FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017: Ghana name strong 21-man squad to end 22-year trophy drought

New Delhi: India’s Group A opponents and title contenders Ghana have named a strong 21-man squad for next month’s FIFA Under-17 World Cup. The Black Starlets boss Paa Kwesi Fabin has strengthened his squad with seven new players who were not part of their campaign in the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Gabon. Among the squad are seven players from Ghana Premier League clubs with the rest of them playing for lower tier sides. [caption id=“attachment_4056723” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Ghana players celebrate after sealing qualification to the U-17 World Cup. Image courtesy: ghanafa.org[/caption] Ghana, two-time champions at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 1991 and 1995, are looking to end their 22-year trophy drought in a tricky group. They are placed in Group A along with hosts India, Colombia and United States of America. They play their first group match against Colombia in the tournament opener on 6 October at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. This will be Ghana’s ninth appearance in the FIFA U-17 World Cup and are one of the favourites considering their performance in the CAF qualifiers. Besides the two titles, they have finished runners-up twice (1993 and 1997) while finishing third in the 1999 edition. Ghana Squad: Goalkeepers: Ibrahim Danlad, Michael Acquaye, Kwame Aziz. Defenders: Najeeb Yakubu, Gideon Mensah, Bismark Terry Owusu, Edmund Arko-Mensah, Abdul Razak Yusif, Gideon Acquah, Rashid Alhassan, John Otu. Midfielders: Isaac Gyamfi, Gabriel Leveh, Ibrahim Sulley, Mohammed Kudus, Emmanuel Toku, Mohammed Iddriss. Strikers: Eric Ayiah, Richard Danso, Mohammed Aminu, Ibrahim Sadiq.