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Former Ghana President, Jerry Rawlings has advised the Black Stars to develop a military mindset ahead of the Brazil 2014 World Cup. The outspoken statesman made the recommendation a few minutes before the Black Stars� departure to Holland at the VIP Lounge of the Kotoka International Airport last Saturday. He tasked the 22-member squad to remain focused and act as soldiers on a battlefield, as they confront USA, Germany, Portugal and other countries in Brazil. He pointed out, �Don�t look for an easy way out. You should act as soldiers going for a battle; you should be mentally tough and ready to go the extra mile for Ghana. �Me coming all the way here to see you off attests to the importance I attach to the competition you are embarking on. Sports and for that matter football is the only thing that unites us as a people, hence my presence here. �Until you develop the mindset to die for your country and yourself, there is no way you will achieve anything. When I say die, I don�t mean physical death but developing the right mindset and attitude in all the matches. You are our soldiers, we are all looking up to you to sacrifice for mother Ghana,� he said. Players like Dede Ayew, Afriyie Acquah and Agyeman Badu, in separate words, expressed appreciation to the former president, stating that his words had inspired them a great deal. Youth and Sports Minister Elvis Afriyie-Ankrah admonished the players to suspend all �chilling� activities and concentrate on the tourney like students preparing for exams. �I beg of you to suspend the chilling, go and win the trophy and tell me where you want to chill; Monaco or where? Tell me, I will take you there. �Go the extra mile, work extra hard. Besides your normal training, go the extra mile like (boxer) Muhammed Ali was doing,� he added. The Minister indicated that Ali was exceptional because of the �extra mile� factor.