World Cup 2026: Antony Baffoe calls for compact Ghana team approach ahead of tournament

Former Ghana international Anthony Baffoe has called for a more compact approach from the Black Stars ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Ghana are set to compete at the global stage after securing one of Africa’s slots. The tournament, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, will feature an expanded 48-team format.

The Black Stars are paired in Group L against European giants, England, 2018 World Cup finalists, Croatia and Panama. Ghana will open their account against Panama before taking on England and Croatia respectively.

In an interview with Citi Sports, Baffoe advocated for a compact football approach for the Black Stars in order to succeed at the tournament.

“We all wish the players good luck and for me the coach should have the adequate formation in regards to the players he has. I don’t think we are the Ghana like some years back that we play dominant football. I believe that we have to be compact and use the players accordingly.

How do we put, for instance, Antoine Semenyo who had a fantastic season in the Premier League appropriately? How do we use Jordan? I’m just mentioning names appropriately. So for me, I think we should play very, very compact because the intensity is going to be very, very high.

But once again, fully behind the coach, the technical team and the players. We are Ghanaians, we always remain Ghanaians. Sometimes we are not happy but as soon as the World Cup starts kicking off, we are 100% behind the team,” he said.

Ghana have begun preparations in Cardiff ahead of their pre-World Cup friendly against Wales, slated for June 2, with head coach Carlos Queiroz overseeing training sessions at Dragon Park.

The Black Stars are expected to spend a week training in Cardiff before taking on Wales, after which the team will travel to the United States for the next phase of preparations.

Queiroz is expected to use the training period and friendly matches to evaluate his squad before naming Ghana’s final 26-man squad for the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Ghana has previously competed in 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2022, with their best performance coming in 2010 when they reached the quarterfinals.