Nakhid impressed with Seabra

TRINIDAD and Tobago assistant football coach David Nakhid feels that the best of Jose Luis Seabra is yet to come. This was the view expressed by the former skipper after he witnessed Trinidad and Tobago’s 2-0 victory over Azerbaijan from the bench on Sunday at the Manny Ramjohn Stadium, Marabella. Seabra started in national colours for the second consecutive time and looked better than when he made his debut against the same team on Friday. “He was a bit better than in the first match but I think we still have not seen the best of him. I won’t say he is an automatic pick on the first team but he is definitely a benefit to us. We hope things can be sorted out for him,” Nakhid said.

Seabra too, admitted that he felt better in Sunday’s match. “The first match was not easy for me but being around the guys a bit more has allowed me to know them better. I just went out there today to try and do the simple things well and I thought I got through okay,” he said. “It has been a dream come true to play these two matches for the national team but I am still wishing that I can get the passport before Ash Wednesday,” the Brazilian-born player said. Reflecting on the performance of the Soca Warriors in Sunday’s win, Nakhid added that he saw some improvement but still thinks there is work to be done.

“We were a lot better in the second match. We were organised in midfield but that is still the area where we need to work more on which is linking the midfield and the attack front needs working on,” Nakhid said. “Defensively we were better than in Friday’s match. Now we need to take full advantage of the time we have on the Oval surface before February 9. I am hoping too that the public can get more behind the team because we certainly need bigger crowds than what we saw in these two matches against Azerbaijan,” Nakhid said. Head coach Bertille St Clair also felt the midfield showed positive signs. And now that the US Soccer Federation has sorted out their dispute with the player and will be fielding their full team, the coach seems even more anxious about the encounter.

“I never gave it a thought that they would be coming here with a second team,” St Clair said. “The US can always do these kind of things to put you off  but we are preparing to give our best possible performance,” he said. The team will begin training at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain from today at 9 am. They face Haiti at that venue on February 1 and then at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo two days later. Meanwhile, Carlos Edwards is feared to have broken a bone in his hand while playing for Wrexham in their win over Chesterfield on Saturday. According to reports, the winger got the injury afer he landed heavily on his arm. Edwards finished the match, but was in some discomfort when he returned to the dressing room. He is receiving treatment and is hoping to return for Saturday’s match against Doncaster Rovers.