Bermuda?s senior national team could come up against the might of CONCACAF giants Guatemala, 3-0 conquerors over the Island?s next World Cup qualifying opponents El Salvador last week.

Delighted over the prospect of again taking on opposition exhibiting a similar style of play to that of June?s opponenents, national coach Kenny Thompson said it is vital for his players to be exposed to the Central American style of play.

But he also warned his charges of becoming ?complacent? and insisting more work ? particularly in terms of physical conditioning ? was needed prior to the crucial away and home qualifying series against El Salvador.

He also divulged additional plans to have the senior national team take on Nicaragua on their native Central American turf near the end of the month were still in the pipeline.

Bermuda are currently riding high on the crest of successive wins (2-0 and 2-1) over the Central Americans last week at the National Sports Centre.

But for the time being, it?s ?important? Bermuda doesn?t get ?carried away? given the team?s recent string of successes, Thompson warned.

?It?s important that we all feel very good with what we have accomplished so far,? he said. ?But in the larger scheme of things we are still taking introductory steps into achieving what we would like to achieve.?

And that, said Thompson, is to ultimately become one of the more ?competitive? teams in the Caribbean ? if not ? in the CONCACAF region.

?But we still have some way to go to achieve that,? he continued. ?So while on one hand we can look with great satisfaction on what we have achieved, it?s important that we don?t get carried away in thinking that we have done enough.?

And in order to attain the Bermuda Football Association?s long-term objective ? that of becoming a force in the region ? Bermuda will have to produce ?quality? performances and obtain good results against ?stronger? opponents, said Thompson.

?In essence it is important that we look to continue to develop as a country and not get carried away with thinking we have reached our goals,? he added. ?We are still in the introductory periods of achieving these goals.?

In reward for last week?s successes over Nicaragua, Thompson has given his charges a week?s grace from training. However, come next Monday, it will be business as usual with training sessions expected to be held four nights per week.

?It?s important to give the players some time off,? he said.

?We have maybe six weeks before the first leg and so in essence the technical programme that is being developed will resemble a sort of a pre-season programme.?

With special emphasis, said Thompson, now placed on conditioning as the prospect of playing El Salvador above sea level beckons.

?The best situation (playing at higher elevations) is to go there ahead of time in order to provide ample time for the body to adjust to playing above sea level,? he added. ?But it?s also important that we are in excellent physical condition before we leave. That makes the adjustment process a little easier.

?We need to take it to a higher level. We are looking to train between four or five nights per week.?

Looking ahead to the El Salvador clash, Thompson described the challenge at hand as a very ?difficult? task but remained cautiously optimistic over Bermuda?s chances.

?It (victory) is quite possible. . . but we will have to do everything we can in order to increase our chances and be successful against El Salvador,? he said. ?The commitment of the players has been great and now we need to improve and maybe make more demands on ourselves because we know El Salvador is going to be very difficult.?

As to the possibility of involving the senior national team in World Cup warm-up fixtures against Central American opposition, Thompson said: ?It?s important that we in our preparation expose the players to as close an environment to one that they?re likely to face in El Salvador.

?There?s a possibility we can again play against Nicaragua (in Nicaragua) and we are also in talks with Guatemala about going down there which would be a very, very significant match because Guatemala defeated El Salvador last Wednesday. That would provide an even more accurate gauge of where we are in relation to El Salvador.?

On an even more positive note, Thompson said Bermuda?s recent string of favourable results has attracted the attention of other countries, all with a vested ?interests? in rubbing shoulders with the senior national team.