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African football betting strategy: How to approach Cup of Nations and CHAN markets

By mac14 on April 15, 2026

Essien on Kudus as Ghana’s Star and Key Player

Six years at Nordsjaelland. That’s how long Michael Essien has been working as assistant coach at the Danish club – and he shows no signs of going anywhere. The club changed ownership back in 2015, and since then the pipeline has been running steadily. On platforms like 1xbet Gambia, Black Stars fixtures at the 2026 World Cup are already live for betting, and you’ll keep seeing these names come up. Essien signed a contract extension in June 2025.

What Essien Actually Thinks About Kudus

No pause. No thinking it over. When the question came – who is Ghana’s biggest star – Essien had his answer ready. Mohammed Kudus. Tottenham. Full stop.

“If I start talking about him, we won’t finish.” He said it with a smile, but he meant it. “He’s shown himself to the whole football world. For Ghana, he’s our star. We have to protect him. Give him confidence, give him love – that’s what he needs right now.”

Kudus left Nordsjaelland for Ajax before Essien even arrived at the club. Then came the £55m move to Tottenham from West Ham in the summer of 2025. An injury slowed things down – knocked him out of both club and national team duty for a stretch. Essien isn’t worried. He expects Kudus to be central at the World Cup. Players from the Nordsjaelland pathway likely heading to the 2026 tournament:

Mohammed Kudus – Tottenham, attacking midfielder.
Kamaldeen Sulemana – Atalanta, winger.
Ernest Nuamah – winger.
Ibrahim Osman – midfielder.
Caleb Yirenkyi – Nordsjaelland, age 20, ten senior caps.

The same route appears repeatedly: early development, a move to Danish football, and then progression to top European leagues. A decade in, that pipeline has remained consistent.

Sulemana Has the Tools – Now He Needs the Freedom

Essien on Sulemana is warm. Genuinely warm. “Great talent. Good dribbler, very fast, strong enough physically. He just needs to feel free on the pitch. Let him be himself – the rest will follow.”

Then there’s Caleb Yirenkyi. Twenty years old. Ten caps. Most of his minutes have come at right-back, which tells you something about his versatility. Essien doesn’t hide how much he rates him. “He does his talking on the pitch. Hard-working, calm, quiet. Good manners. Sometimes I catch something in him that reminds me of myself at that age.” He pauses. “He always comes to me with questions. Takes everything on board. That kid can go far.”

For those placing bets during live broadcasts – lineups drop an hour before kick-off, odds shift fast – mobile pages like https://1xbet.gm/en/mobile are often used to keep track of updates in real time and follow how the market reacts.

Group L Is Tough – Ghana Knows It

Panama. England. Croatia. That’s what Ghana drew for Group L. Essien doesn’t dress it up. “Tough group. But tough games are always there. You have to win them. Take it one match at a time, give everything. It’s a tournament – anything can happen.”

Missing AFCON 2025 stings. Essien acknowledges it – calls it a big disappointment – then moves straight past it. “Football always gives you the next game to put things right.” That’s the mentality he wants to see in the squad.

Opponent	Level	Key Player
Panama	CONCACAF	Edgar Barcenas
England	Top European	Jude Bellingham
Croatia	Experienced side	Luka Modrić
Ghana	Africa	Mohammed Kudus

No margin for error early on. But this Ghana squad carries something previous generations didn’t – a shared footballing language. Half the likely starters came through the same academy system. They don’t need to explain things to each other on the pitch.

Bookmakers won’t make Ghana favourites to top the group. England and Croatia are objectively stronger on paper. That gap, though, is exactly where interesting lines appear. A bet on Ghana advancing, or a specific result against Panama, sits in territory where the odds can reward anyone who actually knows this squad. One variable dominates everything else: Kudus’ fitness. Get him to the tournament healthy and in form – the whole calculation changes.