Ahinful tips Stars to break AFCON jinx

Former Black Stars striker, Augustine Ahinful, has expressed optimism about the current Black Stars team’s ability to end Ghana’s trophy drought this year following their advancement to the second round of the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Egypt.

Coach Kwasi Appiah’s team finished as leaders of Group F following two draws against Benin and defending champions Cameroun and a vital 2-0 win over Guinea-Bissau in their last group game.

They now play Tunisia in the Round of 16 on Monday.

In a chat with the Daily Graphic, the former Borussia Dortmund player believed the team had what it took to win the ongoing continental showpiece in Egypt even though it was not going to be easy.

He explained that Ghana’s path to the final was very favourable but required extra work in terms of performance on the pitch.

“Why not? We [Ghana] can win the trophy. If you look at our path to the final, we can make it.

However, it depends on our performance on the pitch.

If we do the right things then we can go all out for the trophy,” he said.

Assessing the performance of the team so far,  Ahinful commended Coach  Appiah and his outfit for making it to the next round but indicated that there was more work to be done as they prepared for their round of 16 clash with Tunisia

“They have done well so far, but we can still improve on our game going forward.

They need to be compact in defence, midfield and very effective going into attack,” he noted.

Ahinful featured for Ghana at the 2000 AFCON

The Black Stars, who have enjoyed total dominance over their Tunisian counterparts since 1963, are favourites in the second round game on Monday with majority of Ghanaians labelling the game as a “done deal”.

However, Ahinful cautioned the team against complacency, explaining that matches were won based on current form.

“We cannot say it is a done deal. We cannot base our performance on history and record.

Inasmuch as the records matter, we have to do what will get as a win. Winning matches depend on your current performance,” he concluded.