Black Stars psyched up for Bafana win
The skipper of Ghana’s senior national team, the Black Stars, Andre Ayew, says winning the Africa Cup of Nations title (AFCON) remains a dream the team wants to achieve but qualifying for the tournament is a must and that is what they will set out to do when their campaign for the 2021 competition begins this evening.
At the Cape Coast Stadium, the Black Stars will host South Africa’s Bafana Bafana as the race for AFCON 2021 to be held in Cameroun begins.
Advertisement
After this evening’s game, the Stars will travel to Sao Tome and Principe for the second Group C game on Tuesday and captain Dede Ayew says the Stars cannot afford to miss out and will thus give it their all throughout the qualifying series to ensure that they make it to Cameroun.
Ayew said they were aware of the pressure on them to deliver against South Africa today and they were keen on absorbing that pressure and also rewarding their fans who had supported them (despite the disappointments in the past) with a good performance and result.
Psyched up
In a pre-match press conference, the Swansea City forward explained the team’s outmost target was to make the nation proud, and that he had communicated to his colleagues.
“We are psyched up for the task ahead as we are very much aware of the stakes.
There is always a responsibility on us to make sure we make our country proud.
We accept this responsibility. We won't always get it right but we are determined to be up there again,” the Stars’ captain said.
He added: “You don't play in the national team without pressure otherwise then you don't know what is ahead of you.
A football player is one who wants to get back from setbacks.
We want to work for our country and ensure we qualify from this group,” he stated.
Tremendous support
Fully aware of the pressure from the expectation of supporters, the Stars coach, James Kwasi Appiah, also admitted that they could not afford to let their fans down.
The Stars enjoyed a huge welcome from the people of the Central Region starting from Winneba through Mankessim to Cape Coast and Coach Appiah said “this evening will be the turn of the Stars to reciprocate the love by doing their best against the Bafana Bafana.”
“We really appreciate the support Ghanaians have shown us so far; right from Accra, Winneba, Mankessim and Cape Coast. It's now time for us to reciprocate by doing our best to make our nation happy.
“We can only do that with a good result as we begin our qualifying campaign against South Africa and Sao Tome and Principe,” the coach assured.
Stern test
Though the Stars have had only three days of preparations towards this game, Coach Appiah already knows what the players he has invited bring to the team and is thus expected to field a line up that can deliver against a Bafana Bafana side equally keen on getting off to a good start.