Already through to the WAFU B U17 semi-finals, Ghana's Black Starlets will rotate against hosts Burkina Faso without losing their winning edge.
Ghana's next generation of talent is showing it understands what it takes to win at the highest youth level. The Black Starlets have already booked their place in the WAFU B U17 Championship semi-finals, yet coach Kassim Ocansey insists there will be no cruising in their final Group A clash with hosts Burkina Faso.
The Starlets face Burkina Faso at the 4th August Stadium on Friday, having already beaten Togo and Benin in their opening two matches. Those wins sealed a top-four finish with a game still in hand, handing Ocansey the luxury of planning ahead.
That means changes are coming. The coach is weighing up his starting XI as he manages the workload of his young squad and looks to keep legs fresh for the knockout stage. Fans should not expect to see every first-choice player in the opening lineup, but Ocansey made it clear that rotation does not mean a lower ambition.
"We take every game very competitive and our focus is to win all our games," he said. "We are focused on what brought us here. It doesn't matter whether we've qualified or not."
For a tournament built to showcase the future of West African football, it is a telling message. Ghana is using the Burkina Faso match to give squad members valuable minutes while protecting its key players, all without giving up the winning habit that has carried the team this far. A strong performance in front of a home crowd would send a statement ahead of the semi-finals.
