15 Ghana-based players and 14 foreign-based players have been called up to the Black Meteors’ provisional squad ahead of this year’s AFCON Under-23 Championship.
Among the top names that missed out on a call up by Meteors head coach Ibrahim Tanko are Medeama Sporting Club’s defender, Nurudeen Abdulai and Bechem United winger Clinton Duodu.
Both players have impressed this season and aided their respective teams’ BetPawa Ghana League title chase; Medeama and Bechem United rank first and second in the league respectively.
Abdulai has been a revelation to the Tarkwa-based club after joining the team from lower division side, Cheetah FC.
The 18-year-old who turns 19 in August, won four Man of the Match Awards in January en route to being named the Player of the Month.
Abdulai has scored three goals in 29 league appearances and, should Medeama beat Tamale City on Sunday, June 11, the Mauve and Yellow side will win its first ever league title.
On the attacking side, Duodu who turns 18 on June 20, has three goals and three assists in 24 league games this season.
He missed out on a place in the squad to foreign based forwards including Kamaldeen Sulemana, Fatawu Issahaku and Ernest Nuamah.
This year’s Under 23 AFCON runs from June 24 to July 8 in Morocco with Ghana drawn in Group A with the host nation, Congo and Guinea.
The podium finishers qualify automatically to the 2023 Paris Olympics with the fourth team entering a playoff game against an Asian Federation contender for the final spot.
