The Black Stars of Ghana will host the Central African Republic on Thursday in their final group game of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.
Ghana, who lead Group E with 9 points will take on the Wild Beasts, a game the four-time African champions need to draw or win to qualify for the tournament in Ivory Coast next year.
Chris Hughton and his players officially opened camp on Monday and trained at the Accra Sports Stadium.
However, on Tuesday, the team left Accra for Kumasi where the game will be played. Following their arrival, the team held a training at the Baba Yara Stadium and will hold the final training session later today.
Meanwhile, winger Joseph Aidoo has withdrawn from the squad after sustaining an injury. According to the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Paintsil will fly to his parent club, KRC Genk for immediate treatment.
For the Black Stars, who lead Angola by a point and two points clear of the Central African Republic, they will hope to secure a qualification for the tournament.
Meanwhile, coach Raoul Savoy will be eyeing an upset and a piece of history by guiding his team to a rare win in Kumasi to secure their first-ever AFCON appearance.
He will rely on former France U-20 star, Geoffrey Kondogbia, and forward, Louis Mafouta, the leading scorer in Group E with four goals, to help their bid to disrupt Ghana’s aspirations.
Head-to-head
The two countries have met once, which ended in a one-all draw at Estádio 11 de Novembro in Angola.
Ghana will eye their first win against the Wild Beasts while the latter will be eyeing an upset.
Ghana
Ghana is ranked 60th on the FIFA World Ranking
Ghana 3-0 Madagascar
Central African Republic 1-1 Ghana
Ghana 1-0 Angola
Angola 1-1 Ghana
Madagascar 0-0 Ghana
Central Africa Republic
FIFA ranking: 126
Results in the qualifiers
Angola 2-1 Central African Republic
Madagascar 0-3 Central African Republic
Central African Republic 2-0 Madagascar
Central African Republic 1-2 Angola
Central African Republic 1-1 Ghana
Where will the game be played?
The much-anticipated game will be staged at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi. The Baba Yara Stadium stands as a stronghold for the Black Stars who have remained unbeaten on their home turf for over 23 years – with their last loss in Kumasi dating back to February 6, 2000, when South Africa stunned them 1-0 in a quarter-final clash at the 2000 Africa Cup of Nations – a competition which Ghana co-hosted with Nigeria.
What time is the game?
The game has been scheduled to kick off at 16:00GMT.
What do both sides need to qualify?
Ghana need just a draw or a win to qualify while the Central African Republic need all three points against the Black Stars and will also hope Angola, who sit second with 8 points lose at home against Madagascar.
Predicted Ghana lineup:
Lawerence Atizigi, Alexander Djiku, Baba Rahman, Alidu Seidu, Joseph Aidoo, Salis Samed, Baba Iddrisu, Elisha Owusu, Mohammed Kudus, Jordan Ayew and Inaki Williams
Prediction:
Ghana 3-0 Central African Republic