Steve McClaren is involved in BIZARRE video after first training session with Jamaica – as Reggae Boyz boss looks confused as he tries to understand local dialect
- Steve McClaren was appointed by Jamaica as their new manager in July
- The former England manager will take charge of his first match on Friday evening
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Steve McClaren made a bizarre video after his first training session as Jamaica coach.
The 63-year-old former England manager McClaren was appointed by the Reggae Boyz in a surprise move in July after stepping down from his role as assistant coach at Manchester United.
The job marks the Englishman’s first return to management since leaving QPR in April 2019, while also returning to international coaching after his ill-fated spell at the Three Lions ended in November 2007.
McClaren’s first challenge will be next week’s CONCACAF Nations League matches against Cuba and Honduras, with the 63-year-old having met his squad for the first time in recent days.
And in a video shared on X by the Jamaican Football Federation that has since gone viral, McClaren was asked how his first training session went.
Steve McClaren took part in bizarre video after his first training session as Jamaican manager
McClaren was quizzed about how his first training session with the Reggae Boyz went
The 63-year-old appeared confused as he tried to get the attention of another individual
McClaren was a shock appointment by Jamaica after leaving his role at Manchester United
It started when the interviewer said, “Okay coach, congratulations!”, after which McClaren gave him a “fist bump.”
He was then questioned about the session – with the interviewer also noting that McClaren appeared “very red in the face” – but the 63-year-old appeared distracted and tried to get the attention of another individual when he said: “Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah,” before adding: “What’s that? What’s that?” as the pair touched thumbs.
McClaren looked confused as he surveyed the scene until he said, “Big up. Big up,” with the 63-year-old reportedly trying to shake his hand in Jamaican Patois, a local dialect.
The former England manager finally discovered the word he was looking for – ‘seal it up’ – when he went back to the original interviewer to give his thoughts on training.
McClaren added: ‘Yeah, it’s just to get the players… they had a long day yesterday so it’s not like it’s all in their heads too much, but it was just to get them going, to get them in.
‘And, (to) get the spirit in the competition. So it was intense, it was a good hour and (they) should be ready for tomorrow’s tactics.’
McClaren’s efforts to integrate into Jamaican culture and understand the local dialect are something he has been working on for a long time.
When the 63-year-old was coach of FC Twente, he bizarrely did an interview in English, while speaking with a Dutch accent.
McClaren tried his best to understand Jamaican Patois, a local dialect
The former England manager has taken over a team that has lost all its matches at the Copa America
Jamaica will play a home game against Cuba on Friday evening, before traveling to Honduras on Tuesday for another game.
McClaren has called up several players from Great Britain to his squad, including Michail Antonio, Bobby Decordova-Reid and Ethan Pinnock.
He replaced Heimir Hallgrimsson, who stepped down after Jamaica lost all three matches in the group stage of this summer’s Copa America. The Icelandic national coach has been the new national coach since joining the Republic of Ireland.