The Black Stars of Ghana are set to face off against Angola at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium later today, Thursday, 5 September, 2024.

This game marks the beginning of Ghana's bid for an 11th consecutive qualification for the prestigious tournament.

Ahead of the match, Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey stressed the importance of delivering a strong performance.

"We have to go out and show our quality, our best, and then try to win, because all we need is to qualify," Partey told SuperSports.

He highlighted the formidable challenge posed by Angola, known as the Palancas Negras.

Partey acknowledged the difficulty of the upcoming game, stating: “If we don’t win, we are not going to qualify. I think it's going to be a very difficult game. They have a good team. I've not watched a lot of them but we've been playing against them.”

Emphasising the competitive nature of African football, he added: “We know how difficult it is to play in Africa and we don't have to be, you know, favorites.”

The crucial encounter is scheduled to kick off at 16:00 GMT.