Ghana head coach Otto Addo has acknowledged the Black Stars' ongoing decline, admitting the team was fortunate to qualify for the 2022 World Cup.
Ghana secured their spot in Qatar after narrowly edging out Nigeria on away goals in a tense two-legged playoff.
This qualification followed a disappointing campaign at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroon, where the Black Stars were eliminated in the group stage. Since then, the team has struggled to make an impact at major tournaments, suffering another group-stage exit at the 2023 AFCON in Ivory Coast.
Now, Ghana faces the prospect of missing out on the 2025 AFCON after a poor start to the qualifiers. With no wins after four matches, the Black Stars sit third in Group F with just two points, placing their qualification hopes in jeopardy.
Reflecting on the challenges faced by the team, Addo, now in his second stint as head coach, remarked, “Since not qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, we’ve been struggling as a country for a long time; we were lucky to qualify for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.”
Ghana’s road to AFCON 2025 now depends on crucial upcoming matches against Angola and Niger in November, where victories are essential. They must also hope Sudan stumbles in their remaining fixtures. The last time Ghana missed out on AFCON qualification was in 2004.
