Ghana insist they won't take Australia for granted ahead of their meeting on Saturday after differing fortunes for both sides during their opening group D matches.
Ghana beat Serbia 1-0 in Pretoria before Australia were mauled 4-0 by three-time world champions Germany the same day -- all extensively live on SuperSport.
Those two sides meet again with the match of huge importance for different reasons. Defeat for Australia will mean a first round exit from the World Cup while Ghana know victory will almost certainly guarantee a place in the second round for the second straight tournament after reaching the same stage in Germany four years ago.
Ghana have achieved Africa’s only victory at this tournament (through an Asamoah Gyan penalty) and while a second place looks within their means, they are keeping calm for now.
“We cannot think about the last 16 now because we are not there yet so how can we think about it,” midfielder Dede Ayew said. “We have to approach Australia with the same hunger and desire we showed against Serbia because making assumptions before the game could prove costly.”
While the Ghana game could provide Africa with its first second round team of the continent, Sunday could provide the continent’s most significant win at the World Cup when Ivory Coast take on Brazil at Soccer City in Johannesburg.
The Ivorians showed against Portugal they won’t freeze on this World Cup platform while the difficulty of Brazil’s 2-1 win over North Korea suggests they can be vulnerable, something that will gladden Ivorian hearts ahead of the Soccer City meeting.
DStv viewers can tune in SuperSport’s live coverage of the Ghana vs Australia game on Saturday June 19 at 17:00pm.
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