Ghana, Portugal’s opponent in the opening round of group H of the 2022 World Cup, reconciles “physical availability with technical quality” on Thursday, says Portuguese coach Mariano Barreto, who already guided the Africans.
“The Ghanaians have some big setbacks because they are very skilled with the ball. If we don’t contain some of the key units, we will have a very difficult time. I think it is much more complicated for Portugal to take on African teams, whose idea is not to have a lot of possession, but to attack and score a goal when they win the ball. That’s what sets them apart. Ghana will play very objective football, aiming to try and play very close to the Portuguese goal. On the other hand, our selection will certainly have to worry”, the former selector of the ‘black stars’ framed the Lusa agency in 2004.
Portugal and Ghana will start contesting the 22nd edition of the World Cup at Estádio 974, in Doha, on Thursday at 19:00 local time (16:00 in Lisbon), in a Group H first round match, three hours after the clash between Uruguay and South Korea, also in the capital of Qatar.
“There are a lot of players with a lot of experience in European football, some of them playing for top clubs. Ghana were a strong group individually, but had little time to consolidate a team. For example, the Portuguese national team has a group consisting of a selector who has been there for eight years. By all accounts, he has been there long enough to have already transferred an idea for the game and built a working group that responds to all his intentions,” emphasized 65-year-old Mariano Barreto.
Absent from the 2018 edition, in Russia, the ‘black stars’ move into fourth presence in the main world tournament of selections, after starting by winning Group G of the second African qualifying stage, ahead of South Africa, Ethiopia and Zimbabwe.
The Ghanaians finished with the same 13 points as the South Africans and tied in head-to-head confrontation and goal difference, being guaranteed access to the ‘play-offs’ due to the greater number of goals scored (seven against six), already under the purview of Milovan Rajevac.
Successor to Charles Akonnor after two rounds, the Serbian coach last year saved the position he held between 2008 and 2010, the year he reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup in South Africa, but would be sacked in January for the worst punctual performance of Ghana in 23 appearances at the African Cup of Nations (ANC).
The defeats to Morocco and the Comoros and the draw against Gabon accelerated Group C’s fourth and final position, prompting the appointment of former striker Otto Addo, aged 47, who was in the country’s debut at the 2006 World Cup and started as head coach, was accelerated. .
“From that moment everything changed. Even without having much experience, this coach was called at a time when Ghana’s potential was greatly discredited due to its almost poor performance in CAN, and he achieved something few predicted”, he remembers. .
The African champions in 1963, 1965, 1978 and 1982 eliminated Nigeria from the play-offs thanks to away goals (0-0 at Cape Coast and 1-1 at Abeokuta), leading Mariano Barreto to speak of an “almost atypical” campaign “of the 61st place in the FIFA ranking – the worst record of the 32 finalists of the 2022 World Cup – to which “you can combine a bit of luck”.
That move laid the groundwork for a restructuring of the ‘black stars’ en route to Qatar, where they arrive with eight naturalized players out of 26 called up, five of whom have yet to complete their fifth cap, with an emphasis on Iñaki Williams .
“Having already worked in the prospecting department of Borussia Dortmund and Borussia Mönchengladbach, Otto Addo was aware of many athletes of Ghanaian descent, some of them born in Europe, who were not always part of the selection squad, because they were not playing in clubs. He joined a group of players after qualifying against Nigeria and built the team that will compete in the World Cup,” he explained.
Athletic Bilbao’s reference striker for the past decade, Spanish-Ghanaian Iñaki Williams, 28, is Accra’s “biggest star of the moment”, joined by the influential Daniel Amartey (Leicester), Thomas Partey (Arsenal) and Mohammed Kudus ( Ajax) and by brothers Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace) and André Ayew (Al-Sadd), captain and most capped footballer.
“These are players who combine technique with strength, but they have a transversal shortage of the Africans, which is the tactical culture. Deep down, it’s what makes mostly athletes of great technical quality have great difficulty asserting themselves in the transition to the European continent, as they seem to be able to learn at a somewhat older age what needs to be learned at more appropriate ages,” warned Mariano Barreto.
The coach, who returned to Ghana in 2021 for a fleeting experience at Asante Kotoko, title champion and most awarded club in the country, resorts to Sporting winger Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, 18 years old, the ‘Benjamin’ of the ‘Black Stars’ ‘ , to note this “lack of something” in the selection with the lowest average age present in Qatar (24.7 years).
