Jamaica coach Theodore Whitmore

Western Bureau:

Jamaica Reggae Boyz will be given an opportunity to test their state of preparedness ahead of this summer's CONCACAF Gold Cup, when they face Venezuela at the Montego Bay Sports Complex, in Catherine Hall, in an 8 p.m. friendly tonight.

"This game is a crucial part of our Gold Cup preparation so we are treating it very seriously," said Reggae Boyz head coach Theodore Whitmore.

However, while Jamaica will have home advantage and bragging rights based on the fact that they sit higher in the FIFA rankings than Venezuela, will be gunning to give a good performance as they are at a crucial stage in their preparation for the upcoming COPA America Tournament, in which they are grouped with Brazil, Ecuador and Paraguay.

"We are here with all our top notch players, including our star players who are based overseas," said Manuel Llorens, the psychologist for the Venezuelan team. "We value our FIFA dates and try to get the most out of them because it is the only time that we have access to our overseas players."

For coach Whitmore, the rankings does not figure in his deliberations going up against Venezuela, noting that the game is all about the Gold Cup preparations and getting the players to express their state of readiness for that tournament.

"This is an opportunity to look at all the players and for them to show whether or not they are ready for the Gold Cup," said Whitmore.

"When the Gold Cup squad is selected, I don't want any player to say they were not given a fair chance to show their worth."

In the most recent encounters between the two teams, Venezuela defeated the Reggae Boyz 2-0 at high altitude at their own El Estadio Olimpico Stadium in Caracas and a year later the Jamaicans returned the favour at the National Stadium, in Kingston, with a 2-1 win.

"We are well prepared", the confidence level is high and we are expecting a positive result," stated Whitmore.

"We have no injuries in the camp and that means we should get the best out of all the players."

In their build-up to this assignment against Jamaica, the Venezuelan team has not been as clinical as they would have liked, playing to 2-2 draw against Costa Rica last month and losing 4-1 to Argentina last week.

However, while not slighting Jamaica in any way, Llorens is expecting that things will be different against Jamaica.

While he is expecting all the players to shine, Llorens is expecting that the Europe-based trio of Nicolas Fedor, who plays for Getafe in Spain; Tomas Rincon of Hamburg in Germany; and Robert Rosales of Twente in Holland to lead their charge.

Based on recent performances by the Reggae Boyz, the players expected to stand out are the likes of the wily New York Red Bulls star Dane Richards, skipper Shavar Thomas, Jermaine Taylor, Rodolph Austin, goalkeeper Dwayne Kerr, Kavin Bryan and the duo of midfielder Khari Stephenson and Damion Williams.