Victory over Uganda is the key to Stars' revival - Boateng

Dereck Boateng, a player of the Senior national Team, Black Stars has said victory over the Cranes of Uganda in their Saturday's African Cup qualifier in Kampala would be the indicator for the team's revival from their recent slum.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Boateng who plays for Greek club, Panathinaikos, said recent performance of the team where they have lost to less fancied teams on the continent has been very worrying to some of them.

"The present mood in camp is that of victory and the massive response of my colleague foreign based players to the national call also shows their commitment to the revival process", he pointed out. Another player Edmund Copson of Accra Hearts of Oaks echoed Boateng's sentiments when he said that the feeling in camp is going to win to announce to the whole continent that the Stars are back. Copson said he is even more motivated as a locally based player in a team dominated by foreign-based colleagues saying "nothing can stand in the way of the forward movement of a team with this level of motivation".

Isaac Paha, Deputy Coach of the team said presently all the foreign-based players invited, with the exception of Ibrahim Rasak of Saint Etienne, France, who would join his colleagues in Uganda, are in camp.

He said there are 22 players in camp after the arrival of Borrusia Dortmund's Otto Addo and Wolfsburg's Hans Adu Sarpei on Wednesday. Paha said 20 players would make the trip meaning that two players would be dropped.

He explained that the two players who are likely to be dropped are those from the national under 20 team, the Black satellites, who were brought in to augment the team.

Paha said he also sees a revival in the fortunes of the team looking at the level of discipline and commitment shown by the players and also the fact that players, who had hitherto turned down national calls, have all decided to rejoin the team.