Omar Al Duri is a UAE-based fitness coach who is working on the backroom staff of the Ghana Under-20 football team. This is his behind-the-scenes look at the Black Satellites’ quest for FIFA U20 World Cup glory.
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It’s been an amazing ride so far at the Under-20 World Cup and I hope it continues when we take on our African rivals Mali in the last-16 this Wednesday. We made it through as group winners after beating Panama on Friday and there is a definite feeling that our World Cup journey can go beyond this fixture and into a quarter-final.
It's nice to be surrounded by a strong football environment here in New Zealand, with players who are hungry and want to do well. To be here means the Ghana team has the chance to provide a better life for themselves and their families. The players want contracts and have the opportunity to showcase their talents at the highest level. This is a chance for managers, scouts and people involved in football clubs to watch them. In respect, they wouldn’t be watched that much in the lower leagues of Ghana – even though they should be.
The culture behind Ghana is very spiritual. I've never seen anything like it in terms of the camaraderie between this team – they do everything together – and it’s probably the best side I’ve been involved with collectively. Ghana is not just respected by Africa, the world is appreciating the talent these boys have, and it's nice they have the chance to play on the global stage.
An average day here in New Zealand is long but it’s the nature of playing a competition of this stature. We have breakfast at 7.30am, and pray before and after meals throughout the day. Breakfast is followed by a technical meeting at 11am, in which we go over the strengths and weaknesses of opposition and review videos from previous games. If it's not a match day, we normally train in the evenings. We try to mimic everything from weather conditions to our warm-up routines in order to ensure that we are prepared in the best possible way. The margin is so small at this level so it's important we address everything.
When we put the ball down and play to the best of our abilities, we can outplay anyone. We lacked in our physical ability during the African Championship, but it's something we've worked on and addressed, and now we’re getting stronger as the tournament progresses. Our performance levels are a lot stronger, especially in the second half of games where the intensity can increase.
As a country, Ghana is very famous for creating its own music. We don't tend to listen to normal music as much here. One player will set the tone, helping us produce our own specific chant. We do it from our hotel, all the way on the bus journey, and into the changing rooms to matches. We set our own vibe which is incredible, and this prepares us for the task at hand.
I like to listen to the players and see what issues they have that we can resolve. The psychology of what they go through back at home is huge, in terms of selection, exposure and expectation. The majority of the team play their club football in Ghana, so the pressure of playing for their futures is a massive thing. It's their life, so if I can listen to them and put them in the right frame of mind and help them produce a good performance, then I’m happy.
The team is full of characters, especially left back Patrick Asmah. I think he could play anywhere. He brings energy to the team and he’s the cheeky one that starts the dancing.
Our midfielder Clifford Aboagye is a technically gifted player who can beat anyone. He plays with Granada in Spain. He's only 5ft 4in but dictates the pace of the game and causes problems for the opposition. He has played against Paul Pogba twice. After their second encounter, Pogba turned around and said “I can't get around Clifford. He’s too fast”. Even against Argentina recently, they were taken aback by Patrick’s skill level. He created the first goal and scored the second, which was a vital contribution in a slender 3-2 win.
Next up is Mali on Wednesday and I'm sure they'll be a few surprises in store. They beat us in the African Championship but we are confident; it's been a great journey so far and myself and the players certainly don't want it to end.
OMAR’S THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH
YAW YEBOAH (Man City and Ghana) - Yaw was the Player of the Tournament in March’s African Championship. He scored two goals in the World Cup so far, including an important goal against Austria, and the decisive third goal against Argentina.
BENCE MERVO (Gyor and Hungary) - An instrumental attacker who has scored four goals in four attempts, including three against South Korea; unfortunately a 2-0 defeat to Nigeria in the final group game meant the Hungarians falied to qualify for the knockout stages.
ANGEL CORREA (Atletico Madrid and Argentina) - The captain of a bright South American side, Correa scored two goals in the first game against Panama. He is impressive, and commands play well when in possession.
Credit: Sport360