Chris Hughton, the coach of the Black Stars has admitted he is under pressure after Ghana’s goalless draw against Namibia in a friendly game on Monday night but insists he will ensure that the Black Stars are ready for the tournament in Ivory Coast.
Ghana begins the AFCON campaign on Saturday 13 January, 2024 against Cape Verde.
“I think as regards pressure going into a tournament, I think every coach, every head coach that takes a team into this tournament is under pressure. It’s normal, it comes with, it comes with the job.”
The stalemate with Namibia means Ghana has now won just once in five games under Coach Chris Hughton, with defeats to Mexico, USA, and Comoros, and the only win against Madagascar. It also marked the fifth time the team had failed to score under Hughton.
With the team still struggling to play intense football, concerns are growing ahead of the tournament about the team’s readiness to end Ghana’s 45-year trophy drought. Chris Hughton believes the team’s readiness will be unraveled when they take on Cape Verde.
“You never know if you’re ready or not, you will know that when that first game comes because I’ve been involved in teams and watched teams that haven’t done particularly well. When it comes to the first game of a tournament, all of a sudden their levels go up, and they can prove worthy winners.”
“So I think you never know, all we can do is prepare the best way we can.”
The team will be without key players like Thomas Partey, and Tariq Lamptey due to injuries and Mohammed Kudus is now recovering from a minor injury he picked up while playing for West Ham United against Arsenal in the Premier League on December 28, 2023.
“It’s of course, never helpful when some players have to miss a period of training, that’s, never helpful, but we know we probably wouldn’t be the only team that is in that position.
We have to make the most of what we have and we have to ensure that we are ready.”
Story By; Princeton Wiredu
