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It’s been a long time since Ghana gave its fans a proper show – a game where the Black Stars controlled proceedings, played with style and won convincingly.
The 3-2 victory over South Korea at the Qatar 2022 World Cup was entertaining but also had every Ghanaian on tenterhooks right until the final whistle. In truth, more of Ghana’s wins, as few as they are, for the better part of the last three years have come under similar circumstances.
As the Black Stars prepare to take on the Central African Republic (CAR) in a 2023 AFCON qualifier on Thursday, it’s hard to shake off the team’s underwhelming performances in recent times.
A major criticism during Otto Addo’s time in charge was that the team oft looked too disjoined and lacked telepathy despite the pool of individual talents within the squad. That hasn’t changed much under Chris Hughton who, despite being unbeaten in three matches, is yet to get the team playing fluid football and winning convincingly.
Paired in the same group with Angola, Madagascar and CAR, Ghana were largely expected to wrap up qualification even before the last match. But the results from their five group games played so far – two wins a three draws – typify a side that hasn’t shown any marked superiority over its less-fancied opponents.
Hughton’s arrival was greeted with fanfare and optimism; it was meant to be a shift from the experimental appointments that had stagnated the progress of the national team in recent years. Here was a Premier League-proven manager and one who had had a year’s leeway to assess the team from the point of a technical advisor, a role which he held under Addo.
But things haven’t worked out as planned. Although the Black Stars beat Angola in his debut game in charge, it was more of a smash-and-grab than a dominant performance. The stalemate in the reverse fixture against the Antelopes saw another uninspiring output, while the goalless draw at Madagascar was equally a drab showing.
Against CAR, the Black Stars will have the support of over 30,000 fans at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi and they have a great opportunity to kill two birds with one stone: book their place in the Ivory Coast and deliver a performance that will jog the minds of the home fans.
Ghana needs at least a draw to seal qualification to next year’s AFCON, but they’ll be doing themselves a load of good if they win and do so with a convincing performance to boot.
For Hughton too, the pressure has already started ramping up. He is supposed to be a significant upgrade on Addo – which per his experience and résumé, he is – but the team’s results and performances haven’t been reflective thus far.
Already, his tactics and some of his call-ups have been questioned, with Edmund Addo, who hasn’t completed a competitive game since March, and captain Andre Ayew, who is currently without a club, included in the latest squad.
But in the fickle world of football, the above will matter very little if the Black Stars are able to put up a vintage performance against CAR. A few years ago, the general reaction to a convincing Ghana win would’ve been “it’s just CAR” but considering how poor the team has been recently, an assured performance won’t be swept under the carpet just like that.
“Everybody knows what this game [vs. CAR] means,” Hughton said at his pre-match press conference.
“We will do everything that we can to get the result that we want to get. Preparation has been good. We are missing some players through injuries but it is also an opportunity for others. We are playing at home. We have a good record here and it is a record that we want to continue.”
Inasmuch as CAR are underdogs, they cannot be underrated by Ghana. The Wild Beasts are just two points behind the Black Stars in Group E and have won as many games (2) as Ghana in the group.
Also, throw in the fact that CAR upset Nigeria in Lagos of all places in 2021 and it’s clear to see why Raoul Savoy’s side can feel confident going into the game against Ghana, especially with the Black Stars not having delivered a great performance in a long while.
“Nigeria never expected us to beat them at home but we did,” Savoy said ahead of the game against Ghana.
“You never know [what we can do]. I have respect for Ghana because they are far better than us as a football nation but football is the most lovely game in the world because every time, every day you have surprises.”
Indeed, for a team that knows that a win will guarantee their place in next year’s AFCON, CAR won’t go down easily. They are bound to give it their all and will certainly test the Black Stars.
But the onus lies with Hughton and his side to show more ambition and want it more. After all, they are the bigger team, the ones with the better players and also managed by the more astute coach. They’ll also be playing at home.
There’s, therefore, no excuse and, for many Ghanaians, the expectation is not just about sealing qualification to the AFCON (that is the minimum requirement, anyway), but to see the Black Stars finally dominate an opponent and finish off a game without the nail-biting finales that have characterised the national team’s matches in recent times.