Black Stars head coach Chris Hughton has dismissed concerns he is not familiar with the African game ahead of Ghana’s AFCON qualifier against Angola.
When quizzed about his preparedness for the game the former Norwich man said due to his past experience as Technical Advisor to the national team he had an idea of what Angola were going to do:
“I am familiar with Angola as I have been part of the technical team since before, I was hired. I have watched their last few games. They are a very technical team with a strong Portuguese influence. They are great technically and they can cause us problems if we do not play well.”
He added that the quality of African players meant that African football was becoming more popular:
“I watch as much football as I can. African football is producing a lot of quality players, so the AFCON has become more popular in England.”
Hughton then explained that while he would love to get off to a winning start, qualification was the most important thing to him:
“It is important to win the first game, but it is not about me it is about getting the points and qualifying for the AFCON. Our aim is to qualify and do well. I would love to win my first game win but it is important to get that win ahead of the other game against Angola which is a tough one”