re: How accurate are the FIFA World Rankings

If I remember correctly, its simply a point system based on the matches (competitive or exhibition) that a national side plays against international competition. Some national teams play more exhibitions/warmups/qualifiers than others, and this leads to inaccurate rankings.

In the end, Ghana is a very good team. It took Germany getting an amazing shot to beat them despite them being without their best player in Essien this entire tournament. It will be a tough game, but to answer your question, Ghana did not play alot of exhibition games, thus their lower ranking. They were one of the top 2 African countries the past 4 years with a healthy Essien.