West African rivals Ghana and Nigeria meet for the third time in successive Africa Cup of Nations finals, with the prize of a place in the final at stake.

Nigeria coach Shaibu Amodu says he will introduce some "fresh legs" to his team, after the Super Eagles were taken to penalties against Zambia.

Defender Onyekachi Apam is out after being red-carded in the quarter-final.

Ghana have close to a full squad to choose from with suspended striker Opoku Agyemang their only omission.

Amodu, who has come in for sustained criticism throughout the tournament from his country's media and fans, has admitted that his players will need to lift their game on Thursday.

"We will have to improve," he said.

"Tradition has it that whenever Nigeria and Ghana are involved in any sporting challenge, not only football, you see the players going all out for victory.

"We did not play well against Zambia, [but] the match against Ghana will be a different cup of tea."
Despite the negative press surrounding Nigeria, Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac is wary of the threat his team face against their old foes.

"If you just look at Nigeria's quarter-final performance it can create a false impression," he said.

"They showed they were an experienced team who knew what they wanted.

"You can't draw any conclusions from that game, you have to look at the bigger picture."

Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac has praised his young squad for rising to the challenge of progressing to the last four, after the Black Stars were hampered by a slew of pre-tournament injuries and the loss of Michael Essien in Angola.

Ghanaian striker Asamoah Gyan has played up the importance of the fixture, as the two sides meet for the first time since the quarter-finals two years ago, when Ghana came out on top.

"Every Ghanaian knows how important it is to play Nigeria," Gyan said.

"We are ready for them and prepared and we will stick to the game plan that the coach has mapped out for us."