Ghana set for Ivorian encore

The junior national teams have long grown accustomed to being treated like Ghana?s most successful national side.

Now it is the Olympic team?s turn. The first African football nation to pick a medal ? bronze ? at the Barcelona Games in 1992.

No sooner had the Black Starlets edged out Ivory Coast to qualify for the African Junior Championship than the Olympic side ? the Black Meteors line up for another encore with Ghana?s western neighbours for a place in next year?s All-African Games.

Ghana are drawn in Zone III together with Ivory Coast and Nigeria. However, Nigeria drew a bye and would thus meet the winner of the Ghana-Ivory Coast two-leg tie.

The Olympic team after a ten-day training tour of France returned back to the country on Friday and journeyed straight to Sunyani, where the match against the Ivorians would be taking place on Sunday.

The wealth of Ghana?s technical bench lead by the Cecil Jones Attuquayefio and J.E Sarpong are expected to stir the Olympic boat clear off the threatening Ivory waters.

So everything in the national colours promises to be a success story.

And the national coach, Cecil Jones Attuquayefio is beaming with much confidence ahead of the game.

The Black Meteors backroom staff on their return from France ringed some changes to the squad.

Isaac Vorsah, Tua Khamis, Alex Asamoah, Yaw Frimpong and Mohammed Abdul Razak have made it into the Olympic squad while Hassan Mohammed, Bismark Idan, Patrick Antwi, George Yamoah and Douglas Nkrumah are dropped for Sunday's game.

And Cecil Jones Attuquayefio explains that the changes was as a result of injuries and the work rate of some of the players.

?When we selected these players, we believed they were the best in the country at the time. But as we build the team, changes would be made and after accessing all our boys, we had to make some changes,? the coach said.

The Black Meteors? ten-day training tour of France according to the national coach has enhanced their preparations ahead of Sunday?s game.

?I know the Ivorians have been in camp for a long time but our trip to France has offered us the opportunity to learn, train and rehearse our game plan for Sunday?, Jones said.