Black Stars head coach Carlos Queiroz says Ghana face a difficult start to their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign due to injuries and late squad changes.
The Portuguese coach said several players were unavailable before the team started preparations for the opening game against Côte d’Ivoire.
“When I started this journey, at the beginning I looked at my paper and I had 12 players out of the potential call-ups immediately. This is not a good starting point. One day before you start camp for Ivory Coast, you lose eight players,” Queiroz said.
He said the changes have forced him to look beyond individual players and focus on building a strong core for the national team.
“We have to find one way to build the team around the core, the core of players that sustain the team,” he added.
Ghana have made several changes to the squad ahead of Thursday’s game against Côte d’Ivoire in Bouaké.
Mohammed Kudus and injured Prince Kwabena Adu have withdrawn after initially receiving call-ups, while Thomas Partey was left out because of a hamstring problem.
Lorient defender Nathaniel Adjei has also withdrawn through injury.
Brandon Thomas-Asante, Mohammed Fuseini and Rahim Ibrahim have been added to the squad at different stages.
Wolfsburg defender Jonas Adjetey has also received a late call-up, according to his club.
