Scorpions’ striker Assan Ceesay has urged his team-mates to remain ‘calm and focused’ as they face Gabon in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations Group D qualifier in Libreville in November.
The Gambia currently leads their group with four points after two games, but need to win Gabon to smooth their path to the Afcon finals in Cameroon next year.
The Gambia is in the quest to qualify for their first Africa Cup of Nations.
Assan Ceesay, who scored a brace in Gambia’s emphatic 3-1 win against Angola in the qualifiers, wants his team-mates to avoid disruptions ahead of the November clash. “We have to stay focused and calm, “Ceesay tells The Chronicle. “Gabon has a good team, lots of good players and they will want to put things right but we have to stay focused and stick to the coach’s plan.”
The FC Zurich talisman said morale is high within the national team players. “We are always in touch, we communicate all the time and that’s the spirit. This is the most important game in our national team careers, so we need each other’s back. The defenders should defend well, midfielders play their part and we the strikers get in the goals, and together we can do it.”
Ceesay, 26, says that the Gambia Football Federation must also play its part and give the team the best possible chance of qualifying for Cameroon. “We need extra motivation from the GFF, “he said. Everyone has a part to play. If we the players are ready to give it all out on the field, the GFF should also do more especially in these last crucial games.”
“We should receive our invitations on time. Flights arrangements to Libreville should be made favorable to all the players and we should all arrive on time, “Ceesay stressed.
Musa Jeng, a Gambian football enthusiast said this is not the time to look at the table, but to put ‘our foot on the accelerator’. “We have to be consistent in the remaining games, “he tells The Chronicle. ” At this moment we need points back to back and at the end we’ll see how much we’ve accumulated. This is our biggest chance to qualify, let’s get it right.”