Newly installed Bermuda coach John Barry Nusum has big plans in store for the national team and believes his players have the potential to achieve them.

If all goes accordingly, the former Philadelphia KiXX forward hopes to transform Bermuda into a dominant force capable of striking fear in opponents within the region during his tenure at the helm.

“The short-term goal is the Nations League; making sure that we can get into the Gold Cup. We’ve got Guadeloupe, St Lucia and Barbados in that round so the short-term goal is putting in a performance to be able to get to the Gold Cup,” Nusum told The Royal Gazette.

“We want to be a team that is participating in the Gold Cup every time around and we want to be in that space where we are in the conversation for that.

“The long-term goal is to build on that and continue to get stronger within the region and become a team that other countries are afraid to play.”

The 45-year-old, who served as an assistant under Michael Findlay, believes the future is promising for the national team with the crop of players he has at his disposal.

“We have kind of shown the level we can be at in the games against DR Congo and Cape Verde, and we just have to be more consistent in doing that game in and game out,” he said.

“I felt over the tenure when I was assistant coach there was too many times where we was inconsistent in our play, where one game we looked good. For example, when we were playing Curaçao away in a solid game, where we were in a good position, and then we came home and shipped seven goals to them. So again, it’s just the consistency of doing that match in and match out, and I think we have to get better as a nation.”

The former Bermuda captain, who scored 19 goals in 36 international appearances, wants to see his players make “smarter” decisions at both ends of the pitch when it comes to game day situations.

“I started at the back, so I often see the game from a defence-to-offence perspective, but I think you need to have smart decisions,” he said.

“If you look at the Honduras game a few years ago, we go up 2-0 at the half, but again it was one of those situations where the floodgates opened up very quickly. Can we now be smart enough to understand ‘OK, they got one goal back, let’s make sure that we bump it down a little bit for the next 10-15 minutes’ as opposed to continuing to go at them. So smart football is really where my thought process is, as opposed to it has to be super attacking or super defensive.

“You have to apply both in the game, but now it’s about what moments can we apply and when can we apply it, and is it the right time to apply it. So, if a team is putting pressure on us I don’t need you staying higher, I need you bumper down and let’s get through this next wave.

“Once we get it going then we want to be free flowing, we want our movement to be strong and we want our runs in behind to be accurate. Those are the types of things we are looking at, so I say smarter football rather than attacking versus defensive.”

Nusum believes his experience as a player will help him to communicate better with his players.

“I’ve always been a player’s coach and like to see the game from a player’s perspective as well, so the conversations that I’m having with the players are not from someone who hasn’t been in their shoes before. It’s a little bit easier to relay those messages to connect with them and understand where their feelings and emotions are as well, and being able to maintain that side of it,” he said.

The former Wolves player and coach has already established a strong bond with the younger players in the squad having also coached them at youth level.

“A lot of these guys I’ve actually coached at under-15 level, so they know who I am and I know who they are for the most part and just making sure that we can continue to build basically,” he said.

“I’ve had a building block of years with a lot of these guys, whether it comes from the schooling or from actually coaching them with the national team, and just building on that really. The hope is that foundation has been built and now we can start building on the rest of it.

“These guys know me well enough they can call me and be like, ‘hey Nusum, this is what I’m thinking right now’ and we would have a conversation on it, so I think I’ve built that up with most of the players over the years. Even when you look at Nahki Wells, who I actually played with when he was first coming in.

“It’s kind of building those relationships where I kind of see my biggest space when it comes to leading the team.”

Nusum’s recent appointment as national coach comes as Bermuda prepare to face Guadeloupe, St Lucia and Barbados in the Concacaf Nations League B, group B, starting next month.

The Gombey Warriors start at home against Guadeloupe on September 25, before they clash with St Lucia away three days later. They will then close out their group matches away to Barbados on October 2.

The group winner will advance to the championship and also gain promotion to League A, while the fourth-place finisher will be relegated to League C.

Nusum has yet to confirm his squad and coaching staff for the upcoming tournament.

“We are still going through it so nothing has been finalised yet,” he said.

The 2026-27 Concacaf Nations League will serve as the qualifier for the 2027 Concacaf Gold Cup.

Under former coach and national team player Kyle Lightbourne, Bermuda made their debut at the 2019 Gold Cup, where they bowed out at the group stage after suffering 2-1 defeats by Costa Rica and Haiti before a 2-0 win over Nicaragua capped an outstanding campaign.