Black Queens midfielder Azumah Bugre has expressed her enduring disappointment following the team’s failure to qualify for the Olympic Games.
Ghana’s hopes were dashed earlier this year when they lost to Zambia in the final round of the 2024 Olympic Games qualifiers.
Coach Nora Hauptle and her squad suffered a heartbreaking defeat at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Zambia. Barbara Banda’s late strike in the second leg of the match denied Ghana a coveted Olympic slot.
Five months after the defeat, Bugre admits the memory remains fresh for the players. According to her, the team is still saddened by their exit, as they were determined to make their maiden appearance at the Olympics.
“Talking about Zambia’s game, we’ve been sad the whole time for a very long time now because it was one of our motives; that was to qualify for the Olympics. And we couldn’t get that done,” she said.
Princella Adubea, who was away from the team and couldn’t play against Zambia, also shares the same sentiments.
“We planned together but unfortunately we couldn’t make it. I wasn’t part of the team but I had trust in my teammates. Unfortunately, you can’t win it all in football; you win and lose sometimes. I believe that will propel us to build ourselves for the future and be able to get one over Zambia if we meet them again,” she said.
Despite the setback, the team is now preparing for the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), another competition that has eluded them for years.
