Black Stars forward Joseph Paintsil has stated that he and his teammates are highly motivated to give their best performance when Ghana takes on Madagascar this Sunday in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers.
Despite some of the players experiencing setbacks at their respective clubs, including relegation and a lack of playing time, the winger believes that these have not affected their focus on delivering an early ticket to the Afcon for Ghana.
“As you can see, we still have belief, teamwork, commitment, and everything else. Even though they [players] had a few ups and downs at their clubs, that does not affect them at the national team,” he stated.
“Their full focus is on the game [against Madagascar]. The past is the past and they are now focused on the game which is against Madagascar,” added Paintsil who ended the season in Belgium with league title heartbreak with KRC Genk.
In his view, every player invited to the team is ready to put forth their best effort for the country.
“I think every player who is invited here is ready to give his all for the fans and Ghanaians,” Paintsil noted.
The Black Stars will continue their preparation behind closed doors with another training session scheduled for Wednesday before leaving Accra on Thursday. They play guests to the Barea in a penultimate Group E game at Stade Kianja Barea in Antananarivo on Sunday, June 18, 2023.
With two rounds remaining, Ghana leads Group E standings with eight points from two victories against Madagascar and Angola and two draws versus the Central African Republic and Angola respectively.