Ghana, who dispatched tournament debutants Cape Verde 2-0 on 29 July, go into the Group D tie in Casablanca with a chance to reach the quarter-finals at the competition.

Cameroon also won their pool opener, beating Mali 2-1 and could also qualify for the second phase with a victory at the Stade Moulay Rachid.

“With respect to Cape Verde, playing against Cameroon is going to be one level up,” said Björkegren.

“We’re going to play against a good Cameroon team that has experienced players and quality.”

The 44-year-old Swede added: “But I also know when the opponent is more difficult to play against, it also normally means that we are a better Ghana.”

‘We step up when tested’

Björkegren, who took over in January 2025 from Nora Häuptle, pointed to his side’s 2-0 defeat in a friendly against the European champions England last December in Birmingham, central England.

“Even if they are one of the best teams in the world, we were giving them a fight,” said Björkegren. “We then played against Russia and we won 4-0.

“So every time when we get tests, we actually step up and prove that we are even better than we maybe thought. And I hope it’s going to be the same thing against Cameroon.”

Cameroon qualified for the tournament along with Cote d’Ivoire, Mail and Egypt after the the organisers – the Confederation of African Football – expanded the competition from 12 to 16 teams.

Cameroon head coach Dimitri Lipoff said his side would go into Sunday’s clash as underdogs.

“We’re going to be playing against the team that finished third at the last WAFCON,” said the 42-year-old Frenchman.

“So, we’re facing a side with experience, a lot of quality, and one that has been working together for the past two years. They qualified for this tournament whereas we did not.

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“Nevertheless, we’ll go into the game trying to show all our qualities, all our determination, and we’ll give ourselves every chance by playing to the best of our ability. It’s as simple as that.”

In Sunday night’s other game, Mali and Cape Verde will attempt to relaunch their campaigns. They play at the Stade Larbi Zaouli in Casablanca

On Saturday in Group C, defending champions Nigeria beatZambia 1-0 while tournament debutants Malawi maintained their 100 percent record with a 3-1 victory over Egypt.

The top two from each of the four groups advance to the quarter-final knockout stages.

The four teams who reach the semi-finals also claim a berth at the 2027 women’s World Cup in Brazil while the four losing teams will feature in a play-off for two spots at an inter-continental qualifier.

The WAFCON final will take place on 16 August.