Ghana to compete in COSAFA Cup

Ghana have been included in the 2014 COSAFA Cup after the Comoros Islands pulled out of the competition.

The chairman of COSAFA’ s Organising Committee, Timothy Shongwe, said the Black Stars’ inclusion and readiness to participate shows how important the tournament is to Africa.

“We are delighted to have Ghana competing in Botswana and it is another sign of the high regard the rest of Africa places in the COSAFA Cup competition,” Shongwe said in a press statement.

“Ghana are a powerhouse of the continent and have been the most successful African side at the last two World Cup tournaments, narrowly missing out on a place in the semi-finals in South African in 2010,” he added.

He noted that Ghana bring a lot of experience to the competition and that will test the strength of the southern African sides.

“Players from Ghana are coveted by top European clubs and there is a good chance that we will see future superstars of the national team in Botswana later this year. It will be a huge test for our Southern African sides to take on the Black Stars, but that is just the type of competition we are looking for to help develop the game in the region,” Shongwe opined.

The competition is scheduled to take place from September 13-27 in Botswana and Ghana could become the first non-Southern African country to win the tournament.

The 2014 edition of the competition will be played in the same format as last year’s challenge, with the two first round groups contested, with the winners advancing to the quarterfinals.??Ghana will most likely get a passport into the quarter-finals along with the five other best positioned teams according to the FIFA World Rankings, who will be joined by the two pool winners to complete the last eight.

There will also be a plate section for the teams on the losing side of matters, to give all the teams ample opportunities to play.