WCQ 2022: Relief for Ghana as UK-based players cleared to be available for Zimbabwe clash

UK-based Ghanaian players will be available for the Black Stars match against Zimbabwe in Harare this month, footballmadeinghana.com can confirm.

This comes as massive relief to the West African country with almost all their top players set to be available for the game.

Ghana will host Zimbabwe in Cape Coast on the 9^th of October and trek to Harare for the second leg two days later.

Initially, the UK-based contingent of Thomas Partey, Jordan Ayew, Andy Yiadom, Baba Rahman and Daniel Amartey were barred from travelling to Zimbabwe due to COVID-19 restriction.

These players will now travel to Zimbabwe for the match after English clubs decided to allow their players to travel to COVID-19 red-list countries.

What this implies, however is that the players may go into quarantine for some time before joining the clubs after their returns from Ghana.

Also, the players must adhere to a strict code of conduct regarding transport, close contacts, testing and bubbles.

They will have to quarantine in “bespoke facilities” for 10 days upon their arrival back in the UK.

They will be permitted to leave quarantine once a day to train or play.

“We have worked closely with football authorities to achieve an outcome that balances the interests of both club and country while maintaining the highest levels of public health and safety,” said a UK government spokesperson.

“Our best defence against the virus is vaccination and these new measures will allow fully vaccinated players to fulfil their international duties in the safest, most practical way possible, while allowing them to train and play with their clubs as early as possible upon their return.”

Ghana suffered a 1-0 defeat to South Africa in Johannesburg last month after all their UK-based players were barred from traveling for the clash.

The double-header with Zimbabwe will be huge litmus test for new Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac as he starts his journey of rekindling Ghana’s chances of picking a ticket for Qatar 2022.