Tunisia are hoping not to be outdone by the individual brilliance of the Black Stars of Ghana in Sunday night's Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final in Franceville.
A scintillating free kick by Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu ensured Ghana drew 1-1 with Guinea on Wednesday to finish top of their group. Sami Trabelsi, the Tunisia coach, watched that game and picked Andre Ayew, Sulley Ali Muntari and Asamoah Gyan, the Al Ain forward, as the major threats to his team.
"We have to be mindful of these players," Trabelsi said during a press briefing at the team's training base in Bongoville, about 40 kilometres from Franceville.
"I know them very well as I know the other players in their squad. But I'm also sure that [Goran] Stevanovic, the coach of Ghana, also knows all my 23 players because today in football nothing is hidden.
"We play as a team, while they often rely on the brilliance of their individual players to make the difference for them."
Trabelsi said wearing black armbands tonight is "the least" his team can do for the more than 70 people killed after a club match in Egypt last week.
He said Tunisia's squad in Gabon was "moved" by what he calls the "sporting tragedy" that took place in Port Said on Wednesday when at least 74 people died in violent clashes.
Tunisia is the only North African team left at the Cup of Nations; Morocco and Libya were eliminated in the group stage. Egypt, the three-time defending champions, failed to qualify for this year's tournament.
"For us, Egypt and Tunisia are two brotherly countries," said Anouar Haddad, the Tunisian Football Federation president.
Despite facing Ghana, one of the title favourites, in the last eight, Haddad said Tunisia's "solid team" was capable of reaching the final. He said: "Why shouldn't we lift the cup?"
Meanwhile, Kwesi Appiah, Ghana's assistant coach, has backed his players to deal with the increased expectations on their shoulders as they continue their bid for a first African Nations championship since 1982.
The Black Stars emerged as one of the continent's major forces with an eye-catching run to the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, where they were controversially dumped out by Uruguay on penalties.
Ghana's build-up to today's clash at the Stade de Franceville has been overshadowed by the death of the mother of then midfielder Anthony Annan on Thursday. Annan has opted to play on.
Stevanovic has a full squad at his disposal, and Appiah is convinced his team can cope with the pressure when they face Tunisia, the Group C runners-up.
"After the World Cup, Ghana's name rose high and we are forgetting that any team coming to play Ghana thinks they are coming up against the best team in Africa, and for that matter the preparation and determination is always very high," Appiah said on www.ghanafa.org.
"There is some sort of a little pressure on the players as well. Everyone is expecting so much from them but I believe we can overcome it and put up a very good performance against Tunisia."
Tunisia v Ghana is the last of the quarter-finals.
Earlier on Sunday, it is the co-hosts Gabon against Mali.
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
The Comeback: Elvis And The Story Of The 68 Special
Simon Goddard
Omnibus Press
Emergency
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Rating: 2/5
Thank You for Banking with Us
Director: Laila Abbas
Starring: Yasmine Al Massri, Clara Khoury, Kamel El Basha, Ashraf Barhoum
Rating: 4/5
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
The rules of the road keeping cyclists safe
Cyclists must wear a helmet, arm and knee pads
Have a white front-light and a back red-light on their bike
They must place a number plate with reflective light to the back of the bike to alert road-users
Avoid carrying weights that could cause the bike to lose balance
They must cycle on designated lanes and areas and ride safe on pavements to avoid bumping into pedestrians
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Toss: South Africa, chose to field
Pakistan: 177 & 294
South Africa: 431 & 43-1
Man of the Match: Faf du Plessis (South Africa)
Series: South Africa lead three-match series 2-0
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Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
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World Cup warm-up fixtures
Friday, May 24:
- Pakistan v Afghanistan (Bristol)
- Sri Lanka v South Africa (Cardiff)
Saturday, May 25
- England v Australia (Southampton)
- India v New Zealand (The Oval, London)
Sunday, May 26
- South Africa v West Indies (Bristol)
- Pakistan v Bangladesh (Cardiff)
Monday, May 27
- Australia v Sri Lanka (Southampton)
- England v Afghanistan (The Oval, London)
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- West Indies v New Zealand (Bristol)
- Bangladesh v India (Cardiff)
The details
Heard It in a Past Life
Maggie Rogers
(Capital Records)
3/5
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About Tenderd
Started: May 2018
Founder: Arjun Mohan
Based: Dubai
Size: 23 employees
Funding: Raised $5.8m in a seed fund round in December 2018. Backers include Y Combinator, Beco Capital, Venturesouq, Paul Graham, Peter Thiel, Paul Buchheit, Justin Mateen, Matt Mickiewicz, SOMA, Dynamo and Global Founders Capital
