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Ghana and Qatar will meet for the first time at the senior level in Turkey on Monday afternoon. When both sides meet, they will make history as the first non-European senior men’s national soccer teams to use the Mardan sports complex for a friendly match.
Due to Covid-19, both countries have not had enough time to prepare for the upcoming qualifiers and major tournaments. Therefore, this game presents a good evaluation opportunity for both teams.
Match preview
Although the match will take place in a neutral venue, Ghana is officially the home team and will be looking to make up for a tough 3-0 loss to Mali on Friday.
With fans becoming more and more impatient, Black Stars will need a good performance to certainly appease the fans.
On their way is a Qatari team that has yet to play a match in 2020, with their most recent competitive match in December 2019 when they lost 1-0 to Saudi Arabia in the semi-finals of the Gulf Cup.
Qatar enjoyed a fruitful 2019 in which they played 20 matches winning 13, drawing two and losing just five. It was a year to remember as the Qataris won the Asian Cup and also played the America’s Cup.
With the 2022 World Cup ever closer, Qatar will look to continue its steady progress with a victory over Ghana.
Ghana form: LWWDL
Shape of Qatar: LWWLW
Team news
Unsurprisingly, CK Akonnor has announced his team hours before kick-off, making five changes to the winger who was beaten by Mali three days ago.
Nicholas Opoku has yet to recover from his injury as he has been replaced by Joseph Aidoo. The other four changes see Razak Abalora, Benson Annan, Iddrisu Baba and Samuel Owusu enter.
For Qatar, Salem Al Hajri, Assim Madibo and Bassam Al Rawi were not included in the squad for the friendly as they have yet to recover from their injuries. However, key players Akram Afif, Almoez Ali and Abdelkarim Hassan are available.
The Asian champions are expected to feature a team similar to the one that last represented them in the semi-final of the Gulf Cup.
Ghana predicted XI (4-3-3): Razak Abalora; Benson Annan; Alexander Djiku; Joseph Aidoo; Gideon Mensah; Idrissu Baba; Thomas Partey; Samuel Owusu; Andre Ayew; Tarique Fosu; Jordan Ayew.
Qatar predicted XI (5-4-1): Saad Al Sheeb; Ró-Ró; Musaab Kheder; Boualem Khoukhi; Tarek Salman; Abdelkarim Hassan; Hassan Al-Haydos; Karim Boudiaf; Abdulaziz Hatem; Akram Afif; Almoez Ali.
Ghana vs Qatar prediction
Ghana will be desperate to prove a point when they take on a strong and energetic team from Qatar. Despite possessing attacking qualities, the lack of football in the last 10 months could prove too fatal against a Ghanaian team that already has a game under its belt.
Prediction: Ghana 2-1 Qatar
