Bermuda will continue their push for direct qualification for next year’s Gold Cup when they face Antigua & Barbuda in their penultimate Concacaf Nations League group D encounter in Dominican Republic this afternoon (4pm).

A win for Michael Findlay’s side will keep the pressure on the group leaders Dominican Republic, before the two teams clash on Tuesday to conclude their campaigns. Findlay is wary of the threat posed by their opponents, who are fighting for survival in League B.

“The match itself is self-explanatory,” Findlay told The Royal Gazette. “We need results and points to hopefully put ourselves in a position to once again play for something.

“We are still striving for that qualification to the 2025 Gold Cup, and the only way we can do that is getting a result against Antigua & Barbuda.

“Players are upbeat and feeling good with everyone available for selection. We are feeling good about ourselves, but we have to be aware of the dangers of a team like Antigua & Barbuda, who are fighting for their lives as it relates to them staying in League B, so we have to be keenly aware of that in our preparations.”

A win this afternoon will push Bermuda to 12 points, the highest for any of the second-placed teams in League B. Findlay is counting on Dominica to do what appears impossible by beating Dominican Republic tonight.

“We feel strongly that 12 points would solidify our spot for the play-offs,” Findlay said. “But again, we are still hopeful that Tuesday’s match, if we are successful on Saturday, may give us an opportunity for a direct route to qualification. That of course depends on what happens between Dominican Republic and Dominica on Saturday night.

“How qualification works is, it goes total points, goal difference, most goals scored and then head-to-head.

“What we have emphasised to the players is that we need three points. Hopefully, in that process we’re successful in front of goal to boost our goal difference.

“I’m hoping that Dominica does us a big favour. They are coming into this game knowing a good result against Dominican Republic will do lot to solidify their own spot in League B, and potentially relegating Antigua & Barbuda to League C.

“They've got motivational factors too because they not safe in League B yet, so they've to come with right attitude and mentality. Maybe we’ll see luck on our side, perhaps the football gods will be on our side on Saturday.”

Bermuda has once again been boosted by the presence of Nahki Wells. The 34-year-old made a huge impact in his first appearance under Findlay, with the Bristol City forward notching up a first-half hat-trick in the 6-1 drubbing of Dominica at the Flora Duffy Stadium on October 12.

With Zeiko Lewis — who is in action for Union Omaha against Spokane Velocity in the United Soccer League Championship’s Western Conference final tomorrow — available on Tuesday, it remains to be seen if Wells will remain with Bermuda or head back to England after today’s encounter.

Last month, the former Bermuda captain appeared in only the first encounter against Dominica, before going back to prepare for Bristol City’s match away to Middlesbrough.

This time around, the Robins welcome Burnley for their next Sky Bet Championship fixture on November 23, which could allow Wells to play against Dominican Republic if there is a chance of direct qualification.

“Like all the players in these situations, we go match-by-match because each of these players have their own circumstances,’’ the Bermuda coach said.

“Zeiko is a prime example; he’s in a final for his club. We want him to be successful and we feel strongly about the depth in our group, that’s why we’re happy to support him in that situation.

“All we have done is prepare for the first match on Saturday, and then we’ll sit down and review the situation once we know exactly where we stand.

“The most important thing we have to look at right now is Saturday's game against Antigua & Barbuda. Without three points there, it puts us in a difficult situation, so that’s all we’re thinking about in terms of preparing.”

Bermuda go into battle without Dale Eve, their first-choice goalkeeper and captain. In such critical matches, the battle for the first name on the team sheet should be between the experienced duo of Detre Bell and Jahquil Hill, ahead of 20-year-old Milai Perott.

“We’re quite confident about the other goalkeepers that we have,” the coach added. “Dale Eve has been both our captain and the starting goalkeeper since I arrived in August 2023.

“You’re always going to miss players like that, but we’re pretty confident about our selection options in the goalkeeping department, with Detre, Jahquil and Milai.

“We are quite happy with any of those keepers taking the position because they've been working very hard. They’re critical pieces of the team and this also plays to the reality that we deal with.

“Our programme has to become not just better, but it has to become deeper. We can only do that by making sure that we've got depth in these positions.

“Once John Moreira, our goalkeeper coach, and the rest of the staff discuss it, I’m sure the decision we make, we’ll be very comfortable and confident about it.

“On the captaincy, we've established a leadership group since I’ve arrived and the captain usually comes out of that group.”

“A captain is an important piece of the puzzle, but leadership comes in many forms. What we want is 23 leaders, there’s a captain that has to pull the armband and lead by example, but also lead from an emotional point of view.

“Whoever steps into that role will be very comfortable that they’ll be able to do the job similar to what Dale’s been doing.”