THE Black Stars will be without key midfielder Edmund Addo for the World Cup playoffs against the Super Eagles, reports in Ghana have claimed.
The Moldova-based midfielder has been released from the Ghana squad due to injury on the eve of the first leg of their Qatar 2022 World Cup playoffs against Nigeria, Ghana Soccernet reported on Thursday.
The Black Stars host the Super Eagles in Kumasi on Friday for the first leg, with the reverse fixture scheduled for Abuja next Tuesday.
With his enforced release, the Sheriff of Moldova midfielder, who played in the UEFA Champions League this season, will not be available for both legs of the war between not-so-friendly neighbours.
The outlet reported that Addo arrived in Ghana with an unspecified injury which he sustained while playing for his club last weekend but he believed he would recover in time for the two international matches.
The 21-year-old underwent an MRI on Wednesday in Kumasi and the result showed severe damage which means he will not be available for the games, Ghana Soccernet added.
Addo is expected to travel to the Ghanaian capital of Accra on Thursday to see a specialist.
He joins several Black Stars players to miss the playoffs through injury, including Chelsea defender (on loan at Reading) Baba Rahman, Rennes winger Kamaldeen Sulemana, Saudi Arabia-based Samuel Owusu and Israel-based forward Richmond Boakye.
Addo, a defensive midfielder, has been a regular at FC Sheriff Tiraspol this season, playing 29 matches, including 12 in the UEFA Champions League group phase and qualifying stages.
He has four Ghana caps, two of them from the Africa Cup of Nations in January where the Black Stars were eliminated in the first round without a win.
