Black Satellites head coach Desmond Ofei has reacted to the 13th African Games Male Football competition draw which was held in Abidjan on Thursday, February 1, 2024.
The Black Satellites have been paired in Group A alongside Benin, Congo and the Gambia.
Coach Ofei will be leading Ghana’s male national team to compete in the African Games which will be staged in Accra from March 8-23, 2023.
“We are really working hard ahead of the tournament so we were not really looking at the draw because whoever we come up against I am sure we will be ready.”
“You cannot underestimate any country. It's not going to be easy but a nation like Ghana cannot be afraid of any opponent”, Coach Ofei said after Thursday’s draw.
The U-20 head coach also provided an update on the team’s preparations and was upbeat about his side’s readiness for the competition.
“We are on schedule, in the coming weeks we will focus on finetuning. We have really strong and individual quality players so now its about putting together a good team so that we can compete”.
“The boys are in good spirit because they are hungry and want to show the nation what they can do. Because we got players from various Clubs and different league tiers ie the Premier League, Division One and even Division Two, they are really keen on showing their qualities and capabilities and are excited to get the tournament started”.
“We have a good team, a squad and good individual players and we are looking forward to form a good team for the competition and we are excited to get it started”.
The Black Satellites have played a number of test matches as part of their preparations for the tournament and are likely to play a few more before the tournament begins including a friendly game against Cote D’Ivoire.
“We will play a few high profile friendlies hopefully against some Ghana Premier League teams. We are also awaiting confirmation to play a friendly match against Cote D’Ivoire before the tournament begins”.
“We have taken the challenge of representing our country in front at home in our strides. It is a positive thing for us and we have taken the pressure that comes with it as a motivation”, he added.