Ade Daramy BBC Sport

Ghana coach Ratomir Dujkovic is confident of victory

The clash of the weekend in this group sees third-placed Ghana take on table toppers South Africa with the incentive that victory could see the Black Stars replace their opponents at the top.

Ghana coach Ratomir Dujkovic expects it to be a tough match but is confident of victory.

"The mood in our camp is confident, the atmosphere is positive and the players are ready to die for their country."

"If we gain six points from our remaining games, we'll be on the plane to Germany," he told BBC Sport.

The Ghanaians, who trail South Africa by three points, approach the match in good heart as they will have most of their key players present.

These include the in-demand and in-form Michael Essien, currently with French champions Lyon, and midfielder Stephen Appiah of Italian champions Juventus.

Their opponents, on the other hand, have two key players missing; goalkeeper Hans Vonk is injured and star striker Benni McCarthy is suspended.

GROUP TWO FIXTURES South Africa v Ghana (Sat 1330 GMT) Uganda v Cape Verde (Sat 1330 GMT) Burkina Faso v DR Congo (Sat 1800 GMT)

The Ghanaians will be encouraged by Vonk's absence as his replacement Moneeb Josephs shouldered most of the blame for Ghana's easy 3-0 victory in Kumasi last year.

This time, Bafana Bafana coach Stuart Baxter calls on the goalkeeping services of Calvin Marlin, who plays for the Pretoria-based SuperSport United.

It's not all gloom for South Africa however, as they will be boosted by the return after injury of two England-based players, Manchester United's Quinton Fortune and Charlton's Shaun Bartlett.

South Africa's Benni McCarthy misses out through suspension

Second-placed DR Congo, who have twelve points, lead Ghana on goal difference and are also hoping to make strides this weekend.

They have, arguably, an easier task than Ghana's Black Stars as they travel to take on struggling Burkina Faso.

The Burkinabe opened their campaign with an encouraging 1-0 victory over Ghana, but have managed only one victory in the six games since.

The surprise team in the group, Cape Verde, are currently fourth on 10 points and will see their game against bottom-placed Uganda as the easiest of their three remaining fixtures.

If they are to secure a third-place finish and so qualify for a maiden appearance in the Cup of Nations, they will need to dig out impressive results in their last two games against DR Congo (away) and Ghana (home).