“Here I am five years later, playing with the national team. Once again, I had to grow up a lot faster than I thought I would. I’m just trying to do the best I can for myself, for my family, and for my country.”
When he was brought into the team, he did so without having any prelude through international youth experience. By all effects, he was a late bloomer. The coach sat him down and told him not to worry about that: with the talent, drive, and will to be better, he was confident that Rampersad has what it takes to always stand out.
His goal against Jamaica in this summer’s Gold Cup reflected that he certainly has the confidence for it now.
The country’s run in this summer’s Gold Cup was ended emphatically by the United States, so drawing against them in the Concacaf Nations League quarter-final stage will bring back an ill taste in the mouths of Soca Warriors fans. The US had trounced them six-nil to round out the Gold Cup group this summer, with Rampersad coming on in the second half – though the team couldn’t claw themselves out of a disaster in that game.
“A baptism of fire, for sure – a very disappointing game, but I think the coaching staff will have done their homework on the team after seeing what happened at the Gold Cup. Going into this game, I think we’ll be more prepared, and more confident, having come second in the [Concacaf Nations League] group. I’m very confident that the boys are going to show up.”
Rampersad’s Trinidad and Tobago have done well in their six-country Nations League group, finishing second behind Panama after three wins and one loss to advance to the quarter-finals. It’s been a path of redemption following that Gold Cup exit.
“We’ve tried to change the narrative of the team and the narrative of the words that have been spoken after the Gold Cup. I think we’ve done that in such a positive way, and I think the boys need to get a lot of praises for what they’ve done, and the coaching staff to that extent,” adds Rampersad.
“At the end of the day, everyone works together. Here we are playing against the US in such a big game where we can quality for so many things.”
Rampersad won’t be the only Canadian Premier League talent on display for the home-and-away quarter-finals, with Atletico Ottawa’s Malcolm Shaw also on the roster.
The Soca Warriors will play away against the USA tomorrow at 9:00PM EST, before hosting their opponents on Monday evening. The victor not only advances to the semi-final stage, but will automatically qualify for the 2024 Copa America as well.
The four losing teams from the quarter-final stage will have a second chance to qualify for the tournament through a single play-in round taking place March 2024. Rampersad, of course, will be hoping not to need it.
Source link : https://northerntribune.ca/trinidad-and-tobago-andre-rampersad-usa/
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Publish date : 2023-11-15 03:00:00
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