'So much talent' - Sheffield United ace Tahith Chong outlines Curaçao wish ahead of historic World Cup debut
Sheffield United ace Tahith Chong has opened up on how big a moment it could be for Curaçao when they embark on their maiden World Cup adventure this summer.
Sheffield United winger Tahith Chong hopes Curaçao will eventually become a World Cup regular ahead of making their debut at the finals against Germany in less than a week’s time.
After becoming the smallest nation in history to ever qualify for football’s showpiece event, the Caribbean island will make their World Cup debut when they lock horns with Germany in Houston, Texas, on Sunday evening.
Competing in Group E, the World Cup debutants, after facing Germany, will face Ecuador on June 20 before locking horns with the Ivory Coast in their final group game on June 25. They will be hoping to do enough to progress to the knockout stages.
With a population of just 156,000 and a land mass smaller than the Isle of Man, Curacao have surpassed Iceland as the smallest nation to reach the World Cup finals, meaning it will be a historic moment for the country when the team walks out to face Germany in their opening game this coming weekend.
With qualification also set to have a major economic and social impact on the island, Chong is hoping Curaçao will eventually have what it takes to become a World Cup regular. However, he believes that will come down infrastructure being implemented on the island to help youngsters grow.
“I think it starts with youth,” Chong told FIFA’s website. “If you can develop them young – four, five – you can start building some infrastructure for them to grow as players.
”I still think Europe helps a lot, because Europe lives and breathes football. They have all the facilities and everything that you eventually need to get to that next level. But, who knows, in 20-30 years, Curaçao might have these facilities and then you're having a completely different conversation.
“I think you can compare it a bit to baseball, because baseball is very big in Curaçao and we have a lot of MLB [Major League Baseball] players. For them, it's been a process to get to that level, and hopefully, Curaçao football can get there as well.
“We have so much talent in Curaçao, not only in football or baseball but all kinds of different sports. If we can help the infrastructure, I think Curaçao might have a bright future.”
Despite previously playing for the Netherlands at youth level before switching his international allegiance to Curaçao last summer, Chong was born on the island, meaning this summer’s tournament will be extra special for him.
But with just days to go until the start of the tournament, he has admitted it has still not sunk in that he will be representing his country at the biggest show on earth.
“It probably hasn't completely [sunk] in for me yet that Curaçao is going to the World Cup,” Chong added. “It has with my dad, though, for a long time.
“Every time we speak, every time we call, he always says: ‘World Cup... Curaçao are going to the World Cup.’ So, I think it's definitely [sunk] in for him.”