Fear grips Black Stars as Mohammed Kudus set to miss opening game
Mohammed Kudus
Mohammed Kudus could miss Ghana’s opening game against Cape Verde on Sunday at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) due to his hamstring injury.
The 23-year-old felt tightness in his hamstring after West Ham’s 2-0 win over Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
However, the Premier League assessed the 23-year-old and informed the Ghana Football Association (GFA) of the injury which Chris Hughton confirmed in the press conference during his squad announcement last week.
The forward was expected to join his teammates last week but that has been delayed as he will need around 5-6 days more to be fully fit.
Kudus in Ghana with physiotherapists working around the clock to help the former Ajax player recover in time. He will join Ghana’s team to travel on Wednesday to Ivory Coast for the AFCON.
It remains to be seen whether Hughton might want to risk Kudus in the first game against Cape Verde given he won’t be 100% fit after missing a chunk of the training camp and the friendly against Namibia.
Speaking after the game, Hughton confirmed that the attacker will join the Black Stars camp later today.
“As for [Mohammed] Kudus, we were in touch with him and his club, will join us tomorrow,” he said.
Kudus missed the 2021 AFCON due to a rib fracture and is eager to make his debut in the competition for the Black Stars.
During his time at Ajax, he suffered a hamstring injury in April 2023 that kept him out for four games.
Ghana is in Group B alongside record AFCON winners Egypt, Cape Verde and Mozambique.