National football coach Kenny Thompson has lashed out at critics, saying those who are incensed by the three losses in Central America need to stop being ?arrogant?.

Reacting to various letters to the media, he pointed out that Bermuda?s international football programme has ?stood still? in recent years while other countries have been moving ahead, some rapidly.

Now, he claimed, the Island is playing catch up.

?Our team is progressing but there?s still a long way to go. It?s a bit difficult to help our footballing public understand the level we are at,? said Thompson.

?We are so arrogant in thinking that we are one of the top football countries in the world. We are building a programme so we can compete a lot better than we have done in the past.

?I think what our public fail to realise is that, over the years, we?ve stood still and we are thinking other countries have stood still also but that hasn?t been the case.

?You heard comments during the Barbados matches like ?we used to beat Barbados?. Well we stood still and Barbados hasn?t.

?When we were getting favourable results against the USA, for example, we knew what football meant to the USA but now they take it a lot more seriously and they have progressed.

?But we think we should still be on the USA?s level and that we?re the next best thing to the USA or Mexico or Costa Rica.

?The reality is that we are very far away from those countries. Do we have the potential to do much better than we?re doing now? Yes, but it?s not going to happen overnight and lying dormant internationally for the amount of years that we have certainly won?t get us anywhere near being remotely competitive against some of the top countries in CONCACAF.?

Despite losing 4-1 to Panama and 2-0 in both matches against Nicaragua as Bermuda builds up to their second-round World Cup qualifier against El Salvador, the coach is happy with preparations.

?We still have improvements to make but I?m pleased with what we have done and the matches we have played,? he said, adding the Bermuda Football Association (BFA) is trying to organise more friendlies here before the El Salvador games.

?Until the Central American tour we were unbeaten since the 1-0 loss against Trinidad & Tobago.?

Insisting the issue of Bermuda?s results must be put into perspective properly, Thompson revealed there is ?great respect? in Nicaragua for the Bermudians who defeated them twice here in late March.

?They were asking the question ?How does a country of 60,000 people beat our country of five million people twice??.?

As a consequence, various regional countries are sitting up and taking notice of the Island?s football team and ?want to play Bermuda?.

?It?s a testament to what we have achieved so far,? declared the national coach.

On another bone of contention ? that several of those who played in Central America would not figure in his World Cup starting line-up ? Thompson acknowledged that while this may be so ?some things are beyond our control? with certain top guns having club and other commitments.

?Certainly we would like to have all of the players involved in the World Cup preparation but the reality is that there are circumstances surrounding some players.

?However we know the adjustment time for players like Shaun (Goater), John (Barry Nusum)and Kevin (Richards) will probably be relatively short so it?s not a major concern. Look, Shaun came in a few days prior to Nicaragua and scored two (goals).

?Players like that are already at a high level. They are in an environment where they must perform often,? he reasoned.

Noting that whether those who represented Bermuda in Central America play versus El Salvador is ?irrelevant?, Thompson said the worth of the recent overseas experience transcends the World Cup campaign.

?With this exposure, they will be in a position to help carry our programme beyond the World Cup and into regional competitions such as CONCACAF Gold Cup qualifiers.

?It?s important for the public to look at the big picture. I know it?s very easy to get tunnel vision and focus on the immediate but part of what we are trying to do is balance the immediate goal with what we are going to do in the future.?