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The Black Satellites boss shares his thoughts on the outcome of the draw for the upcoming continental championship.
Ghana coach Abdul Karim Zito says his team is unfazed by being grouped with arch rivals Nigeria and Ivory Coast for the upcoming Wafu B Cup of Nations.
The tournament, to be held in Togo from November 14 to 29, will serve as a qualifier for the 2021 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations in Tanzania, which in turn will determine Africa’s representatives for the FIFA U-20 World Cup. 20 of 2021.
In a virtual draw held in Abidjan in the Ivory Coast, Ghana will battle their West African rivals for a place in the knockout phase.
Only the final winner will qualify for the Afcon U20.
“Well, it’s very interesting to be paired against Nigeria and Ivory Coast,” Zito told the official website of the Ghana Football Association about the development on Tuesday.
“They are not an easy couple, but we are working to achieve the maximum, so for me, whatever it is, we have to work hard and get to the top.”
“We have been training well and all the boys are in good shape, by the time we go out for the competition the team will be ready
“We have played three trial matches so far and the goal is to get the boys in tune with what we are doing, which is going very well.
“We are planning to play another test match, possibly against a select team from the Western Region before finalizing our pre-tournament preparations.”
Zito has been tasked with guiding Ghana to the world championships, as the Black Satellites have not been present at the competition since their appearance in New Zealand 2015.
In qualifying for the 2019 World Cup, Ghana failed to pass the African stage by falling in the continental meeting in Niger.
In 2017, they were unable to qualify for Afcon entirely.
The Black Satellites, the 2009 world champions, have won the Afcon U20 three previous times: in 1993, 1999 and 2009.
It remains the third most successful country in Afcon U-20 history, behind seven-time champions Nigeria and Egypt, who have won the cup four times.
