By OkayGoal 
Former Vice President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), George Afriyie beleives the Black Stars will have a good tournament if they can beat Panama in their group opener.
Ghana will face the Central American side in their Group L opener ahead of the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted by the USA, Canada and Mexico this summer.
According to the renowned football administrator, a win for the Black Stars will position them well to fight for a point against England and Croatia.
“First of all, we need to win against Panama to position ourselves to either win or pick a point against England or beat Croatia or pick a point,” he told the Graphic Sports.
“Whichever way, it can propel us if we are to make a mark and go beyond the group stage.
“I expect us to beat Panama. The first match is very important and, among our group opponents, trust me, our best bet is against Panama.
“We all know England and Croatia are ahead of us in terms of FIFA rankings, but national team football is quite tricky,” he added.
The Black Stars will begin their campaign against Panama on June 17, followed by matches against England on June 23 and Croatia on June 27.
Ahead of the tournament, the Black Stars will regroup in March for friendlies against Austria and Germany, play Mexico in May, and face Wales on June 2 in their final warm-up match.
During the World Cup, the team will be based at Bryant University in the United States, aiming to improve on previous group-stage exits in 2014 and 2022.