Black Stars forward Brandon Thomas-Asante has called on Ghana to move past the disappointment of the defeat to Croatia and shift full attention to the FIFA World Cup Round of 32, insisting that advancing in the tournament is more important than dwelling on one result.
Speaking after Ghana’s final Group L fixture, Thomas-Asante admitted the loss had affected the mood within the squad but maintained that the team remained in a strong position after securing qualification for the knockout stage.
“We were fortunate to be in a position where from last night we knew that we were already through,” he said.
The Coventry City striker explained that although qualification had already been confirmed before the match following results elsewhere, the Black Stars were determined to end the group stage with a victory.
“I don’t think that had an impact on our ambitions for the game. I think we still wanted to win and to seal it up. We also knew that there were records to break as a nation [and] between ourselves. So of course, we had that ambition,” he stated.
Thomas-Asante acknowledged that losing the final group game was disappointing but noted that the team took some comfort in the fact that their place in the knockout stage had already been secured.
“But yeah, I have to say that luckily we’re still through. So perhaps in that aspect we’re happy that it was here and not the first game or second game,” he added.
The striker revealed that the atmosphere in the dressing room after the match was subdued, with players frustrated at missing the opportunity to carry forward the momentum from their dramatic win over Panama and hard-fought draw against England.
“The mood is quite down actually and it needed a few people to remind us that, you know, we’re in a position that we’re not usually in as a nation, as Black Stars,” he said.
Despite the setback, Thomas-Asante stressed that Ghana’s main objective at the World Cup had always been to progress beyond the group stage, describing qualification for the Round of 32 as the team’s most significant achievement so far in the competition.
