By Abiodun Adewale
Ghana have been paired with Ivory Coast in a potentially tricky qualifying group for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations finals, with Super Eagles captain William Troost-Ekong looking forward to how the two West African sides will fare, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
The two West African heavyweights will meet in Group C, where they will also face The Gambia, who made the quarter-finals of the 2021 AFCON on their debut, and Somalia.
Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda will co-host the next AFCON, which will be held from June 19 to July 17, 2027.
The Black Stars were not included in the top pot of seeds for the draw after slipping down the world rankings following their failure to qualify for the previous edition of the tournament held in Morocco from December 2025 to January 2026.
Troost-Ekong, who served as one of the draw assistants during the event in Cairo, examined the chances of both countries as well as the possibility of upsets from the other two teams in the group.
“I am really excited to see the draw for the qualification groups. For Nigeria, we have seen teams that we have faced before like Tanzania, Madagascar and Guinea-Bissau,” Troost-Ekong began.
“Also, I think there are going to be some really tough groups. I am looking forward to seeing how Ivory Coast and Ghana do against The Gambia and Somalia. But all the groups are going to be really exciting and it will be a great run-up to the tournament in 2027.”
“Why always us? This group is a difficult group,” said former Ivory Coast international Max-Alain Gradel, who lifted the trophy with the Elephants on home soil in 2023 and was one of the assistants for the draw in Cairo.
“But we will do everything that we can to qualify. I believe in the team, so there is no problem.”
The 48 teams looking to reach the finals have been split into 12 groups of four, with the top two sides qualifying after six rounds of fixtures.
However, groups containing the co-hosts — Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya — will have just one team progressing to the tournament.
