Carlos Queiroz Names 28-Man Squad for Ghana's World Cup Preparation
The World Cup countdown has started for the Black Stars, and Carlos Queiroz has made his first big move. The head coach has named a 28-man squad for Ghana’s preparation camp and the high-profile friendly against Wales in Cardiff, a camp that will double as an audition for places on the plane to North America.
The group is loaded: five goalkeepers, nine defenders, seven midfielders and seven forwards. Enough bodies to test ideas, enough quality to sharpen edges.
Camp opened on Monday, May 25, 2026, with the squad settling into Dragon Park in Cardiff. The work begins there, behind closed doors, before the lights come on at the Cardiff City Stadium on Tuesday, June 2, when Wales provide the first serious examination of Queiroz’s plans.
Familiar Faces Return
The headline name on the list is Baba Abdul Rahman. The Greece-based defender is back in the national team picture for the first time since September 2023. He hasn’t slipped in through sentiment. He’s forced the door open.
Rahman has put together a strong season with PAOK, clocking 35 appearances, three goals and three assists across all competitions. For a former Chelsea left back who has ridden the highs and lows of European football, this recall feels like a reward for persistence as much as form.
On the opposite flank of the pitch, another comeback story. Ernest Nuamah, the Olympique Lyon winger, returns after almost a year out. An anterior cruciate ligament injury robbed him of more than 12 months of football and halted his rise just as it was gathering speed. Now he is back to full fitness, back in the squad, and back in contention at exactly the moment Ghana need attacking variety.
The list of returnees does not stop there. Abdul Mumin of Rayo Vallecano is also included after his own long layoff with an ACL injury. Saint-Étienne midfielder Augustine Boakye is recalled, bringing energy and drive from the middle of the park, while Stade Rennes defender Alidu Seidu re-enters the frame to stiffen the defensive options.
These are not cosmetic changes. They reshape the spine and widen the choices at both ends of the pitch.
A Look to the Future
Amid the familiar names, one selection points clearly to the future. Ajax Amsterdam youngster Paul Reverson has been handed a call-up at just 20 years old.
Reverson has impressed for Ajax’s youth side in the Netherlands, and Queiroz has moved early. This is not a token invitation. The coaching staff want a closer look, with a long-term view. Cardiff will be his classroom, the senior squad his first taste of the standards required at this level.
Wales First, World Stage Next
The entire squad will assemble in Cardiff on Monday, May 25, 2026, using the Welsh capital as a launchpad for a year that could redefine this group.
The friendly against Wales is more than a warm-up. It is a measuring stick. A chance to test combinations, to see how Rahman slots back in, how Nuamah’s sharpness holds up, how the returning defenders cope under pressure, and whether a youngster like Reverson can handle the tempo.
All of it feeds into the bigger picture: the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Ghana’s path is already mapped out. The Black Stars open their Group L campaign against Panama in Toronto. Then come the heavyweight clashes: England in Boston, Croatia in Philadelphia. Three cities, three very different tests, one unforgiving group.
Every sprint at Dragon Park, every touch against Wales, carries that backdrop. Queiroz now has his 28 for camp. The question is simple and sharp: which of them will convince him they belong on the world’s biggest stage when Ghana walk out in Toronto?
