Results elsewhere in the group stage were raised with the Black Queens before breakfast on matchday, says head coach Kim Björkegren, after Ghana avoided the fate of Nigeria and South Africa.

Ghana used the shock defeats suffered by Nigeria and South Africa as a warning to their own players before beating Cape Verde 2-0 in their opening match of the 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations, according to head coach Kim Björkegren.

The tournament's group stage has already produced two major upsets. Tanzania beat 2022 champions South Africa 2-1 in Group B on Monday, and Malawi followed 24 hours later with a 3-2 win over defending champions Nigeria in Group C - a result widely regarded as one of the biggest shocks in WAFCON history.

With Ghana facing tournament debutants Cape Verde on Wednesday, Björkegren made sure his players had taken note before a ball was kicked.

"I had a little bit of a heads-up in the morning before breakfast with the girls, a reminder that nothing comes for free in this tournament," Björkegren said in his post-match press conference. "We actually spoke about some of the other teams' performances and the results as well. We needed to be on our toes, and we needed to be ready for this game today."

Every group at this WAFCON is being decided over just three matches, leaving almost no room for a slow start. Doris Boaduwaa's early goal and an own goal from Cape Verde's Eleia Vieira after the break spared Ghana the kind of opening-day upset that hit two of the continent's traditional powers, with Björkegren well aware of the position both teams had put themselves in.

"We all know in a group stage with only three games, if you lose the first one, you're putting yourself a little bit in the corner," he said. "As always, we said we needed to do everything we can to win the first one. So I'm of course happy that we did."

Ghana's win gives them the perfect start in Group D, with fixtures against Cameroon and Mali still to come. Nigeria and South Africa, meanwhile, must now win to keep their own campaigns on track - proof, as Björkegren reminded his players over breakfast, that nothing at this WAFCON is coming easily.