Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah says the Black Stars have affirmed their position as a 'powerhouse' in African football after beating Kenya to top group F of the Nations Cup qualifiers.

Caleb Ekuban's solitary goal on Saturday lifted the Black Stars ahead of the Harambee Stars as Ghana qualified for the AFrica Cup of Nations for the 22nd time.

Coach Kwesi Appiah is poised to end Ghana's drought at a major tournament by winning AFCON 2019 insisting preparations begin now.

"From now till the AFCON we will work round the team to make sure that we take the best players, that is why in this game I invited some new players. We are going to be doing more of those and getting some games to study the boys before the tournament. But I am happy with the performance of my players," he said after the game.

"Topping the Group is a good feeling and it showed that indeed Ghana is a powerhouse in football so we taking that pride to the AFCON and make sure that we build upon it more before the competition,” he added.

The Black Stars will face Mauritania in a friendly on Tuesday as part of preparations for the biennial competition in Egypt this June.