ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast — Ghana coach Chris Hughton says he will leave it to the last possible moment before deciding if star player Mohammed Kudus is fit enough to face Egypt in their potentially decisive Africa Cup of Nations clash on Thursday.
The 23-year-old Kudus joined the Ghana squad late after suffering a hamstring injury in West Ham’s 2-0 win at Arsenal in the Premier League on Dec. 28.
“We will continue to assess him,” Hughton said Wednesday. “We have today and tomorrow morning to assess. He has trained the last few days, but we will assess him, as I say, today and tomorrow and make a decision tomorrow.”
Without Kudus, Ghana slumped to a surprise 2-1 defeat to Cape Verde in their Africa Cup opener, leaving the team under pressure for the remainder of its games in Group B.
Egypt was held 1-1 by Mozambique in their opening game, leading Egypt coach Rui Vitória to describe Thursday’s match against Ghana in the Félix Houphouët-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan as a “final” for his team.
Only the top two teams in each group are assured of reaching the knockout stage.
Vitória said that he hopes Kudus will be able to play.
“I think it’s good for the tournament if the best players play all the games. Of course, he’s a fantastic player. He’s doing well in the Premier League,” the Portuguese coach said. ”If he’s playing OK, you have to control him. But not only him, because the Ghana team is a very good team and all the players are good. We are thinking that the player will play.”
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