Ghana are gearing up for a do-or-die showdown in the Africa Cup of Nations, and as a result, fans have been fretting over the fitness of highly-rated attacker Mohammed Kudus.
The Black Stars kicked off their campaign on Sunday with a disappointing 2-1 loss against Cape Verde, which the West Ham ace missed due to injury, and face Egypt on Thursday in their next match. Defeat against the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations runners-up could all but eliminate the West African side in the group stage.
As a result, Chris Hughton's update on Kudus was much awaited. However, the Ghana head coach did not deliver the news fans were eager for, instead revealing that the Premier League ace is facing a race against the clock to be fit.
"We will continue to assess him," Hughton said on Wednesday, as per the Washington Post. "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."
The 23-year-old has established himself as one of the hottest African players after sealing a summer move from Ajax to West Ham, scoring 13 goals and assisting an additional two this season for both clubs.
However, the Premier League ace sadly joined up with the Black Stars injured after picking up a hamstring issue in his team's 2-0 win over Arsenal in late December. As a result, he missed out on his team's opening game against Cape Verde.
Only the top two teams in each group are guaranteed a spot in the round of 16. However, the four best third-placed teams will also progress to the next round, thus handing Ghana a lifeline should they stumble against the Africa Cup of Nations' most successful side.
The Pharaohs also struggled in their opening game, narrowly avoiding defeat against Mozambique. A stoppage-time penalty saved the North African powerhouses, with Mohamed Salah equalizing from the spot to earn his nation a point.
