PREVIEW: Portugal – Ghana: Win or go home
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Both teams need a victory and a USA defeat to have any chance of advancing to the last 16 – a scenario which should ensure excitement at the Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha
Portugal coach Paulo Bento has plenty of selection worries ahead of Thursday’s decisive match against Ghana, as he will probably have to make do without the services of a number of regulars.
Fabio Coentrao was forced to pull out of the squad after the loss against Germany, while Rui Patricio, Hugo Almeida, Andre Almeida and Helder Postiga have also been plagued by injury problems since the start of the tournament.
Beto is therefore expected to start between the sticks again while Miguel Veloso could fill in at left-back, thus making room for William Carvalho to start in midfield – although Ricardo Costa also remains an option in defence.
With both Postiga and Hugo Almeida unlikely to be match-fit in time, Eder is expected to feature from the start this time around after coming off the bench in Portugal’s previous two group stage matches.
Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah, meanwhile, has no noteworthy injury problems as the Africans aim to book their ticket for the round of 16 after a disappointing start to the tournament.
Kevin-Prince Boateng and John Boye picked up minor knocks in the draw versus Germany, yet both have been given the green light for the match against Portugal.
Appiah will have to make at least one change to his starting line-up however, as AC Milan’s Sulley Muntari is unavailable due to suspension, following his two yellow cards earlier in the competition.
His position will be taken by either Michael Essien or Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu, with the former sitting in pole position to feature from the start.
Furthermore, Appiah will have to choose between either Boateng or Abdul Majeed Waris – who has recovered from injury – to partner Asamoah Gyan in attack.
Match Preview
 Games played: 2
W0 D1 L1
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World Cup
Portugal v. Ghana
26 Jun 16:00 – Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha
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 Games played: 2
W0 D1 L1
|
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Last 6 Matches
22 Jun 2014
- USA2–2Portugal
16 Jun 2014
- Germany4–0Portugal
11 Jun 2014
- Republic of Ireland1–5Portugal
7 Jun 2014
- Mexico0–1Portugal
31 May 2014
- Portugal0–0Greece
5 Mar 2014
- Portugal5–1Cameroon
21 Jun 2014
- Germany2–2Ghana
16 Jun 2014
- Ghana1–2USA
10 Jun 2014
- Ghana4–0South Korea
31 May 2014
- Netherlands1–0Ghana
5 Mar 2014
- Montenegro1–0Ghana
19 Nov 2013
- Egypt2–1Ghana
- By Stefan Coerts in Brasilia
ABOUT: Nana Kwesi Coomson
[email protected] An Entrepreneur, Corporate Social Responsibility, Corporate Communications Executive and Philanthropist. Editor-in-Chief of www.233times.com. A Senior Journalist with Ghanaian Chronicle Newspaper. An alumnus of Adisadel College where he read General Arts. His first degree is in Bachelor of Arts - Political Science (major) and History (minor) from the University of Ghana. He holds MSc in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Energy with Public Relations (PR) from the Robert Gordon University in the United Kingdom. He is a 2018 Mandela Washington Fellow who studied at Clark Atlanta University in USA on the Business and Entrepreneurship track.
View all posts by: Nana Kwesi Coomson
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