Black Stars Told To Prove Their Worth Against Japan

The competition for places in the Black Stars knows no bounds, even in friendlies, with coach Kwesi Appiah demanding his players to prove their worth. On Tuesday, Ghana lines up against Japan in a friendly at the 70,000 capacity Yokohama International Stadium, which has since been sold out. Kick-off time is 10:00GMT [10:00am Ghana time] The game against the Blue Samurai comes just days after the Black Stars cruised into the last round of World Cup qualifying after defeating Zambia 2-1 at home in a qualifier last Friday. Though Appiah will be missing some high-profile players, - Asamoah Gyan, Kwadwo Asamoah, Michael Essien, Kevin-Prince Boateng, and Andre Ayew - he believes the rest of the squad will take their chance. �All these players will be going to the World Cup next year,� Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah said. �I�m sure we can give Japan a very, very good game tomorrow[Tuesday].� Ghana's last meeting against Japan four years ago ended in a 4-3 defeat but Appiah is determined to secure a far better result. �Every coach�s ambition is to do better than the last,� he said. With two consecutive World Cup appearances behind them, Appiah is confident that the Black Stars can secure a third appearance and do much better than their previous participation. �We reached the quarterfinals, and our mission is to get to the semifinals. We believe we have the players to get that far,� said the Black Stars coach.