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The Black Stars coach says the veteran defender missed out of his World Cup squad because of uncertainties over his fitness. Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah has said he did not include John Mensah in his 26-man provisional World Cup squad because of concerns over the fitness of the 31-year-old. Mensah, who stayed out of football for almost a year recently joined FC Nitra in Slovakia, but has only managed three appearances. The former Sunderland defender got injured in his third match six weeks ago and has since not recovered. A section of Ghanaian football fans and pundits were clamouring for his inclusion due to his experience. But Appiah said Mensah could not make the cut purely on the ground of injury. �He was injured for some time and when he got a team, we were all happy for him,� Appiah told the press after naming his squad. �We were hoping that he will get fit and join us but since he played 11 minutes for his club six weeks ago and got injured, he has not recovered.� �We are looking at players who are 100% fit to represent the country. We know he is a good player but it�s unfortunate he is not been playing. We wish that he is part of us,� he added. Appiah picked John Boye, Jonathan Mensah, Jerry Akaminko, and Rashid Sumaila as his central defenders for the tournament.