Ghana v Egypt: Mahama wishes Satellites well

The Sports Minister Elvis Afryie-Ankrah on behalf of President John Dramani Mahama, has sent a solidarity and motivational message to Ghana's Black Satellites ahead of the final of the African Youth Championship in Algeria today.
It will be Ghana's fifth final appearance out of which they have been three victories (1993, 1999, 2009).
Ghana's goodwill Sports envoy Ambassador Ray Quarcoo will personally carry the message on behalf of the government and people of Ghana to the Satellites.
North African opponents Egypt, will be playing Ghana for the second time in the tournament following their 2-1 win over their Ghanaian counterparts in the opening Group A fixture.
For this reason, some sports analysts see the Satellites as slight underdogs ahead of Saturday’s final at the Ahmed Zabena Stadium in Oran.
But Afriyie-Ankrah thinks differently, stating that the Satellites have the will power and belief to beat Egypt.
"The boys have done tremendously well to get to the final and in so doing qualify for Turkey 2013 in June," he added.
The Sports Minister believes the current squad can follow in the footsteps of other Satellites players who went on to carve illustrious careers.
"We must not forget about the likes of Sammy Kuffuor, Stephen Appiah, Sulley Muntari, Michael Essien, and most recently Andre Ayew and Emmanuel Agyemang Badu just to mention a few who all rose to prominence after winning Junior titles," the statement added.
According to Afriyie-Ankrah, the players displayed great confidence at the farewell dinner he held for the team and promised to bring the cup to him straight from the airport so that he presents it to the President.
"This was the bold promise made by natural born winners and it comes as no surprise that they have reached the finals," he said.
The Minister also commended the players for concentrating on their mission and assured them that all their outstanding bonuses will be paid upon their arrival following delays in budget approvals and allocation.
Ghana reached the final courtesy a 1-0, 2-0 and 4-2 win on penalties over Benin, Algeria and Mali respectively while Egypt also beat Ghana, Algeria, Benin and Nigeria to reach the final. Kick-off is at 16:00 (GMT).