Ghana’s 18-member playing team announced for the Africa Youth Championship arrived in Kigali on Thursday after a short pre-tournament tour of Kenya.
Sellas Tetteh, who led his team into town for the start of the Under-20 Championship which kick off on Sunday, fancies Ghana's chances of making an impact after two successive failed attempts at qualifying for the age-category competition.
Goalkeeper Robert Dabou, Emmanuel Larbi Koomson and Gafaru Abdul Nasiru could not make the team as the trio dropped off the final squad.
The coach after announcing his final team says he has the best set of players to challenge for the ultimate. But Sellas has more serious matters to deal with as he looks at getting his team past the group stages first.
"I have picked a crop of players I am convinced they can go the farthest. I would be very happy if we pick one of the four slots allotted Africa at the World Cup.
“I believe my team has the capacity to go for the ultimate, but our immediate target is to progress past the group stage,” says Sellas Tetteh, a man eager to pick one of the four qualifying places to the World Championship.
The Black Satellites are pit against Mali, Cameroon and hosts nation, Rwanda in Group A.
Ghana would play Cameroon first as the Black Satellites get off their campaign in the 16th edition of the two week long tournament at the Stade National in Kigali on January 18, the opening day.
The next group game for Ghana would be against Mali, two days after the opening match before rounding up with a clash against hosts, Rwanda on January 24.
The Caf African Youth Championship is a major international football competition for Caf nations, played by less than 20 years old players and it is held every two years with the four semi-finalists from the tournament in Rwanda qualifying for the Fifa World Youth Championship to be played in Egypt.
If hosts Egypt reach the last four in Rwanda then the 5th place team will qualify for the Under-20 World Cup.
Ghana last played in the Africa Youth Championship at 2003 edition in Burkina Faso where they failed to progress past the group stage.
Ghana squad:
Goalkeepers Daniel Adjei (Liberty Professionals, Ghana), Joseph Addo (Hasaacas, Ghana)
Defenders Kassenu Ghandi (Liberty Professionals, Ghana), Samuel Inkoom (Asante Kotoko, Ghana), David Addy (Randers FC, Denmark), Philip Boampong (Berekum Arsenal, Ghana), Daniel Addo (King Faisal, Ghana), Jonathan Mensah (Free State Stars, South Africa), Godfred Rockson (Heart of Lions, Ghana)
Midfielders Abeiku Quansah (OG Nice, France), Enoch Adu-Kofi (OG Nice, France), Gladson Awaku (Heart of Lions, Ghana), Andre Ayew (Lorient, France), Emmanuel Agyeman Badu (Asante Kotoko, Ghana)
Strikers Latif Salifu (Liberty Professionals, Ghana), Ransford Osei (Maccabi Tel Aviv, Israel) Dominic Adiyah (Fredisktad, Norway), Isaac Donkor (Liberty Professionals, Ghana)