Soccer News of Monday, 21 March 2016

Source: ghanasoccernet.com

Grant tips Ghana to be first African FIFA World Cup semi-finalists

Ghana coach Avram Grant Ghana coach Avram Grant

Ghana coach Avram Grant is confident the Black Stars are primed to become the first African country to reach the semi-final of a FIFA World Cup finals.

The former Chelsea manager believes the West African country have got the wherewithal to advance to the money zone.

In 2010, the Black Stars came close but striker Asamoah Gyan struck a last minute penalty in extra-time against the crossbar in the quarter-final against Uruguay.

The next tournament was calamitous for the West African country as Ghana got bundled out from the Group stage amid players protesting over unpaid bonuses.

But Grant, who has been in charge of the four-time continental champions since December 2014, says Ghana have the potential to be among the best four teams in the world.

“It’s very important to put up objectives. I know that it’s looking too far, but I think at the end of the road, Ghana can do it,” the Israeli trainer told FIFA.com in an interview.

"There are other African teams that are very good. You can see if they will do one, two, three things, it’s achieveable, so we need to do it!"

Grant led Ghana to eliminate Comoros Islands to reach the Group stage of the qualifiers to the 2018 World Cup finals to be played in Russia.