Ghana is finishing up their final preparations for the 2014 World Cup with one last international friendly before heading down to Brazil for the competition. The team drew Group G which will certainly not be very easy to make out of considering Germany and Portugal are also in it. After struggling in a recent match against the Dutch, Ghana is looking to get back on track against Guatemala.
Prior to 2006, Ghana had won four African Nations Cups but had never qualified for the World Cup. This year is different. However, the team has a new attitude, referring to themselves as the "Brazil of Africa." The team has a roster filled with young talent including Kwadwo Asamoah, Christian Atsu and Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu. They are some of the better midfielders in the tournament and fit well with Ghana's plan of attack that includes midfield and possession dominance.
However, the team's recent friendly against the Netherlands showed weakness. Ghana lacked defensive knowledge that created an attack of scoring on the team. They placed too many players around the ball, leaving the Netherlands easy scoring routes. If Ghana plans on getting out of the knockout stages, they must improve defensively to compete with their tough grouping.
The team is also facing a bit of controversy. Recently a Ghana doctor said he cast a spell on Christiano Ronaldo in order to not have his team face the star when they play Portugal. Ronaldo is currently suffering from a muscle injury on his thigh and knee, but the team does not expect him to miss any time with the World Cup when the team has their first match June 16.
Guatemala is dealing with their own form of controversy. While the team did not qualify for the World Cup, matches from their 2010 qualifying games and coming under fire as being rigged. The team's game against South Africa where the host nation won 5-0 after questionable handballs is now being viewed as fixed.
FIFA has not accused anyone at this point, but notes there is an ongoing investigation into the claims. The news comes just before the World Cup in Brazil as fans now fear the same thing could happen this year.