Elizabeth Addo, the Captain of Ghana’s Black Queens has appealed to the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS) and the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to organise quality international friendly matches for them ahead of the 2022 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations (AWCON) qualifiers.
Ghana’s opponent, Nigeria has lined up international friendly matches with countries including Jamaica and Portugal as part of preparations, and the 27-year old urged the football management bodies to do the same for the Queens to get the players in top form.
Addo, who is also the midfielder for the Djugardens IF Football Club, expressed worry at the situation, saying, “The Super Falcons of Nigeria played Portugal yesterday in a friendly which ended 3-3.”
“We saw Nigeria play Portugal last night and they gave a good account of themselves. We would play a crucial qualifier with this team in a few months and their preparation is enviable. Black Queens need good international games to get ready. Please listen to us for once.”
Nigeria is the three-time defending champions, having won the tournament in 2014, 2016 and 2018. The 2020 edition, which would have been the first to feature twelve teams, was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2022 AWCON to be staged in Morocco also doubles as the African qualifiers to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup. The top four teams will qualify for the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, and two more teams will advance to the inter-confederation play-offs. –GNA
