Ghana line up Russian friendlies

Ghana have arranged two friendlies next month so that head coach Ratomir Dujkovic can assess his Europe-based players ahead of the World Cup. The Black Stars will play FC Moscow on 8 May, before taking on Dynamo Moscow on 11 May in Russia.

Ghana Football Association spokesman Randy Abbey told BBC Sport: "Our coach is in Europe, observing some of our players who missed the Nations Cup.

"He will use the two matches to assess players before naming his final squad."

The matches will give Dujkovic the chance to run the rule over the likes of Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien, Roma defender Samuel Osei Kuffuor and Fenerbahce midfielder Stephen Appiah before he names his squad on 15 May.

Ghana had originally planned to play German club Hannover on 26 April but the Bundesliga outfit pulled out due to organizational problems.