GHANA captain Jordan Opoku admitted that Nigeria were a more debonair side than his and said that his men would have to be "switched on" to conquer their hot rivals in tomorrow's Chan semifinals.
The match is billed for Free State Stadium, with kickoff at 8.30pm.
The Black Stars have been dim in attack in the tournament and scraped through 1-0 against the Democratic Republic of Congo in the quarterfinals at the same venue on Sunday.
It was not just the fact they needed a fortuitous penalty decision to progress that worried Opoku, but for large parts of the game there were doubts about Ghana's ability to fashion a goal from open play. In their armour, though, is the stingiest defence in the competition, which has conceded just one goal so far.
It will be tested against a brazen, carefree and watchable Nigeria team.
"I can compare the rivalry between Nigeria and Ghana to that of our home clubs Asante Kotoko and Hearts of Oak. You have to be strong mentally to outdo your opponents when the rivalry gets heated," said Opoku, who plays for Kotoko.
"We have to raise our game to match Nigeria because they are the better side. If we lose concentration for just one moment, we won't win."
Black Stars coach Maxwell Konadu seems only interested in getting his team across the line and is unperturbed by the dreary spectacle served up by his defence-based tactics. The Black Stars play with two deep-lying midfielders, Michael Akoffo and Opoku, and rely on their wingers to supply Yahaya Mohammed and Seidu Bhansey up front.
The Nigerians reached the semifinals after staging a remarkable comeback against Morocco in Cape Town on Saturday, winning the tie 4-3 after being three goals down.
"I want to salute my players because this was something special," said Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi.
Super Eagles better than us, says Ghana captain
GHANA captain Jordan Opoku admitted that Nigeria were a more debonair side than his and said that his men would have to be "switched on" to conquer their hot rivals in tomorrow's Chan semifinals.
The match is billed for Free State Stadium, with kickoff at 8.30pm.
The Black Stars have been dim in attack in the tournament and scraped through 1-0 against the Democratic Republic of Congo in the quarterfinals at the same venue on Sunday.
It was not just the fact they needed a fortuitous penalty decision to progress that worried Opoku, but for large parts of the game there were doubts about Ghana's ability to fashion a goal from open play. In their armour, though, is the stingiest defence in the competition, which has conceded just one goal so far.
It will be tested against a brazen, carefree and watchable Nigeria team.
"I can compare the rivalry between Nigeria and Ghana to that of our home clubs Asante Kotoko and Hearts of Oak. You have to be strong mentally to outdo your opponents when the rivalry gets heated," said Opoku, who plays for Kotoko.
"We have to raise our game to match Nigeria because they are the better side. If we lose concentration for just one moment, we won't win."
Black Stars coach Maxwell Konadu seems only interested in getting his team across the line and is unperturbed by the dreary spectacle served up by his defence-based tactics. The Black Stars play with two deep-lying midfielders, Michael Akoffo and Opoku, and rely on their wingers to supply Yahaya Mohammed and Seidu Bhansey up front.
The Nigerians reached the semifinals after staging a remarkable comeback against Morocco in Cape Town on Saturday, winning the tie 4-3 after being three goals down.
"I want to salute my players because this was something special," said Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi.
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