Black Princesses defender Alexandra Tay says reaching the knockout stage of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup for the first time would mean everything to Ghana.
Ghana revived their hopes of advancing from Group C with an impressive 3-1 victory over South Korea after suffering a disappointing 3-0 defeat to Ecuador in their opening game.
The Black Princesses now face a decisive final group-stage clash against France on Saturday, knowing that victory will secure their historic qualification to the Round of 16 for the first time.
Tay believes the squad is hungry to make history after Ghana’s 16-year participation in the competition without progressing beyond the group stage.
“It would mean everything [to reach the Round of 16 for the first time]. We have a lot of people from our federation who have come to support us, and we know that they are expecting that from us,” Tay told FIFA.
“I think this is a group that is hungry to do that. It’s been 16 years that we’ve been in this competition and we haven’t done it, and it’s something that we’re looking to do now.”
The defender also credited the team’s strong communication and positive mentality for helping them recover from their opening-day defeat.
“This team, in terms of the team culture, has always been really strong. From our coaches, the mantra is communication always, but it’s positive communication, and it’s never negative communication, so we know how to be constructive as well.
“We try to encourage each other and lift each other up.”
Ghana will take on France at Arena Sosnowiec on Saturday, with kick-off scheduled for 16:00 GMT.
The Black Princesses know exactly what is at stake: a victory would see Ghana reach the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Round of 16 for the first time in history.
