‘Foreign players' inclusion disrupted team cohesion' - David Afrane on U-23 AFCON exit

Black Meteors defender David Oppong Afrane has opened up about the challenges the team faced during the 2023 U-23 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Morocco.

Afrane explained that maintaining team cohesion was difficult due to the late inclusion of foreign-based players in the squad.

Ghana's U-23 national team started the campaign with a thrilling 3-2 victory over Congo, but their momentum was disrupted in the subsequent game when they suffered a heavy 5-1 defeat at the hands of the hosts, Morocco.

This defeat left them with only one option - to defeat Guinea in their final group stage match to secure qualification. However, they could only manage a draw against their West African neighbours, leading to an early exit from the tournament.

According to the King Faisal centre-back, the squad had bonded well during their preparations. However, the late inclusion of foreign-based players disrupted the team's chemistry and affected their performance on the field.

"Our exit for me was caused by poor preparations and hard luck. During the qualifiers, most of the players were local-based, but during the tournament, we were joined by many foreign players which affected team bonding and chemistry," Afrane said in an interview with Akoma FM.