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Nicholson confident Boyz mentally ready for Canada
November 21, 2023
Jamaica's striker Shamar Nicholson affirms that the Reggae Boyz are mentally prepared to turn their disadvantage around, going into their second-leg Concacaf Nations League quarter-final against Canada today.
The Reggae Boyz lost the opening leg 2-1 at the National Stadium on Saturday and will have it all to do when they play the North Americans in the return game at the BMO field in Toronto tonight starting at 7:30.
Nicholson, who scored Jamaica's goal in the defeat, insists they can go into Canada and come away with the required result to move on to the semi-finals.
"Of course (we can turn it around). We have the mindset to want to go there and win," Nicholson stated.
"It is just the mindset, and I don't think it is a problem for us. We made some simple mistakes (first leg) and got punished.
"So we need to brush off and focus on the next leg. Forget about this one. We have already lost, so we need to focus on the next leg," he continued.
Nicholson, who is on loan with French Ligue 1 club Clermont until the end of the season, argued that an increase in playing time since leaving Spartak Moscow in September has helped him regain his confidence. He hopes to be on the scoresheet again when the Reggae Boyz face off against the Canadians.
"As a striker, goals give me confidence, and it is the biggest confidence booster. I can use this confidence going into the second leg, and hopefully, I can score and help the team because it is a team thing, and we need everyone.
"It's all about confidence, and you get a lot of confidence with game time, and you can see the more minutes I play (with club), the more I get confident, and I think it has a big impact on my form," he commented.
The inclement weather that affected the island over the weekend caused the game to be rescheduled from Friday night to Saturday morning in the blazing sun.
Nicholson believes the situation was no excuse for Jamaica's loss, stating that both teams had the same conditions playing in.
"The game was difficult, especially in a weather like this, but you don't want to find excuses because both teams were playing on the same pitch. It was a difficult game, but the most important thing is that we have a next leg. We need to continue working and build the confidence," he said.
