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Ghana go tackle Mali for crunch 2025 Wafcon West Africa derby

Ghana go tackle Mali for crunch 2025 Wafcon West Africa derby

BBC News11-07-2025
Black Queens of Ghana go face di Female Eagles of Mali on Friday for dia second Group C game for di ongoing 2025 Wafcon.
Ghana bin dey bottom for di group afta dem lose dia first game against South Africa (2-0).
Mali dey second on top di table as dem bin win dia first game (1-0) wit di only goal by Saratou Traore at half time of dat game.
Dis game now na do-or-die for di Black Queens as a defeat mean say Ghana go comot di competition.
Dis na West African derby game - di stakes dey high.
Di Black Queens get 13 shots on goal for dia game against defending champions South Africa.
Alice Kusi and Evelyn Badu bin also hit di crossbar for dat game as dem try to get late goal to spark comeback.
Wit dat performance, Ghana go try to build on dat to try to get di results for dis game v Mali.
Wetin di two coaches tok
Ghana coach Kim Lars Bjorkegren tok for di pre-match conference say, "we bin dey beta dan South Africa for dat game but we no fit to score. But our goal still dey di same, na to win."
"We don dey focus on ourselves now. Our players dey fit now. We believe in our abilities and our style," di coach tok.
Im add say, "we get to dey clinical inside di box if we want to win dis game."
Bjorkegren bin welcome im assistant captain Jennifer Cudjoe wey bin dey suspended for di opening game
Her presence mean say di midfield go dey experienced wey di coach tok say, "we get to do dis for di fans back home and across di world."
But dis game go hard sake of Mali dey efficient, even wen dem no get di ball.
Wit di experience of dia four players for attack - Saratou Traore wey bin score di only goal for dia first game, Kadidiatou Diabate, Aissata Traore and Aguiessa Diarra, di Ghana defense get dia hands full for dis game.
Di Female Eagles of Mali wey finish di 2018 edition as semi-finalists dey count on dia physical abilities for dis game against Ghana.
Sabi pipo say na dem be di dark horses for dis tournament, but dia coach Houssein Salloum Mohammed no want make tins enta dia head.
Im tok say, "to win our first game mean say we get di mental advantage as we dey enta dis game versus Ghana. We sabi wetin we fit do and di quality of our squad."
"Na West African derby, all di teams dey physical, we expect Ghana to be physical but we don prepare well."
Head-to-head
Dis na di fifth time dis two teams don meet for Wafcon.
Ghana don win 3 times (2-0 for 2022, 1-0 for 2006 and 3-1 for 2016).
But for 2018, Mali bin win against Ghana (2-1) for di Wafcon, wia dat na result coach Mohammed wan repeat as im bin dey coach di female eagles since 2017.
CAF don quote oga Mohammed say, "I bin dey in charge of dis team for eight years now. I sabi di players well-well, wey we continue to dey grow every day. We wan achieve di same tin we achieve for 2018 and reach di semi-finals and den enta di final."
Mali im last five games don produce less dan 3 goals
Four out of Ghana last six games don see di two teams score goals
Bifor Mali win dia first group game v Tanzania, dem bin lose two straight games ahead of di competition
Ghana also bin concede at least two first half goals for dia last three games.
Di game between Ghana and Mali go happun at 4PM GMT (5PM WAT) for di Berkane stadium.
Join us for di live text commentary of dis West African derby game for di 2025 Wafcon.
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