AFCON Qualifiers: Carlos Queiroz charges Ghana to deliver against Côte dâ??Ivoire in Bouaké

Black Stars head coach Carlos Queiroz says Ghana have little time to prepare for their opening 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Côte d’Ivoire, with the team focused on delivering a result in Bouaké.

Queiroz admitted that the AFCON qualifying campaign presents a different challenge from the World Cup, with the short turnaround leaving little opportunity for major tactical changes or player development.

“We arrive Monday, players arrive today and Thursday we have a game. There is no room for great decisions, no room for development, only room to deliver,” Queiroz said.

The Portuguese coach also acknowledged that Ghana have encountered problems in the build-up to the qualifier, particularly with several players unavailable through injury or withdrawals.

However, he said the technical team has spent the past 48 hours addressing the issues and ensuring the squad is ready for the challenge ahead.

“This wonderful team, we have a couple of goals, we are taking in some water, we have a couple of holes in our boat, but we keep sailing,” Queiroz said.

“We keep sailing strong and our job in the last 48 hours is to fix those issues.”

Ghana have had to make several changes to their squad ahead of the trip to Côte d’Ivoire, with Mohammed Kudus and Nathaniel Adjei withdrawing through injury, while Thomas Partey was not called up due to his hamstring problem.

The Black Stars will face Côte d’Ivoire in Bouaké on Thursday before hosting The Gambia in Accra on September 29.

With limited preparation time, Queiroz's immediate task is to get his available players ready to compete and start the qualification campaign positively.

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