Stanley Menzo is the new technical manager and interim coach of Aruba, he confirms on Friday Football International. At the end of this month and in June, Menzo will lead the selection at the start of the World Cup qualification: Aruba is in a group with Canada, Bermuda, Cayman Islands and Suriname, the country of birth of the former goalkeeper.
Marvic Bermúdez was the national coach of Aruba, but is now succeeded by Menzo. On March 27, the former goalkeeper of Ajax, PSV and Oranje will make his debut in the World Cup qualifying match with Suriname; three days later the game against Bermuda awaits. Meetings with the Cayman Islands and Canada will follow on 2 and 5 June. Only the winner of the group will advance to the next qualifying round. Canada is the clear favorite as number 73 in the FIFA ranking; Suriname (141), Bermuda (169), the Cayman Islands (193) and Aruba (200) are much smaller football nations.
It is unclear how long Menzo will remain at the helm as interim national coach. With his entrance there is another Dutchman in the CONCACAF region who will take care of a country team. Dean Gorré and Guus Hiddink are ultimately responsible for Suriname and Curaçao respectively. They have access to a large number of players from the Eredivisie, but the Menzo players group has less quality. A comparison with Suriname and Curaçao is therefore not appropriate, he indicates.
Players such as Joshua John (VVV-Venlo), Gregor Breinburg (clubless) and Terence Groothusen (Alemannia Aachen) are the most famous internationals in Aruba. “The rest of the boys mainly play at the top of amateur football”, says Menzo, former trainer of FC Volendam, SC Cambuur, Lierse SK, Ajax Cape Town and recently Beijing Guoan, among others. “We are now making an inventory of who all qualify for the Aruban team. For the time being you cannot compare us with Suriname or Curaçao.”
Related
More sports news