Abdul Karim Zito
Abdul Karim Zito, Head Coach of Ghana’s Male U-20 side, Black Satellites, says his side won’t underrate their group opponents at the ongoing WAFU Zone B U-20 Championship.
The Black Satellites have been paired in Group B alongside Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire with the top two teams booking a semi-final berth.
The tournament will serve as qualifiers for the 2021 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations with the two finalists getting the available tickets.
Ghana plays the first game of the competition today in what is expected to be a tight encounter against Nigeria. The Satellites will then engage Ivory Coast in the last group match.
Speaking after a training session to FMIG, Zito refuted any attempt to downplay the threat both group opponents posed to his side.
He confirmed that his side, who have the benefit of sitting out for the first round of matches, will use the opportunity to monitor their opponents, and study their game plan.
“Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire are not countries that we will look down upon. We are going to watch them play, myself and all the players, we will sit at one place and after the match, we will come together to discuss what we saw and what we feel we should do.
“At the end of the day, we will watch their weaknesses and their strategy and where they start their buildup from…both teams (Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire). I will divide the team into two, some will watch Nigeria and the other will watch Cote d’Ivoire and I will watch both. And then we will put our heads together and strategize for our match against Nigeria,” he added.
Meanwhile, Nigeria and Ivory Coast played out a 1-1 draw. The Black Satellites in this case need a win to secure an outright qualification to the semi-final stage.