Ghana players are determining to avoid any kind of surprise against Cap Verde on Saturday (Photo: Reuters)
The hierarchy in African football has completely changed. Several teams which are ranked as outsiders have reached the Quarter-finals of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations at the expense of classic favourites, Black Stars assistant coach Maxwell Konadu said on Thursday.
Defending champions Zambia, Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria have all been eliminated from the group stages, leaving their places to outsiders Cap Verde, Burkina Faso and Togo.
“Before we came here [South Africa], head coach Kwesi Appiah made it clear that all the teams that have qualified are good teams with an equal chance,” Konadu said on Ghana FA official website on Thursday.
“There is no way we are going to underrate anybody. And I think that is what we are seeing here.”
“Most of the teams that people thought were adding up to the numbers are doing very, very well. This shows that you just can’t underestimate any team,” he added.
Konadu added that the Black Stars should take their upcoming game against Cap Verde in the tournament's quarter-final 'seriously' to avoid any kind of surprise.
Ghana qualified to the knockout stage as winner of Group B with seven points.
“We will also do our best to make sure that we are not taken by surprise,” the Ghana assistant coach concluded.
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