Black Satellites head coach Maxwell Konadu says Ghana will make significant changes to the squad for the 2027 CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations after the team failed to progress beyond the group stage of the WAFU B U-20 Championship.
“We will not present the same team for AFCON next year” Maxwell Konadu.
Ghana’s campaign ended with a goalless draw against Togo in their final Group B fixture. The result left the Black Satellites third in the standings with two points from three matches, ending their hopes of reaching the knockout stage.
Their tournament had begun with a 4-2 defeat by Nigeria before Ghana drew 1-1 with Burkina Faso. A second draw, against Togo, was not enough to lift them into the next round.
Konadu acknowledged that Ghana’s performance fell below expectations but said the competition had served an important purpose for the technical team as it assessed the players available for the country’s next Under-20 campaign.
The coach explained that the WAFU B Championship had been used primarily to examine home-based talent and determine which players could make the transition to the next level. Ghana had initially assembled a 38-man provisional squad before reducing it to 23 players for the tournament.
That preliminary group included Black Starlets players Joseph Narbi, who was named captain, and Eric Gyamfi, who had impressed at the U-17 AFCON.
Despite the early elimination, Konadu believes the experience will help Ghana prepare for the 2027 CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations. Ghana have already secured automatic qualification for that tournament because they will host the finals.
The planned changes mean the squad that represented Ghana in the WAFU B competition is unlikely to be the same group selected for the continental tournament next year. Konadu’s comments indicate that the technical team will use the lessons from the campaign, together with its assessment of home-based players, to shape the next Black Satellites side.
Ghana’s failure to advance leaves the team with a disappointing tournament record, having collected only two points and scored five goals across three group matches while conceding six. The draw with Togo was ultimately insufficient to repair the damage caused by the defeat to Nigeria and the earlier stalemate with Burkina Faso.
With qualification already guaranteed for the 2027 CAF U-20 Africa Cup of Nations, the focus now shifts from securing a place at the tournament to building a stronger squad for it. Konadu has made clear that the WAFU B Championship was part of that process, even though Ghana’s results did not meet expectations.
