MIAMI, Florida – When it comes to Caribbean nations qualifying for the Concacaf Gold Cup, you would be hard-pressed to find a more successful side than Cuba.
Among Caribbean nations, only Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago have qualified for more Gold Cups than Cuba, who will be aiming for their 10 th Gold Cup group stage appearance when they take the field on July 3 to face French Guiana in the 2021 Gold Cup Prelims.
Cuba head into the encounter riding a wave a winning momentum. After two narrow defeats to open the First Round of Concacaf World Cup Qualifying for Qatar 2022, Cuba collected a pair of clean sheet victories, downing British Virgin Islands 5-0 and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1-0 to finish in third-place with six points.
Those two wins should provide a nice confidence boost going into the match with Les Yana Dokos.
Cuba have also been bolstered of late by the inclusion of several players who ply their trade in both Europe and the United States.
FW Onel Hernandez of English outfit Norwich City made his Cuba debut in the First Round of CWCQ and scored his first goal in the 2-1 defeat to Curacao.
Hernandez finished CWCQ with two goals and now will be looked upon to supply more scoring chances in the Prelims.
Another weapon will be FW Maykel Reyes of Honduran club Real Sociedad. Reyes scored in both the win over British Virgin Islands and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
That one-two punch in attack will be supported by a defense that allowed just three goals in four WCQ matches and includes the likes of DF Jorge Corrales of USL Championship side FC Tulsa and DF Carlos Vazquez of Spanish club Navalcarnero.
Things appear to be coming together for Head Coach Pablo Elier Sanchez, making Cuba one to watch when the Prelims kick off.
