Ghana coach Paa Kwesi Fabin says his Starlets must guard against complacency on Wednesday because Niger have developed the self-belief to do well in the U-17 World Cup.
Heading into the knockout stage, Ghana won two games to top Group A while the Nigeriens qualified as one of the best third-placed teams.
Fabin believes Ghana will be victorious but envisages a tough challenge from the Mena Cadets in the pre-quarterfinal game at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai.
“It’s going to be tough definitely. They also have the belief. It will be a difficult match.
“We know each other well so well, so it’s going to be a bit difficult and tricky. But we will see it through,” said the Ghana trainer on the eve of the match.
He then noted that nothing should be taken for granted as teams like Paraguay which had won all its matches in the preliminary stage, lost badly in the round of 16 on Monday.
“Look at what is happening in the round of 16. Take for example Paraguay who won all their matches but look at yesterday. (Paraguay lost 0-5 to USA). You have to be prepared and play at your best,” he said.
Fabin also conceded that the expectations in Ghana are quite high.
“The expectations at home are huge. Any tournament we enter, they expect us to win. We try to do our best,” said the coach of the team, which had lost 0-1 to Mali in the continental finals to finish runner-up.
The Ghana-Niger game kicks off at 1130 GMT.
Source: Footy-Ghana.com
