Maputo (Mozambique), April 9 (IANS): Mozambique's national coach Joao Chissano has said he is optimistic of qualification for the group phase competition of the 2017 African Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Mozambique is in the same group with the African runners-up Ghana, Mauritius and Rwanda and the first group match for the Mozambican national squad will be in Maputo in June, reports Xinhua.

"I see that we will be playing with Ghana once again, after meeting them for the qualification of All Africa. We believe that although it's a strong opponent, we have chances to win," said Chissano on Wednesday.

Ghana are currently the third strong football power in Africa, according to the world rankings and a strong force in African football. However he is optimistic about the performance of his squad.

"If we look to the Ghana senior team is not that different from their current Under-23 we played recently in Maputo, although they have younger players, we do believe in our players," said Chissano.