Ghana enter their final Group L match against Croatia on Saturday having already secured progression to the World Cup knockout stages for the first time since 2010.
Zlatko Dalic’s side know a draw would be enough to secure them progress, but only a win will lift Croatia above the Africans into the Group L runners-up spot and could even hand them top place.
The Black Stars carry four points into the fixture, meaning that even with a loss to Croatia they will still finish higher than at least four teams in the third-place rankings. Ghana, however, are aiming for more: a second-place finish could set up a tie against Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal, while topping the group would produce a marginally less difficult opponent.
Manager Carlos Queiroz has urged his players to channel Manchester United’s ‘Nou Camp spirit’, and forward Antoine Semenyo has encouraged the team to be ‘more aggressive’ with referees as they pursue an improved final standing.
Africa’s teams have provided one of the tournament’s feel-good stories. Cape Verde became the smallest country by population to reach the knockouts, and South Africa’s win over South Korea set up a last-32 tie against Canada. Tunisia are the only African side already eliminated after losing all three group matches, while Algeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo remain in contention. If results fall the right way, as many as nine African teams could advance.
