keen to see Joshua Kimmich put pen to paper on a new contract, with the midfielder having less than a year to run on his current deal.
"Joshua, who has a high degree of sporting ambition, knows which club he is in and what goals he can achieve here together with us," Dreesen said.
"He feels comfortable in Munich and is a very important player in this team.
"We have already said publicly that we now want to start talks with him about a contract extension quickly."
Chelsea into Champions League quarter-finals with two games to spare
Chelsea reached the Women's Champions League quarter-finals with two games to spare and stayed perfect under Sonia Bompastor with a 3-0 win over Celtic.
Real Madrid's 3-2 victory over Twente earlier on Wednesday meant Chelsea only needed to draw at Stamford Bridge to ensure progression from Group B.
However, goals from Lucy Bronze, Wieke Kaptein and Eve Perisset helped the Blues to their 11th victory in as many matches under former Lyon boss Bompastor.
Just 65 seconds had passed when Bronze hammered a volley home from Catarina Macario's corner, as Chelsea looked to enjoy a more comfortable outing after being forced to come from behind to win 2-1 at Celtic Park last week.
Another corner led to Chelsea's second goal in the 25th minute as Guro Reiten swung a wonderful ball in for Kaptein to glance home.
The Blues dominated the rest of the way and racked up 25 shots to Celtic's three, and they added a third deep into stoppage time when substitute Perisset converted from 12 yards following Shannon McGregor's handball.
Bompastor's former club Lyon also clinched their spot in the knockout stages as four late goals saw them beat Roma 4-1 and seal qualification from Group A.
They trailed as late as the 77th minute through a goal from Roma substitute Giulia Dragoni, but two goals in less than two minutes Kadidiatou Diani turned the game on its head.
Substitute Eugenie Le Sommer added a third before Wendie Renard managed a fourth in stoppage time, with Lyon's superior head-to-head record ensuring they can no longer be overtaken by the Giallorosse.
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