“Black Queens Will Face England With Respect — but Without Fear”- Boye-Hlorkah
Black Queens forward Chantelle Boye-Hlorkah has declared that Ghana will approach their historic showdown with England with confidence and self-belief, insisting the team will not be intimidated by the European champions.
The two sides meet for the first time on Tuesday at St Mary’s Stadium in Southampton.
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Boye-Hlorkah projected calmness and conviction as she underlined the team’s identity and mindset going into the highly anticipated encounter.
“We can respect the opponent, but at the same time we need to be ourselves. We are the Black Queens, and we need to do our things,” she said.
“If we do that, I think people will see our performance and our game in a positive way.”
The former Everton and London City Lionesses attacker described the camp’s atmosphere as uplifting, noting that the players are embracing the occasion with excitement rather than anxiety.
“We’re excited to play this game. We believe in our own qualities. You’ve mentioned a couple of countries there, but none of those countries are Ghana,” she said in response to comparisons with other recent England opponents.
“We haven’t played England before, so it’s the first time the two nations are going to meet and we back ourselves.”
Boye-Hlorkah emphasized that the Black Queens’ biggest strength lies in their collective spirit and unique style of play.
“We enjoy the football that we play. And we know that when we play our football, we can be a force against any team, any country we come up against.”
She also dismissed any notion that the team might be overwhelmed by the challenge ahead, insisting the squad is mentally prepared and focused.
“There’s no fear whatsoever within our camp. We believe in ourselves, and we’ll see the performance we put out tomorrow. We play our best football when we believe in ourselves,” she added. “It’s an amazing occasion for us all.”
The Black Queens take on the Lionesses on Tuesday at 7:00 PM at St Mary’s Stadium as they continue their rebuilding journey under new technical leadership.
