Ghana's Andre Ayew: 'No Way' Team Loses To USA In World Cup Opener If Fit

Ghana has defeated the United States in each of their last two meetings on soccer’s biggest stage. Ghanian midfielder Andre Ayew sees no reason why that winning steak can’t be extended to three.

Ayew told reporters Sunday in Brazil ahead of Monday’s U.S.-Ghana pool-play matchup — the 2014 FIFA World Cup opener for both teams — that while he expects to meet a determined American squad, he believes in his countrymen’s ability to get the job done.

“I think if you are a team and you lose twice (against) a country, say Ghana, as in 2006 and in 2010, if you have the opportunity to meet them in 2014, I think you do everything to beat them,” Ayew said, via ESPN.com. “Not just for them but for their pride and for their country.

“But we also are winners. We have won twice. And as we say, there is no two without three, so we want to try and beat them for the third time. We know it is going to be very difficult. They are prepared, but we are also prepared. We are not thinking about what the U.S. side can do. I believe in all our players. I believe in the group. If we are fit and we are all 100 percent, there is no way that we aren’t going to win this game.”

Ghana eliminated the U.S. from both the 2006 and 2010 World Cups, winning 2-1 each time. U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard said Thursday that after these two narrow defeats, his team knows what to expect.

“I think they are very similar (to 2010). They are strong individually,” Howard said. “Obviously, we know how physical they are, so we are going to try to match that. I’ve said it before, very rarely do we get outmatched physically, but this is a team that has the possibility of doing that.”

Kickoff for the rematch is set for 6 p.m. ET.