Ronaldo
Ronaldo

John Paintsil has urged the Black Stars players not to focus on Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Ghana has been drawn into Group H alongside Uruguay, South Korea, and Portugal.

With the tournament set to kick off later this year, Ghana is scheduled to play the Selecaos in their first group of the competition which takes place in Qatar.

But Paintsil, who was part of Ghana’s squad for the 2010 World Cup, believes the Manchester United forward should not be the focal point for the players.

“They don’t need to focus on Ronaldo. They need to focus on their game plan because as a player going into a game you don’t look at an individual,” the ex-Black Stars right-back told Graphic Sports.

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Ronaldo, who has netted 115 international goals for his country, has not shown any signs of slowing down for both club and country.

At age 37, the attacker has 12 League goals for Manchester United since signing for the Reds Devils in the summer of 2021.

“Ronaldo is still good, but he can’t run but when he receives the ball before you get to him, he can use it so it’s only close marking,” Paintsil added.

The tournament will be played between November 24 and December 18 in Qatar.

Ghana after exiting the group phase of the Mundial in 2014 in Brazil will be hoping to improve its performance in Qatar.