Ghana is one of five African nations who will be playing at the World Cup in Qatar. And many people are keen to find out how much of a chance African football has at the showpiece event and, more importantly, how Ghana could fare in the tournament.
The best place to start when analysing a squad and its chances of success is to see who the team will come up against in the group stages. There is no doubt that betting on World Cup games will be extremely popular, and betting on Ghana’s group potentially more so because there will be some close-run games.
Group H will see the African nation go up against stiff opposition in Portugal and Uruguay, with South Korea also in the group. While many expect Portugal to be certs to go through, second place could well be up for grabs in somewhat of a two-horse race.
It's tournament football, and anything can happen, so you can’t say for sure that Portugal are going to be all-conquering in Group H, even though they have a squad blessed with an array of talents and one man in particular in Cristiano Ronaldo.
He will be appearing at his final World Cup. But for Ghana, the aim must be to certainly get the job done against South Korea, get the upper hand over Uruguay, and then give it all they've got against Portugal. Following this path could see them finish second or even first. It's not out of the realm of possibility.
A delve into the squad that manager Otto Addo is taking to Qatar tells you that it’s one where there is enough talent to at least put in good performances and do the country justice against even some of the best teams in the world. The likes of Mohammed Salisu, Daniel Amartey, Tariq Lamptey, Thomas Partey, Mohammed Kudos, Kamaldeen Sulemana and Inaki Williams are all accomplished players and proven talents that can mix it with top opposition. And that’s what they’re going to have to do to even make it out of the group.
Manager Addo has been in post now for eight games, and so far, his record hasn’t lived up to the expectations of a nation that think it can progress at the World Cup. He’s won three of those eight matches, with victories against the likes of Madagascar, Chile and Nicaragua. However, Ghana were well beaten by Japan and failed to impress against other African nations too.
What Ghana have going for them is that Group H isn’t cut and dry in terms of who will likely go through alongside Portugal. And they have some good players who can come to the fore and help them progress. However, it’s the rest of the squad and perhaps the level of quality there that could see them struggle against more well-rounded and balanced nations. And the World Cup will also be a big test of Addo’s credentials.
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