Otto Addo faced the media on Saturday ahead of Ghana's 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Comoros at the Accra Sports Stadium. He fielded questions about being close to history as the first Ghanaian coach to qualify for two World Cup tournaments, the strength and threat posed by Comoros, and the latest on injuries, as well as strategies for winning the match.
Here's every word Otto Addo said in the pre-match press conference:
On team news:
So far everything is well, we arrived home safely. The boys are already having a lot of games at their clubs. This travelling is not that easy for them but yesterday we did some more with those who played. The day before, we did a lot with especially those who didn't play and today we will get into the rhythm and get us ready for tomorrow. But everything so far looks well, and we are happy for that.
On team's mentality going into this game
I think actually like always. This is how professionals behave. Myself, I have seen a lot in football. There was game I led with my team 4-0 and we lost 6-4. In football anything can happen and we are not done until we are done. The other thing is I think we want to end this qualification game with a victory. This is for sure. We want to thank our fans with a victory for their support throughout from day one. Even when we started and things were not looking so good, they backed us. We showed them a lot of clips, they have an understanding of what we want to do and we are going into the game with 100% focus.
On Comoros
I have to say they are really, really good. It's not like, they are here by luck. They have been doing really, really good work over the last years. I think also we as Ghana, we felt it already. So, it's not going to be easy. Especially up front, they are really, really good. If you see the games, especially the last games against Mali, Madagascar, they lost 3-0 and also 2-1 against Madagascar. But the way they played, the chances they created, really, really good. It's going to be a difficult match similar to the Mali match. But I'm very, very sure if we have the right mentality like against Mali, we will beat them. They don't have a big name, but it's going to be close.
On comparison between AFCON qualifiers and World Cup qualifiers
So, I'm just focussing on the game. I'm not looking back. We focus on the game. We want to win this game and that's it. We're looking forward to it. I think there will be other times where we can discuss this kind of question. But for today, the focus is on the game tomorrow. We want to win.
On possibility of Ebenezer Annan starting in place of Gideon Mensah
So, first of all, Gideon played well, very well. So sometimes, you know, surely there are some situations, but we also forget sometimes the good things he does. One thing, for example, is the assist to Jordan. A lot of good things he did. But like always, I'll never speak about a player or how we play because I don't want to prepare our opponents.
On approach compared to previous meetings
I don't know how the approach was when I was not there so It's difficult for me to talk about it. But I can say from my point of view or from our point of view, we take them very, very serious. Like I said, Comoros, some people don't even know where it is. But I know where it is. And it's a small country, but we have to show them big respect for what they have done in the recent years in building a team, naturalising a lot of players from France, building a really competitive team and with a really, really good coach who understands the game, who always has a good game plan, who is flexible, who plays with different systems. They are difficult to beat. It's going to be a tough match for me. But we want to win.
On possibility of trying other players
So, like I said, I won't talk about how we're going to play. And I don't think the previous matches affects us too much. We are looking at this game as a single game, and we want to win this match. I know people sometimes try to bring this revenge kind of things, but this is football. You can't win every game. Like I said, we know how strong they are. Maybe in the first leg, I don't know, I was not there, maybe we underrated them a little bit. And when I hear the people also outside, like we have to give them four or five, like Central Africa, I laugh. I can just say, I hope it will happen, but it's going to be really, really difficult. This is a different calibre of players in the team.
On being on the verge of making history as first Ghanaian to qualify for two World Cup tournaments
I'm not thinking about that because, first of all, it's never about me. I know that people want to polarize the atmosphere if we lose and also if we win, it's me. But I think it’s always us. It's a good teamwork. The players are doing well. I hope that we will win and we'll make it official tomorrow. But like I said, we are fully focused on the game. We want to win this and that's what I'm thinking about. We are looking for a good game plan. I hope that, like in the last match, the players will fulfil the plan. They did really, really well and we hope that everybody's in the right focus and that we can fulfil our idea of how we want to play and beat them.
On team results being attributed to luck
We know what we do. We always work hard. I think it's a blessing. It's not luck. Maybe it's a blessing that we are in this position. That's it. We will do anything to make the dream come true and to qualify. That's what we are thinking of, not about what people are thinking or saying.
On Ghanaians being anxious about the team’s qualification
The same as always. We are doing it for the people. We are doing it for us. Our aim is always to make Ghanaians happy. We will put everything into it and go into the match with 100% commitment to win this game.
On calls for his dismissal after qualification
What happens after is not in my hands. I hope that a lot of people, if we win, can go to America. We have to win this game. This is what we are looking at. If Ghanaians are happy, then we are happy.
On player updates
Elisha had a little bit of a problem, so we will see how it goes today. But the rest are fine. Gideon had some problems with his left shin, but it's also better so we will see what we do.
On weaknesses of Comoros
They have a lot of strength, but they also have weaknesses. We hope that we can use these weaknesses to win the game. I think that the team is very, very good. A very good team. The coach is also very, very good. He has a lot of systems. That's why it's very difficult for our team to win, but we've analysed the team, and I think we know what we want to do tomorrow. The team is doing very well, especially in attack, but behind, the team has lost a lot of matches in defence. I think there's a chance, especially when we defend together, when we use our chances.
On message to players ahead of the game
I think this is sometimes the difference between a top team and an average team. They have the chance to show they are a top team. Even if we would have been through, I would like us to win, to end this qualification with a win. If you are a player, surely you always want to win, but you need to stay focused to give all the effort and not think we are already through. You need to take this out of your mind, to focus on the game, to focus on the three points, to end this qualification as best as possible.
On being able to prove critics wrong
To be honest, I don't really care. This is my life. I was a player as well. It's not like everybody believed in me from day one. You have to fight, that's it. I'm happy and we are blessed to be in this situation. But this is life. It's never like a smooth road. There are always ups and downs. At the moment we are up, the next moment we can be down again. We have to stay humble. I hope we win. This is life. I don't think about critics. It's in the past. We are looking forward, and we have a big chance ahead of us.
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