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Augustine Arhinful Doubts Accuracy of FIFA Rank of Black Stars

Photo of Gideon Stevens Gideon Stevens Send an email April 5, 2024
2 minutes read

Augustine Arhinful, ex-Black Stars forward, has voiced skepticism about the reliability of FIFA rankings, stating they do not truly reflect national team performance. He cited Ghana’s consistent drop in rankings over the past four updates, attributing it to performance in major tournaments like the African Cup of Nations and recent friendlies under coach Otto Addo.

Arhinful stressed the significance of prioritizing team strength over FIFA rankings. Ghana currently stands 14th in Africa and 68th globally.

Ahead of Ghana’s matches against Mali and the Central African Republic in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers set for June, he emphasized the importance for the current technical team to focus on building a strong squad.

Obviously, the ranking will tell you Ghana is dropping because of the recent happiness.
That is to say, the nation’s cup performance, as well as the recent friendly matches that we played.
But to me, the ranking really, really may be an issue for us.
I think we need to concentrate on how we build the team going forward, which is most important.
Because before the nation’s cup, Ghana was ranked ahead of some nations, but then we all went to Ivory Coast and we saw what those nations were able to do.
So the ranking, yes, sometimes could be good.
It could also make it complacent, because 2006, before the World Cup, I think Czech Republic were number two then.
But we went into the World Cup and we beat them, and they didn’t even qualify from the group stage.
So the ranking, yes, it could be good, but the focus should be how the team is going forward.
For me, as a former footballer, I don’t even know why you are going to play against a team and you are afraid to go and perform when you talk about the fear factor.
Because I guess the ranking, yes, could be good.
But what countries that have been so high, yet have gone into tournaments and have failed?
Belgium is one.
We can talk about Belgium.
More on this:

In the recent TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations, Nigeria, a finalist, has risen to the 30th position globally, securing a place among Africa’s top three teams, closely trailing Senegal and Morocco.

Morocco’s Atlas Lions lead the African rankings, holding the 13th spot worldwide, with Senegal following closely at 17th globally, securing second place on the continent.

Cote d’Ivoire, the reigning African champions, have climbed to the 38th position globally, securing the fifth spot in Africa, just behind Egypt, who holds the 38th rank worldwide.

Tunisia and Algeria, renowned North African teams, have maintained their positions at 41st and 43rd respectively in the global rankings. Mali has made significant progress, advancing three places to 44th.

At the top of the  FIFA global standings are Argentina, reigning as world champions, trailed by France and Belgium in second and third place respectively.

Read Also: Asamoah Gyan: Mohammed Kudus Dominates the Black Stars Era

 

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Photo of Gideon Stevens Gideon Stevens Send an email April 5, 2024
2 minutes read
Photo of Gideon Stevens

Gideon Stevens

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