Minister for Sports and Recreation, Kofi Adams, has indicated that the expected reduction of Ghana’s provisional 28-man squad to the final 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup will most likely affect the goalkeeping department.
Black Stars head coach Carlos Queiroz named a 28-man squad for the pre-World Cup training camp in Wales, including five goalkeepers as part of his preparations for the tournament; The goalkeepers called up are Benjamin Asare, Solomon Agbasi, Lawrence Ati-Zigi, Joseph Anang and Paul Reverson.
Speaking on TV3, Adams explained that the upcoming friendly against Wales and the training sessions in Cardiff would help the coaching staff make their final decisions
“He has a friendly on June 2 against Wales and he wants to use the training period to observe a number of them and maybe give some of them the opportunity to play. He would then use that to conclude,” Adams said.
“But basically, I know it is the goalkeeping unit that is going to suffer the most. If you look at each department and two people are going to be dropped, the goalkeeping unit will surely suffer the most.”
The Sports Minister noted that carrying five goalkeepers in a provisional squad makes that department the most likely area for reductions, given the limited number of goalkeepers usually included in major tournament squads.
“Normally, if you look at the number of goalkeepers that are sent to tournaments and in the 28-man call-up he already has five goalkeepers, it means you will not be taking five goalkeepers to the tournament,” he added.
“So the cut is likely to come from there more. Even if it is one that is taken off, it will be heavier on that department than any other department.”
Adams further suggested that some areas of the squad may remain untouched as Queiroz finalises his selections.
“Some departments will not suffer any cut at all. Because the goalkeeping, defence, midfield and forward lines are the departments that you have, but goalkeeping will surely take a cut,” he concluded.
The Black Stars are currently in Wales for their pre-World Cup preparations, with the friendly against Wales expected to provide Queiroz with a final opportunity to assess his options before naming Ghana’s definitive 26-man squad for the tournament.
