Black stars head coach Carlos Queiroz insists the Black Stars are adequately prepared for the 2026 FIFA World Cup despite playing only one friendly match under his leadership ahead of the tournament.
Ghana’s final warm-up game ended in a 1-1 draw against Wales on June 2 at Cardiff City Stadium. The match was a historic first-ever senior international meeting between the two nations and served as the Black Stars’ final test before travelling to North America for the World Cup.
With questions raised about whether one friendly was enough preparation, Queiroz stressed that the team’s readiness has been built through a combination of previous matches and intensive training sessions.
Speaking during his pre-match press conference ahead of Ghana’s Group L opener against Panama on June 17, the Portuguese coach said preparations are not measured solely by the number of matches played.
“Yes, we played one game, but it was not the only game that the team played. There were other games before that we took lessons from,” Queiroz said.
The veteran tactician explained that every training session adds value and that teams must make the best use of the circumstances available to them.
“In terms of preparation, life is simple for us in football. One training is better than zero, two is better than one, three is better than two, and so on.”
“Two games are better than one, three are better than two.”
However, Queiroz believes that when matches are limited, coaches can compensate through additional work on the training ground.
“But if you only have one game, you have to take the best of that situation. We play one game, we train more. If we play more games, we train less.”
Ghana will open their World Cup campaign against Panama before taking on England and Croatia in what is considered one of the tournament’s most competitive groups.
