Ghana coach Ibrahim Tanko graciously admitted that Morocco deserved their victory in the U-23 African Cup of Nation match clash on Tuesday night.
Tanko acknowledged the disparity in rest days, with Ghana having one day of rest compared to Morocco's two, which led to the players showing signs of fatigue on the field.
Tanko stated, "It’s a deserved win for Morocco but we had a day rest and they had two days of rest. The players showed fatigue." He also acknowledged that Ghana's show of respect towards Morocco may have contributed to their defeat.
“We showed them a lot of respect and they punished us for that.”
Tanko highlighted a similar situation with Congo, who faced a similar fate due to Guinea having an extra day of rest. This further emphasized the significance of proper rest and recovery for the teams.
“You saw how Congo also suffered same fate because Guinea had an extra day to rest”
Looking ahead to their next match against Guinea, Tanko expressed determination to make good use of the two days they have to prepare for the game. He emphasized the importance of both Ghana and Guinea performing well in order to have a chance of progressing to the next stage of the tournament.
“Now we have two days before we play our next match and we will make good use of it”.
Tanko concluded, “Both of Ghana and Guinea stand a chance of making it to the next stage so both teams will prepare well for the game. Definitely we want to win and qualify to the next stage.”
With the loss to Morocco, Ghana now faces the risk of missing out on advancing to the semi-finals of the U-23 AFCON. Failure to defeat Guinea in their upcoming match would result in Ghana's elimination at the group stage, thereby missing out on qualification for the Olympic Games.
The crucial match between Ghana and Guinea is scheduled to take place on Friday, June 30.
