Head coach of the Black Princesses, Charles Sampson, believes the future of the senior national team is in safe hands for many years to come with the quality in line at the youth level.
Sampson led the Black Princesses at the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup as they crashed to another group stage exit.
Ghana finished at the bottom of Group C, winning just one of three games while losing two against Ecuador and France.
Reflecting on the performance of his side, Sampson outlined the issues which affected the performance of his team.
“We didn’t perform badly. We came here with a mission. We knew that winning this game would give us the opportunity to go to the next stage, so we were pushing from the beginning for that,” he said.
“We even got a goal that was ruled out, and I believe if we had got the first goal, the game would have been a bit different. We were also into it; we were very organised but lost concentration in the set pieces a bit, and we got paid for it.
“Unfortunately, we met a team that is also very disciplined, very good with the ball, and they could find those spaces that we opened for them, and then they could help us with that. So it’s just to accept. As I said, it’s just lack of concentration and lack of discipline in the set pieces. I think that’s where they got us unaware.
“We studied their set pieces; we know that they do these sorts of rounds and free themselves, but unfortunately, they got three players in those zones, and they punished us. It’s a difficult part of it that can be reserved for another day to talk about.
Looking ahead to the future, Sampson believes the players have the potential to play at the highest level.
“Even from the first game we played, the second game, one of our players also went out and couldn’t play again. So you are forced to reshuffle the team a little bit, and sometimes you get paid for this,” he added.
“The future of the girls is amazing. As for this group of girls, the character they have, and the discipline they have, I believe the future of the Black Queens is actually safe for many years through this bunch of girls.”
Throughout the tournament, Black Queens head coach Kim Lars Bjorkegren and his staff were in attendance to watch the girls.
