Cavalier's captain Richard King (left) and his Cibao FC counterpart Oscar Florencio.
Concacaf Media
Cavalier FC midfielder Kaile Auvray is fully aware of the significance of the 2024 Concacaf Caribbean Cup Final for both himself and his Jamaican club.
As Cavalier prepare for Tuesday’s decisive second leg against Cibao FC in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic, Auvray is embracing the magnitude of the moment and the opportunity to etch his team’s name in the annals of Caribbean football history.
“Being part of such an exciting match, such as the Caribbean Cup final, it's really an honor,” said the Trinidad and Tobago native, who has been a pivotal figure for Cavalier throughout the competition.
“I think this title would mean everything, honestly. I know that last year we came close to winning it, so this year, [we] just want to go one step further and bring it home,” he added.
The two clubs were evenly matched in the opening leg in Kingston, Jamaica, where Cavalier claimed a narrow 1-0 victory. Shaquille Stein’s decisive strike extended his tournament-leading tally to eight goals, setting the stage for a tantalizing conclusion at Cibao FC Stadium.
Auvray has played an instrumental role in Cavalier’s road to the final, notably contributing in the semifinals with a multi-goal performance alongside Stein. His creativity and attacking instincts will be critical as Cavalier aim to protect their slender advantage and secure the club’s first Concacaf Caribbean Cup title.
Despite the first-leg setback, Cibao FC remains confident in its ability to overturn the deficit in front of its passionate home crowd.
The Dominican club had been unbeaten in the competition until the loss in Kingston and will look to its leading scorer, Rivaldo Correa, to inspire a comeback.
Correa, who has netted five goals in the tournament, led Cibao’s charge in the first leg with seven shots on goal. His determination to deliver for the home fans was evident in his pre-match comments.
“We are going to give our all. The team's spirit is that we are very focused, that we are going to turn it around, that we are going to do things in the best way. We are going to be very concentrated to turn this match around and take us to the championship.”
With the aggregate winner set to be crowned 2024 champions, every moment of the second leg promises to be high-stakes.
Should Cibao win 1-0, the match would proceed to extra time and potentially penalties to determine the victor. Away goals serve as the first tiebreaker, adding another layer of intrigue to the contest.
For Auvray and Cavalier, this is a chance to solidify the club’s place among the Caribbean elite and bring a sense of pride to their supporters.
“This is about going one step further. We’re ready to give it everything we’ve got,” Auvray emphasized.
Pep Guardiola dismisses talk of rift with Kevin De Bruyne
Pep Guardiola has played down talk of a rift between himself and Manchester City's midfield star Kevin De Bruyne.
The Belgian has endured another season in which he has suffered with injury, starting just four Premier League matches in 2024-25.
But since returning from an abdominal injury that kept him out for eight weeks, De Bruyne has played a combined total of just 72 minutes across five substitute appearances.
When he came off the bench at Anfield on Sunday, there were just 12 minutes remaining in the eventual 2-0 defeat by Liverpool.
After both Jamie Carragher and Gary Neville suggested that 'something isn't right' between the pair in the Sky Sports coverage of the match, Guardiola defended their relationship.
"People say I’ve got a problem with Kevin," he said. "Do you think I like to not play with Kevin? I don't want Kevin to play? The guy who has the most talent in the final third. I don’t want it? I have a personal problem with him after nine years together?
"He’s delivered to me the biggest success to this club. I'm desperate to have his best.
"But he's been five months injured and two months injured. He's 33 years old. He needs time to find his best."
De Bruyne had missed from August to January of the 2023-24 season following a recurrence of the hamstring injury that forced him off in the 2023 Champions League final against Inter Milan.
With his contract up for renewal at the end of the year, he has confirmed talks for a renewal have not yet begun as he focuses on getting fit.
"I'd love to have Kevin in his prime, at 26 or 27," said Guardiola. "He would love it too.
"But he is not 26 or 27 any more. He had injuries in the past, important and long ones, and he is a guy who needs to be physically fit for his space and energy.
"It's normal, it's nature. He played a lot of games for 10 or 11 seasons.
"I know he is desperate to help us. He gives glimpses of brilliance that only he can have."
Alonso: Schick injury 'doesn't look good'
Xabi Alonso says the injury that forced Patrik Schick off during Bayer Leverkusen's win over Bayern Munich "doesn't look good".
Schick was substituted an hour into Tuesday's DFB-Pokal tie, having only been introduced at half-time, after sustaining an injury off the ball.
The forward has scored nine goals for Leverkusen in all competitions this season, a tally only Florian Wirtz can match.
Asked about Schick's injury after his side's 1-0 victory at the Allianz Arena, head coach Alonso said: "Patrik felt something in his calf.
"He's being examined and we'll see. It doesn't look good at the moment."
Schick played the full 90 minutes for Leverkusen and scored the winner in Saturday's 2-1 Bundesliga win at Union Berlin.
Asked by Bild about his substitution against Bayern, the Czech international suggested he was already carrying a knock.
"I suffered a thigh problem in Berlin. I can't say more now, I don't know," he said.
Nathan Tella scored the only goal of the last-16 tie in the 69th minute, with holders Leverkusen profiting from Manuel Neuer's first-half dismissal.
The reigning German champions have scored in 35 successive DFB-Pokal away games, yet they were not at their best in Bavaria.
Despite having less possession and registering fewer shots than their opponents, Leverkusen got the job done to advance to the quarter-finals.
"It was not our best game with the ball or even with an extra man but we applied our plan," defender Jonathan Tah said.
"It was not immediately easy to adapt to having an extra man. We did not use it in the first half. We were too hectic and wanted to score quickly.
"We did not do it perfectly today but we were effective and then Nathan headed in the winner."
Alonso has now won all nine of his games as a head coach in the competition – only Louis van Gaal and Pep Guardiola (both 10) have gone longer unbeaten at the start of their coaching careers.
Luke Shaw 'devastated' by yet another injury setback
Manchester United and England defender Luke Shaw has said that he is devastated after suffering the latest in a long line of injury issues.
Shaw made his first appearance of the season coming off the bench in the 1-1 draw away to Ipswich on 24 November, which was Ruben Amorim's first game in charge.
He has since come off the bench against Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League last week and on Sunday in the 4-0 home win over Everton.
Now a new injury, which is not thought to be related to his original calf issue, will keep him out for a few weeks.
"It's hurting a lot having to write this as I really thought I had got through my recent struggles and was on a positive path going forwards, but unfortunately I've had a small setback," Shaw wrote in an emotional statement on his Instagram account.
"I've been through a lot and had a lot of ups and downs but this has definitely been my toughest period. I'm absolutely devastated and it's extremely tough to come to terms with reality at this moment in time.
"I understand there is gunna [sic] be people frustrated, angry, disappointed and I understand all that. There is no one feeling that more than me at this moment in time.
"But what I can promise is I will do everything I can to come back better soon to help this club achieve its ambitions this season. Thank you to everyone for the support. It really doesn't go unnoticed and I really do appreciate it."
Prior to his appearance at Ipswich, Shaw had not played since England's 2-1 defeat in the Euro 2024 final.
That was his only start of the tournament, while his last start for Manchester United came in a 2-1 victory away to Luton in February.
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