Nigeria’s upcoming All Africa Games
qualifier against Ghana looks set to
be a tough duel as coach of the
Ghanaian Under-23 team, Akwesi
Appiah has called up a number of
top professionals for the game,
including the Ayew brothers -
Andre and Jordan.
The France-based duo, who are the
children of Ghanaian legend and
1991 and 1992 CAF African Footballer
of the Year award recipient Abedi
‘Pele’ Ayew, are part of the squad
which commenced training on
Monday in Accra ahead of
Saturday’s match scheduled for
Benin City.
Appiah, who took over from
erstwhile team coach David Duncan
following the Black Meteors’
elimination from the Olympic
Games qualifiers at the hands of
Sudan, called up 31 players for the
two-legged tie against Nigeria with
majority of the invitees coming
from the Under-20 team which won
the World Cup in Egypt two years
ago.
Aside the Ayew brothers, who both
play for French side Marseille,
Appiah also called up Charles
Boateng, Afriyie Acquah, Emmanuel
Agyemang-Badu, Opoku
Agyemang, Samuel Inkoom and
Daniel Opare.
David Addy, Rabiu Mohammed and
Dominic Adiyiah are also included,
as well as Villarreal’s Wakaso
Mubarak who is confident about
Ghana’s chances of eliminating
Nigeria from the All Africa Games
coming up later in the year in
Mozambique.
The Nigerian team, handled by ex-
Super Eagles captain and coach
Austin Eguavoen, at the weekend
eliminated Tanzania to inch closer to
qualifying for next year’s Olympic
Games.
Ghanaian optimism
But Wakaso only wants a victory
that will go a long way in placating
Ghanaians after missing out of the
Olympic Games.
“It’s painful that we couldn’t qualify
for the Olympic Games,” the
midfielder told the Ghanaian media
in Accra. “But what is important
now is we are playing against
Nigeria and we must take the game
seriously.
The 21-year-old added: “The team is
together and we are focused. I have
absolute confidence of victory.”
Ghana advanced to this stage of the
qualifiers after Benin pulled out of
the competition while Nigeria
qualified at the expense of Liberia,
winning 7-2 on aggregate with the
crucial return-leg tie ending 6-1 in
favour of Eguavoen’s side in Benin.
And with the age-old rivalry
between both nations, Saturday’s
encounter, as well as the return leg
tie scheduled for a fortnight’s time in
Accra, looks set to be explosive.
January 02, 2010, 06:36:23 AM