SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD Inter Miami academy left-back Chaz Williams says TT’s under-17 men’s football team will have to be on their ‘A’ game when they meet hosts Costa Rica in their Fifa 2025 Under-17 World Cup qualifier next month.
Under the guidance of head coach Shawn Cooper, Williams and a number of youngsters are currently putting in the hard yards in a training camp to make the final cut for the Concacaf qualifiers from February 7-16.
To qualify for the November 5-27 Under-17 World Cup in Qatar, Cooper’s charges must top a qualifying group that also includes the British Virgin Islands, Guyana and Sint Maarten. For the lanky Williams, there is no doubt about TT’s stiffest competition for the qualifiers. “I think our group is pretty strong and I think we should be taking it game-to-game from Guyana all the way up to Costa Rica,” Williams told TT Football Association media, in a video released on January 5.
“Costa Rica I feel sure will be our strongest game. We have to put our minds together to have our focus for that game.”
As a full-back, Williams said he could add value to the team on both the attacking and defensive ends, and believes his familiarity in high-pressure situations in the Major League Soccer environment can be a plus.
“The facilities are (at Inter Miami) a blessing. The opportunity to be around those big players like (Lionel) Messi and (Sergio) Busquets. It’s really big and I’m grateful for it,” Williams said.
“It’s a lot of pressure to be playing because all the scouts are out there watching on. It’s a lot of pressure to play and I’ve been playing for two seasons now and I still feel the pressure.
On making the transition from playing with Inter Miami’s academy team to preparing for a World Cup qualifying campaign with TT’s under-17s, Williams said, “I try to keep my head down, dig deep and do what I can with what I have…I live for this and I love to play on fields like this. And when I go back I realize how grateful I am to be playing (at Inter Miami).”
Having had the opportunity to rub shoulders with Messi and congratulate him on his eighth Ballon d’Or win in 2023, Williams is eager to go on his own success journey.
“I’m here to represent TT under-17 because of the passion and love I have to represent this country. It’s an awesome opportunity to be here.
“The desire the other players to have to represent the badge and the drive these other players have, it’s not something you really see a lot in the US. I think if all of the players here work together I think we can build a really big team to push to the World Cup.”
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