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Ghana have failed to secure qualification to Paris Olympic Games after the Black Meteors exited the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations following a disappointing 1-1 draw against Guinea on Friday night.
Despite needing a victory to advance to the next stage of the tournament and stay in contention for Olympic qualification, Ghana surrendered their first-half lead, resulting in an early elimination.
Here are the five key talking points from Ghana’s unsuccessful campaign:
Defensive Struggles:
While the attacking prowess showed promise with five goals scored in three games, the defensive performance was abysmal. Conceding a total of eight goals in just 270 minutes of play is simply unacceptable, leading to their premature exit. Notably, goalkeeper Danlad Ibrahim, who was part of Ghana’s 2022 World Cup squad, failed to organise the defence effectively, resulting in conceding avoidable goals. The defensive unit as a whole must bear the majority of the responsibility, with centre-back Terry Yegbe also performing poorly throughout the tournament.
Ibrahim Tanko’s Continued Failure:
Black Meteors coach Ibrahim Tanko has once again fallen short of delivering the desired results. Four years ago in Egypt, Tanko missed out on Olympic qualification, and unfortunately, history has repeated itself. Despite the high hopes placed in him due to his previous tournament experience, where he guided the team to a fourth-place finish, this time he couldn’t even secure advancement from the group stage. It is clear that a change of direction and a new coaching approach are necessary at this point.
Ghana Outplayed:
Throughout the tournament, Ghana failed to display high-level football in any of their matches. They were consistently outclassed, even in the game they won 3-2 against Congo, where Congo could have equalised given more time. Their 5-1 thrashing by Morocco showcased their shortcomings, and in the match against Guinea, they struggled to maintain possession as the Guineans dictated the game brilliantly. This is a disappointing sight for Ghana, a nation considered a football powerhouse on the continent.
Prolonged Wait for Olympic Qualification:
The Black Meteors’ failure to qualify for the Olympic Games adds to the disappointment of Ghanaian football fans who had high hopes for this team to end the long wait for Olympic participation. Qualifying for the Olympics used to be routine for Ghana, with the country even securing a historic bronze medal at the 1992 Barcelona Games. However, recent years have seen struggles to qualify, with the last appearance being in 2004. The objective of ending the wait was clear going into this tournament, but the players and coaching staff fell short, leaving Ghanaian football fans disheartened.
Woeful Tournament Results Continue:
Ghana’s tournament performances over the past 16 months have been extremely poor. The U-17 and U-20 teams failed to impress in the WAFU Zone B tournaments and missed out on qualification for the AFCON tournaments. The senior national team, the Black Stars, finished last in their group at the Cameroon tournament, managing only one point. They also suffered an early exit at the World Cup in Qatar. Additionally, the Black Galaxies were eliminated in the quarter-finals of the African Nations tournament by Niger. These repeated failures indicate underlying issues within Ghanaian football, and urgent action is required from the authorities to address and rectify the situation.
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