The stage is set for what pundits have described as a ‘battle –royale’ today when a rejuvenated Black Stars side face the Warriors of Zimbabwe in a reversed fixture of a Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier in Harare, Zimbabwe.
Ghana tamed the Warriors on Saturday in Ghana with a 3-1 victory to climb to second position on the Group G qualifying table ahead of Sudan and Ethiopia.
Saturday’s victory was the first competitive match under Serbian Coach, Milovan Rajevac, who has made a return to the country after guiding the Stars to the South African FIFA World Cup in 2010.
Milovan was a hassled choice for the Black Stars after the GFA kicked out C.K Akonnor for poor performance.
His return – made possible by a three-man committee formed to find a coach within 72 hours – generated controversy on the football landscape, over mixed outcomes from his following adventures.
Those adventures saw him have stints with club sides like Saudi Arabian team Al-Ahli which he left a few months later to take up the role as national team coach for Qatar.
He was relieved of duties in August 2011 and was linked with the Egyptian, Burkina Faso, Algerian and the Thai national teams.
But he appears to have regained the fans confidence with the convincing performance that also showed the Stars put up an improved performance.
With a tall order to upstage South Africa, Milovan and his army would have to pull a double over the Zimbabweans who are mathematically out of the reckoning as far as qualification was concerned.
Knowing how a win could spark some late morale-boosting fight, they will hope to do away with the whipping boys tag with the all-important clash in front of their fans.
In Ghana, they gave few indications of their capability to cause an upset by netting once and hitting the goal post and at certain stages restricting the Stars forays to the centre of the pitch.
But Milovan and his charges seem to have brought a new spirit into the team and could spring a big surprise with a win.
That mission look possible with the strong team he took for the game.
Jojo Wollacott will cement his place in goal just as Baba Abdul Rahman, Daniel Amartey, Jonathan Mensah and Alexander Djiku are expected to provide that steel in defence.
Thomas Partey and Mohammed Kudus will surely be the engine in midfield to drive the forwards Andre Ayew and Kamaldeen Suleymana to cause the damage.
BY ANDREW NORTEY
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