“Inclusion of foreign-based players caused our early exit from the U23 AFCON tournament” – Black Meteors defender Oppong Afrane

David Oppong Afrane, the defender for Black Meteors, has candidly shared the challenges that the team faced during the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Morocco.

Afrane revealed that maintaining team cohesion became difficult due to the late addition of foreign-based players to the squad.

While Ghana’s U-23 national team began the campaign with an impressive 3-2 victory over Congo, their momentum suffered a setback in the next match when they faced a heavy 5-1 defeat against the hosts, Morocco.

Following this loss, their chances of qualifying hinged on defeating Guinea in the final group stage game.

However, they could only secure a draw against their West African neighbors, resulting in an early exit from the tournament.

The King Faisal center-back explained that the team had bonded well during their preparations

During the qualifiers, most of the players were local-based, but during the tournament, we were joined by many foreign players which affected team bonding and chemistry,” Afrane said in an interview with Akoma FM.

Source: ghanasportscenter.com