“We Are Prepared To Face France On Sunday”- Black Princesses Head Coach Yusif Basigi

Black Princesses head coach, Yusif Basigi, says his team is prepared and willing to face the journey of at least their three group games in the Women's U-20 World Cup in France.

The team had its first training session on Wednesday since arriving in France earlier in the week and they are expected to have a few more sessions before they face the hosts on Sunday.

The Princesses have been faced with challenges in terms of their preparations for the tournament due to a freeze on football in Ghana as a result of the Anas Aremeyaw Anas documentary on corruption in football in Ghana.

They were unable to secure visas for a planned training tour in Spain and thus, went to France without a properly defined period of training and team assessment.

Moreover, they will miss the services of their leading forward, Princella Adubea, who suffered a knee injury in the weeks leading to the tournament.

But Basigi reveals that his players are calm and getting prepared to face the hosts on Sunday, August 5.

“The players are feeling good and they are match-ready because the enthusiasm to play against the host nation is very high. We need that because that brings willpower,” he said to freelance sports journalist, Veronica Commey, who is with the team in France.

He went on: “The girls want to perform well and they want to make an impact. That is very good for every player. Even though it is usual for teams to feel tense, the player do not feel it even though they are going to play against the host nation.”

Ghana’s U-20 female team is yet to progress from the group stages of the World Cup but Basigi in an interview with FIFA said that this year presented a good chance for a more positive change.

“We're really hoping to make it this time. That's our objective. As the tournament hosts, France will have the support of their fans. It's going to be a tough match and we'll try to prepare for it in the best possible way. Our objective is still to get out of the group though.”

Ghana’s group A matches will be against France on August 5, Netherlands on August 8 and New Zealand on August 12.