Black Stars’ head coach Charles Akonnor will miss the services of seven top stars this afternoon as the Black Stars face South Africa’s Bafana Bafana in the Qatar 2022 World Cup qualifier in Johannesburg.
The seven players played key roles in handing Ghana a 1-0 win over the Walias of Ethiopia at the Cape Coast Stadium last Friday.
England-based quintet, Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace), Daniel Amartey (Leicester City), Jeffrey Schlupp (Leicester City) and Reading FC duo of Andy Kyere Yiadom and Baba Abdul Rahman did not make the trip to the Rainbow nation, following the decision of Premier League clubs not to allow their players travel to COVID-19 red-list countries.
Rennes forward Kamal Deen Suleymana and Daniel-Kofi Kyereh of German side FC St. Pauli also failed to make the trip after they were recalled by their clubs.
In their absence the likes of defenders Philemon Baffuor, Samuel Ashie Quaye, Fatawu Mohammed as well as forwards Fatawu Issahaku, Daniel Afriyie Barnieh, Braydon Manu and Emmanuel Gyasi made the trip.
Ghana’s open day win over Ethiopia last Friday puts them on top of Group G, moving into this afternoon’s game after Zimbabwe held South Africa to a 0-0 draw in Harare the same day.
The Stars, whose last visit to Johannesburg in March this year produced a draw against the Bafana Bafana side, a result that saw Ghana sealing qualification to the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, would attempt to better the results this time around to make qualification to the next stage easy.
BY RAYMOND ACKUMEY