MAN OF the moment Andre Ayew says he is merely warming up at Africa’s ultimate national team competition, the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon), and that people can expect more from him at this year’s showpiece in Gabon.
Ayew opened his tournament with a goal by converting a penalty for Ghana in their 1-0 defeat of Uganda at the 20 000-seater Stade de Port-Gentil in the tiny town of Port-Gentil in Gabon on Tuesday.
The 27-year-old West Ham United winger admits playing at the new stadium was “very nice” – except for the pitch, “which is not that good.
“But we will keep coming to stadium,” the son of the great Abedi Pele said ahead of their second Group D clash against Mali on Saturday.
“The pitch was just terrible and unplayable. But this is where I grew up (in Africa) and I know all the struggles.
“This is our life. It is completely different to Europe. When you come to honour a national team call-up, you need to ready your mind for what you will find here. This is my 10th year with the national team and I have seen a lot.
“The pitch was very sandy and it felt like we were playing on the beach. It was too heavy for our liking.
“But we will have to cope with it. Hopefully by Saturday it will be a little bit better and we will have a better game against Mali.”
Mali held Egypt to a 0-0 draw at the same venue and Ayew, brother of Jordan who plays for the same national team, believes they can handle the Eagles.
He added that they were able to beat Uganda because they adhered to the strict instructions of their coach, Avram Grant: “Our coach has had a very good impact on the team. We reached the final after he arrived. He has a lot of information and pushes us hard to get results. Hopefully we will play good football for 90 minutes, not 45.
“We are in a very tough group with Uganda, who came back with a good display in the second half.
“It is important for me to thank the fans from both teams, who made the game an enjoyable one by making a noise and cheering.”
His teammate, Christian Atsu, added: “I am happy we won this game. I keep giving my all for Ghana. Playing with Ayew and (Asamoah) Gyan has been good for me. We have a strong team – they make life easy for us. “
He believes they could have netted four against Uganda but is convinced their levels of confidence and motivation are high enough to dominate against Mali.
On his own performance, he said: “Personally, I was disappointed with myself for not getting on the score sheet after all the chances I created. But the win is very important. In the next game we will score more than one goal.”
