Ghana coach Otto Addo has opened up on his decision to exclude in-form Sweden-based Ghanaian attacking midfielder Michael Baidoo from the Black Stars' 25-man squad list for the upcoming 2025 Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers against Sudan.
The IF Elfsborg talismanic forward was omitted from the Ghana squad list for the all-important fixtures despite his impressive performances in the Swedish Allsvenskan and the 2024-25 UEFA Europa League.
On the eve of the Black Stars squad announcement, Baidoo scored his debut goal to secure a historic win for IF Elfsborg against AS Roma in the Europa League.
However, Otto Addo during a press conference explained why he didn’t include the former Ghana U20 in his squad for the Sudan double-header.
“He [Michael Baidoo] is on our radar. We are in touch. He is an excellent striker and we will see what will happen in the future,” he said.
“At the moment, this is what we think. Inaki and Semenyo are scoring so to be honest I think the Premier League is a bit tougher. He is a good striker so we will see what will happen in the future”
The four-time champions of the AFCON title are without a win in their opening games in Group F, losing to Angola and drawing against Niger in September.
The Black Stars will be hoping to revive their AFCON 2025 qualification chances when they face Sudan after a sloppy start to the qualifiers last month.
Ghana is set to face Sudan at the Accra Sports Stadium on Thursday, October 10, before traveling to Libya for the second leg at the Martyrs of Benina Stadium in Benina on Tuesday, October 15, 2024.
Otto Addo's side aim to secure one of the top two spots in Group F to qualify for the AFCON tournament, scheduled from December 21, 2025, to January 18, 2026 in Morocco.
