Ghana women’s national team head coach, Kim Lars Björkegren, has admitted that facing Nigeria will present the Black Queens with their toughest challenge yet, Soccernet.ng reports.
The Swedish coach, who took charge of the Black Queens in 2024, will be on the hot seat as the two West African giants prepare to square off in a high-stakes friendly ahead of the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.
The crunch tie, scheduled for Sunday, June 29, will be both teams’ final preparatory fixture before heading to Morocco for the delayed continental showpiece.
For Ghana, the match serves as more than just a tune-up, it’s a vital benchmark against Africa’s most decorated side.
“Nigeria is one step up,” Björkegren told the Ghana Football Association’s communications team following a 4-2 victory over Benin.
“One of the best teams in Africa with good players in almost every position. The game against Nigeria is going to be a very, very tough game.
“But that’s also what we need now because we have shown that our lowest level is high enough. We know that we can score goals, and we have built a good defence, so it’s going to be fun to match up against one of the best teams.”
Despite having never won the WAFCON, Ghana have finished as runners-up twice — in 1998 and 2002 — and are hoping to finally clinch the elusive title in Morocco.
But first, they must contend with Nigeria’s formidable Super Falcons, nine-time champions and widely regarded as the standard-bearers for women’s football in Africa.
Björkegren has already overseen wins against Malawi and Benin in Ghana’s pre-tournament build-up, results that offered his technical team insight into squad depth and tactical flexibility. Still, he acknowledges that Nigeria offers an entirely different level of competition.
“With full respect to Malawi and Benin,” he added, “we need this kind of game now. It’s about developing our mentality and testing our resilience.
“I think overall, [the Benin match] was a good game with a great second half. We were struggling a little bit in the middle of the first half, but when we took control and started to play football, we were absolutely the better team.”
Sunday’s clash with Nigeria will provide a stern examination of Ghana’s title credentials and offer a glimpse into the state of two of Africa’s most storied women’s football nations ahead of the WAFCON curtain-raiser.