Ghana will begin their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations campaign against a debutant side, but not one that has reached Morocco by accident.
The Black Queens face Cape Verde on Wednesday 29 July at the Moulay Rachid Stadium in Casablanca. The match begins at 18:00 in Morocco and 19:00 in Spain, opening Group D before Cameroon meet Mali later in the evening.
The difference in experience is considerable.
Ghana finished third in the previous edition after three consecutive post-group-stage matches were decided on penalties. They defeated Algeria in the quarter-finals, lost to Morocco in the semi-finals and overcame South Africa in the bronze-medal match.
That run restored the Black Queens’ place among the continent’s leading sides. They can no longer approach this tournament as outsiders.
Kim Lars Björkegren’s team confirmed their progress during qualification by defeating Egypt 7-0 on aggregate.
They also won two of their three warm-up matches in Morocco, beating Ivory Coast 1-0, drawing 0-0 with Tanzania and defeating Malawi 4-0.
Doris Boaduwaa scored three of those four goals and will be one of the main threats in a team that can also rely on the experience of Portia Boakye, Grace Asantewaa and Evelyn Badu.
Ghana will be expected to take control from the beginning.
Cape Verde are preparing for the first match in their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations history, but their qualification already showed that they can punish opponents who consider themselves superior.
Silvéria Nédio’s side lost the first leg of their decisive qualifier against Mali 1-0. They then scored four times in the return match, winning 4-2 to qualify with a 4-3 aggregate victory.
Larissa Melo, Ivânia Moreira and Eleia Vieira all scored during the opening 24 minutes. Cape Verde turned a tie that had appeared under Mali’s control into a historic victory.
The debutants begin behind Ghana in experience, squad depth and individual quality. They also arrive without the pressure that accompanies the Black Queens.
Ghana are aiming to win the group and move closer to another semi-final. Cape Verde have already overcome the objective that once appeared most difficult.
They will now attempt to show that the night they eliminated Mali was not an exception.
Ghana v Cape Verde
Wednesday 29 July · 19:00 in Spain
Moulay Rachid Stadium, Casablanca