CK Akonnor
CK Akonnor

Ghana President Nana Akufo-Addo has lauded the qualities of Black Stars coach Charles Kwablan Akonnor, calling for support for the gaffer ahead of the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations [Afcon] and the 2022 World Cup qualifiers. 

The President, in a breakfast meeting held on Monday at the Jubilee House, tasked the Black Stars to win the Africa Cup of Nations that would be hosted in Cameroon next year as well as to reach the semifinals of the World Cup in 2022 in Qatar.

According to the President, he has fully pledged his support to the coach.

“We have our former captain CK Akonnor of the Black Stars who is now coach of the team here, he’s been to the highest level of the game, we believe in him and we must all support him to succeed,” the President said when he met CEO’s of the Banks at a Breakfast meeting to raise money for the Black Stars at the Jubilee House.

Coach Akonnor ended a good Afcon qualifying campaign last month after topping Group C of the qualifiers with 13 points.

Next year will be 40 years since the Black Stars last lifted the Afcon trophy. They defeated host nation Libya to win the tournament in 1982 and since then, they have suffered three final heartbreaks.

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He is set to begin preparations for the Nations Cup next year, but a schedule released by the Ghana Football Association indicates the coach will have an European camping with the team in June.

The team will then start the World Cup qualifiers in October before a pre-AFCON training in December.

Qualification for the World Cup will start in June, with the Black Stars is drawn against South Africa, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia in Group G for the second round.

The third round will see the 10 group winners from the second round drawn into five home-and-away ties. The winners of each tie will advance to the tournament.