Kwesi Appiah says Ghana's Africa Cup of Nations group, which contains DR Congo, Niger and Mali will not be easy but is optimistic of progressing to the next stage.

The Black Stars, four-time champions will aim to end their 31-year wait to win the tournament but must first navigate their way of their group to have any realistic chance of title number five.

"It's [group] no problem," the Ghana coach, Kwesi Appiah told www.ghanafa.org after DR Congo, Niger and Mali joined Ghana in Group B following Wednesday's draw in Durban.

"It could have been a different pairing but that was what we got and we will have to play them all."

Appiah is very confident of guiding Ghana to progress past the group stages but is anticipating a tough competition.

"Every team that has reached this stage, is a good side. All the teams are good and will be prepared for any game. The most important thing is to prepare well and meet every team with the same desire to win."

"We will not underrate any team and will always play to win. Your performance will determine how far you go in the tournament," Appiah said.

Ghana's first game in Group B will be against DR Congo in the South African city of Port Elizabeth on January 20, followed by fixtures against on Mali four days later and Niger in Port Elizabeth on January 28.

The two teams that advance from Ghana's group will play the winners and runners-up from Group A which is made up of South Africa, Cape Verde, Morocco and Angola in the quarter-finals in Port Elizabeth and Durban.

The tournament will run from 19 January until 10 February and will be hosted in the cities of Johannesburg, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Nelspruit and Rustenburg.

Group A: South Africa, Cape Verde, Morocco, Angola.

Group B: Ghana, DR Congo, Niger, Mali.

Group C: Zambia, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Nigeria.

Group D: Ivory Coast, Algeria, Tunisia, Togo.