Sudan head coach, James Kwasi Appiah, has revealed that the ongoing unrest in the country did not help his team's preparations for the opening games of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

The Falcons of Jerdiane commenced their qualifying campaign with one win and a defeat last month. Kwasi Appiah's side defeated Niger before losing 2-1 to Angola on matchday two.

Before assembling his squad, the former Ghana international was limited to a few players who were involved in active football as the league in Sudan had been halted due to a civil war.

"Before our game with Niger, [not having players playing competetively] was a big problem I was facing because most of our players were not playing competitively. With the exception of the Al Hilal and Al Merrick players, all the other players were still on break...," he told SuperSport Blitz.

"They were all on break so it was difficult for me and unfortunately, we had to camp in Ethiopia where almost every day it was raining so training became something difficult for us. Sometimes you will be on the pitch and the Ethiopians will come that it is their time also to train and we have no choice but to leave.

"For about three to four days, we couldn't have proper training. Our preparation before the Niger and Angola games was not the best."

Appiah returns to Ghana for the first time to face the Black Stars on matchday three of the 2025 AFCON qualifying series with the game scheduled for 16:00 GMT at the Accra Sports Stadium.

The return leg is scheduled for Tuesday, October 15 in Libya.