The Black Meteors will take on Congo in their first match of the U23 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Sunday, June 25, 2023, at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat, Morocco.
The Group A match kicks off at 3 pm GMT.
Ghana’s Head Coach Ibrahim Tanko has 25 players to pick his starting eleven after confirming his official squad for the tournament.
The Black Meteors head into the tournament on the back of a 1-1 draw with Egypt U23 Team and a 4-1 triumph over Zamalek in friendly matches.
In his pre-match conference, Coach Tanko highlighted the readiness of his team to achieve the target of qualifying for the 2024 Paris Olympics and the trophy.
“Our target is to qualify to the Olympic Games but of ofcourse there is a trophy at stake so we want to win it too”.
“Our preparations have been good. We started in Ghana and went to Egypt. Our objective is to qualify and to win the ultimate”.
In his pre-game interview, Ghana’s Captain, Daniel Afriyie Barnieh buttress his Coach’s thought that the tream is ready for the competition.
“It’s a good atmosphere in our camp.
On and off the pitch the morale is really high in our camp”
“Everything is quite good and our objective for this competition is to qualify for the Olympic Games and also to win the trophy”.
“It means a lot to me to participate in the Olympic Games because it is one of the biggest competitions in the world.”
“It’s a competition that has seen a lot of stars participate in over the years”. He said.
The 2023 U23 AFCON kicked off on Saturday, June 24, 2023, with host nation, Morocco beating Guinea 2-1 in Group A.
Egypt, Mali, Niger, and Gabon make up Group B.
The Champions, Runner-up and 3rd place nation automatically qualify for the 2024 Olympics, whiles the 4th placed team will be involved in a play-off against a team from Asia.
