Injuries to Michael Essien and Gyan Baffour have increased worries in the Ghana camp ahead of tonight's African Nations Cup clash with Nigeria.

Essien, a member of the silver-medal winning World Youth championship played in Argentina last year, has been the key man in the Black Stars' engine room. His absence and that of Baffour could spell more trouble for a youthful squad determined to create a big upset by sending the highly-rated Super Eagles home at the quarter-final stage.

Team skipper Emmanuel Duah, the oldest member of the team, admitted the injuries had come at the wrong time.

He said: "The absence of Michael and Gyan will make our task more arduous as they are key players but the advantage is in our favour because we are younger than the Nigerians, we have more stamina and can run faster."

But the Super Eagles, one of the favoured sides for the trophy, are formidable with plenty of experience and lots of attacking options.

They have had six days to relax after their last outing against Liberia and are relatively fresher, with captain Sunday Oliseh upbeat.

He said: "Any game between us and Ghana must always be taken seriously. But we are obviously in a better shape and our objective remains to win."

If the two sides fail to decide the game in 90 minutes, they will have to be prepared for 30 minutes of extra time, where the golden goal rule will not be brought in.