KANSAS CITY, United States (AFP) — Ghana boss Carlos Queiroz said Thursday it was his team’s “duty” to ensure an African side reached the World Cup Round of 16 after a string of knockout defeats for teams from the continent.

The veteran Portuguese, managing at his fifth-consecutive World Cup, led Ghana into the last 32 as one of the top third-placed teams.

They were among a record nine African nations who progressed from the group stage out of 10 who started the tournament in Canada, Mexico and the United States.

However, only Morocco have made the next step to the last 16 so far, with Senegal, Ivory Coast and DR Congo falling by the wayside.

“It’s another challenge for us,” said Queiroz, whose team face Colombia in Kansas City on Friday. “We have to improve these statistics tomorrow.

“We have to make it better. So it is on our shoulders to be sure that we add another African team to the next round. That’s our duty.”

The Portuguese veteran, whose previous international managerial jobs included a stint with Colombia, praised the bravery of his players, saying they would “fight until the end” for a result.

“This is in the DNA of these boys in Ghana,” the 73-year-old, who was only appointed in April, said. “There’s nothing that you can build or you can buy.

“It is something that is in their blood and they are really great fighters and I’m very proud to be their coach.”

Captain Jordan Ayew recalled Ghana’s run to the quarter-finals of the World Cup in South Africa in 2010.

“It was amazing,” he said. “Obviously those are the moments that we want to bring back to our country.”

He said Ghana fancied their chances against higher-ranked Colombia.

“In football, every game you start is 50-50,” he said. “Tomorrow is going to be another tight game.

“Listen, we are going to do our best, we are going to put on a show, and we will see what will happen. But what I can guarantee is that we will definitely make Africa proud and Ghana proud.”