Ghana v Guinea Bissau: Appiah warns opponents, Ghana will fight for qualification

[caption id="attachment_124447" align="aligncenter" width="480"] Coach Kwesi Appiah[/caption] Coach Kwesi Appiah says Ghana will not underestimate Guinea Bissau in their final Group F game, as the Black Stars hope to snatch automatic qualification into the round of 16.

Ghana drew twice in their first two games of the tournament, playing a 2-2 draw with Benin in the opening game and following it up with a goalless draw with defending champions Cameroon.

Appiah’s men are therefore not guaranteed a spot in the next stage of the competition unless they win against Guinea Bissau. A win could see Ghana finish second in Group F, but Benin will need to drop points against Cameroon or win with fewer goals than the Black Stars.

“I have always said that you need to give every team you play, 100% respect,” said Appiah in the pre-match press conference.

“Guinea is a strong team as we saw when they played against Benin. It was 0-0. Once they qualified into the competition, it means they are a good side. There’s no way we are going to underrate them. We are going out there to give them a very good game.”

To boost Ghana’s qualification chances, Appiah would have wanted to have a full complement of his squad but injuries have trickled in. To add to Thomas Agyapong on the injury table, Christian Atsu and Jonathan Mensah have also picked up knocks that could keep them out. Appiah offers an update on his injured players.

“The doctors have to take a scan on Atsu and Mensah who also had an injury. We will have today’s training and we are waiting for a report on the scans. According to the doctor, Atsu does not look too good but for Jonathan, he will have a training session today to assess the situation.” he stated.