Stephen Appiah thinks Thomas Partey has the knack to lead Ghana to glory at the Africa Cup of Nations and believes he is one of Black Stars’ leaders.

Partey played a vital role as Atletico Madrid finished second in the just concluded LaLiga season, playing 32 times, scoring thrice with a passing accuracy of 84% for Los Rojiblancos.

Kwesi Appiah’s side face tricky Afcon games against Cameroon, Benin Republic, and Guinea-Bissau in Group F as they aim for their fifth African title.

Appiah, who played 67 times for his country, believes the 26-year-old will be a key figure in Ghana’s quest to shine brightly in Egypt.

“Every player’s dream is to play in Afcon and Thomas Partey is not an exception,” Appiah told Goal.

“Partey is doing very well and with his abilities and what he can do on the field, he can help Ghana go far.”

Ghana finished a disappointing fourth in the last edition staged in Gabon, however, the 38-year-old is upbeat of his country’s chances this time around.

“It’s going to be an interesting Afcon because we will be having 24 teams participate instead of 16. That will make it difficult and exciting,” he continued.

“For Ghana, we are going to take it to match after match. All the countries taking part are not pushovers and they will be very prepared.

“We have our goal going to Egypt, and that is to win, but we have to respect the countries who will be participating."

The Black Stars begin their campaign against the Squirrels on June 25 at the Ismailia Stadium, Ismailia.