“I played in a gym [Dreams], came to Portugal at the age of 18 and will do a great job to overcome his shortcomings. The time it will take him to learn everything that distinguishes a player in Europe will not be easy. You must be able to read the game, interpret the moment, react and anticipate. Talent alone is not enough.”
Mariano Barreto attaches more importance to Ghana’s debut
The opening match in group H of the 2022 World Cup is “more important for Ghana than for Portugal” on Thursday, Portuguese coach Mariano Barreto, who already guided the Africans, guarantees.
“It is historical that we are used to the calculator and do all the calculations until the last match. It would not be the first nor the second time that this would happen. If the Ghanaians lose the first match, it could be the beginning be of their demise. The impact of a defeat will certainly cause problems due to the lack of consistency in the group and the pressure of an entire nation, which thinks only about winning, just as the athletes want to,” said the agency Lusa de coach who guided the ‘black stars’ in 2004.
Portugal and Ghana will start contesting the 22nd edition of the World Cup at Estádio 974, in Doha, on Thursday at 19:00 local time (16:00 in Lisbon), in a Group H first round match, three hours after the clash between Uruguay and South Korea, also in the capital of Qatar.
“A defeat in Ghana could have that detrimental effect. I know them in that respect and I know that the line from eight to eighty is not that long, but a very thin line between total disillusionment and intoxicating euphoria. I don’t think so. “An easy game [para Portugal]because it depends on many factors and variables, and one of them is unpredictability,” he noted.
Recognizing that the formation of the ‘quinas’ will be “in fact favorites”, Mariano Barreto warns of the need to “respect” the first opponent of the eighth Portuguese presence, and fifth in a row, in the main selection competition, which shows “a great sense of nation”.
“Ghana is silent, no one is discussing anything and everyone is focused on the participation of their national team. From the poorest and most deprived to the richest, they only talk about football. The radio stations are busy 24 hours a day with interviews and debates.” about the selection. I have spoken to many of Ghana’s friends and leaders and their expectation is that they will consider anything less than reaching the semi-finals a failure,” he shared.
The 65-year-old coach believes that this goal “will not be easily achieved”, but trusts in a “funny performance” from the team led by the German-Ghanaian Otto Addo, who qualified for the tournament for the fourth time.
“The people of Ghana respect Portugal for its past. When they talk about Portugal, they talk about Cristiano Ronaldo, who, together with Lionel Messi, is a greater symbol for the Ghanaians. They know that Cristiano Ronaldo plays in the national team, but believe that Ghana has a chance to beat Portugal,” he repeated, referring to a country that reached the round of 16 once (2006) and once in the quarter (2010), in the only edition to take place in Africa.
After leading the ‘black stars’ at the 2004 Athens Olympics and at the start of the then-unprecedented qualification for the 2006 World Cup, Mariano Barreto wants Ghana to progress to the next stage as alternate leader of the ‘group’, behind Portugal, the reverse of the 2014 outcome, when both parted in the group stage with a Portuguese success (2–1).
“From that point on I just wish Portugal had the opportunity to go to the final because it has a group of players that makes me believe it’s possible. I think we’ve never been closer to being able to say this with so much objectivity. The squad had athletes who formed great teams and shone on the field, but did not win. Today there is the paradox of sometimes saying that we did not play anything, but we won,” he stressed.
Portugal emerges as “one of the great candidates” to add an unprecedented world title to its Euro2016 and League of Nations 2019 conquests, in an edition that goes against the usual end-of-season schedule and takes place from Sunday in boreal fall.
“In terms of quality, I think we are going to have the highest quality competition, unlike what has happened in the different World Cups, where we don’t see high quality matches, the players are tired and looking forward to holidays and matches.” nothing new or substantial is revealed. I think the 2022 World Cup has this appeal and we will find athletes in great shape,” said the coach, who returned to Ghana in 2021 for a fleeting stint with Asante Kotoko, title champions and most awarded clubs in the country.
Due to Qatar’s desert climate, with average summer temperatures of 50 degrees Celsius, the 2022 World Cup brought an unprecedented break to most club competitions, reducing teams’ preparation to one week, instead of the traditional three.
“In terms of quality, I think Ghana was the hardest hit, as technical changes didn’t give them much time to prepare their team for this game. Gain confidence, because if you make them believe, it will win.” It won’t be easy,” he warned.
Source: DN
