Brazilian coach says MoBay United treading cautiously
CATHERINE HALL, St James — Despite a 12-match unbeaten run and a spot in the second End-of-Round final after doubling their points output from the first round, Montego Bay United coach Neider Dos Santos is not looking too far ahead as they prepare for the third round of the Red Stripe Premier League.
Minutes after beating Arnett Gardens, 1-0, on Wednesday at the Montego Bay Sports Complex and securing their place in the incentive play-off against Portmore United and being doused with an igloo of water by his players, the big Brazilian warned about being patient when asked if he thought they could win the title.
“We can’t afford to look that far ahead,” he told the Observer. “Portmore has a good lead and is playing good football, and we still have a lot of improvements to do.”
Montego Bay United scored 21 points in the second round from five wins and six draws after scoring just 10 points from their first 11 games and are in seventh place overall on 31 points — the best placing since earning promotion last season and a controversial name change from Seba United.
“We can’t be looking at winning the title now,” said Dos Santos, the former Bahamas head coach and who was also in charge at Village United last season before discontent, mainly from fans, forced him out.
“We have to get into the top six teams first, then we can start thinking about that, but we are not there yet,” Dos Santos pointed out.
He also told the Observer that despite their good run, there was room for improvement in the team and they would use the nearly two-weeks break between the rounds to try to lift the team’s standards.
Additionally, he says the team will still be on the lookout for new players during the FIFA transfer window.
“We will be looking for any help we can get until the window closes; we have some areas that we still need some help,” he said.
Montego Bay United have added quality in the likes of midfielder Oliver Trail and Jerome Eccleston, as well as former national left-back Troy Smith from Village United and striker Omar Gordon from Arnett Gardens.
But Dos Santos says they are not done looking for players as they go in search for more glory in the third round.
While Montego Bay United are 10 points adrift of leaders Portmore, they are only five points out of second place, which is occupied by Waterhouse.