As Ghana heads into the quarter final of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2013 in South Africa, two Ashesi alums reporting on the tournament, Philip Alimo '12 and Joseph Hansen '09, share their thoughts on Africa's biggest sports event, the rise of African soccer, and their predictions for the winner of the tournament.
"...Africa is creating magic through soccer..."
Joseph Hansen ‘09, host, Sports Xtra (Viasat1 Ghana).
(After leaving a job in banking in 2010, Joseph Hansen has worked as a sports journalist and produced talk shows in Ghana, and currently hosts Sports Xtra on Viasat1. Joseph also writes regularly for sports columns in 90 Minutes and The Finder. Here, he writes about a fresh wave of African players and teams, and how they are changing the future of African football.)
The African Cup of Nations has been peculiar this year, this being the first time it has been organised just a year after its predecessor (The move was necessary to prevent the tournament from clashing with the World Cup schedule). In this tournament, we have seen a more level playing field, with African teams more evenly matched than before, and a lot of countries featuring players from their local leagues. The low number of goals in this tournament, which could be attributed to poor chance creation and scoring skills of Africa’s strikers, could also speak to improved defending in African soccer.
Also interesting, is the fact that some of Africa’s biggest teams did not make it to this tournament, including Egypt and Cameroon, who have been favourites in the history of the tournament. We have seen new teams like Cape Verde come in to surprise more established teams, and Niger, despite not making it out of the group stages, have now participated in the tournament for the second time.
Ghana, being a country that lives for soccer, is expecting its national team to win the trophy, even though it has been more than thirty years since a Ghanaian team won the tournament. The current Ivorian national team, referred to as the ‘golden football generation’ of the country, is also expected to win the cup. The Togolese national team, back from a break that had to be taken due to a tragic shooting that left members of the team dead last year, has made it out of the tournament’s group stages for the first time in its history. In addition, the current champions, Zambia, did not qualify for the next round of the competition. (The last time the current champions were eliminated at this stage of the tournament was in 2002.) But Burkina Faso, traditionally an unthreatening team in the AFCON, are also showing good signs that they could be the next Zambia in this tournament, and go on to win the cup. All these upsets, expectations and anticipation, makes the tournament one of the most interesting yet, as Africa cheers on its best teams.
The Ghanaian national team looks to have recovered from a poor start, caused by its players’ mismatches, AFCON inexperience and weak defending. The team has not conceded a goal since its first game; its midfielders have become much better in play; striker Asamoah Gyan, who many believed would put in a poor showing for the tournament, is now poised to become Ghana’s highest goal scorer yet, matching Ghanaian soccer legend Abedi Pele; the Ghanaian Coach, Kwasi Appiah has also demonstrated a readiness to learn from his mistakes, and move to fix them; he has proven his team selection was an effective one, as Ghana has managed to survive all its contingencies.
Thanks to a combination of great players, teamwork, game-by-game improvement, and luck, I am highly positive about the chances of the Ghana national team – just like my fellow countrymen. The team has charted a great path to the final by topping their group heading into the quarter final, and I am predicting a Ghana-Ivory Coast clash when we get there. As we head into our next game, I am watching together with the world in anticipation, and hoping Africa can create magic through this tournament.
"...It is a good time to be in Africa..."
Philip L. Alimo ‘12 (Left), Freelance Sports Journalist
(Philip Alimo formerly hosted Sports Digest, a radio Show on Ghana Broadcasting Coorporation’s Obonu FM, and as a sports journalist in Ghana, has covered the Glo Premier League, the 26th MTN African Cup of Nations, and the 19th FIFA World Cup tournament in South Africa. He writes from South Africa, and as a member of the press team covering the 2013 African Cup of Nations, shares his hopes for the tournament and his national team.)
I believe the African Cup of Nations has grown to become one of the biggest tournaments in the world, right up there with the World Cup and the Olympics. With celebrated African players that have made a strong impact in the world’s biggest football leagues, coming from all over the world to play in the AFCON 2013, soccer fans all over the world are following our progress, and cheering on our teams. It is definitely a good time to be in Africa, I might add.
It has been great being here in South Africa with some of Africa's best teams. Coming in from an intense election year, the 2013 African Cup of Nations is a good event for Ghana – a chance for us to come together in support of our national team. The tournament has been somewhat different for us this year, with several players in our national team playing in the African Cup of Nations for the first time. That notwithstanding, this Ghanaian team has a lot of world class players, and the morale is high, even among us pressmen following the team.
Despite our slow start to this tournament, the national team has shown improvement with each game played, and I have strong hopes that this is the team that will finally bring home the African Cup for Ghana in the 31 years since we last won it. As the Ghana Black Stars enters the knockout phase of the tournament, I am confident that we are getting into the final, and I hope that we play tournament favourites, Ivory Coast. The team is one of the toughest to play in Africa right now, but I believe that in soccer, the bigger your opponent, the sweeter the victory. See you all at the final, and kudos to Ghana!