Ghana World Cup 2006 Team Profile

World Cup Match Tickets

Sean O'Conor considers the odds for Ghana.

Ghana Kit 1 Copyright © Soccerphile	Ghana Kit 2 Copyright © Soccerphile

Road to Germany

Ghana finished top of African Group 2, possibly the weakest in the continent, five points clear of DR Congo in second with South Africa in third. They scored 17 and conceded four in 10 games.

They lost only one game in the final round of qualifiers, to Burkina Faso, 1-0 in Ougadougou back in June of 2004. This is the Black Stars' first appearance in the finals.

Analysis

Ghana are ranked 50th in the world and enter their first World Cup full of euphoria but also racked by doubt at their ability to perform on the highest stage.

At this year's African Nations Cup they failed to get out of a group containing Nigeria and Senegal, traditional African powers who have missed the boat to Germany. Star player Michael Essien withdrew controversially on the eve of the tournament but returned for Chelsea once it was over, prompting a furious reaction from the coach and national association and a heartfelt apology and plea for unity from the player himself.

Ghana suffered a crushing blow when midfield engine Laryea Kingston received a red card for a far from serious clash in the tournament and received a four game ban, that carries over into the World Cup. He will miss the first round and can only return for the knock-out stages, if he is selected and if Ghana are still in the competition.

The neutrals will want Ghana to do well and on their day they are a pleasure to watch - all quick short passing to feet in a fast-flowing 4-3-2-1 or 4-4-2 formation.

Midfield is certainly their bedrock with Essien, the much traveled (yet still only 25 year old) Steven Appiah and Sulley Muntari, a talented yet hot-headed attacker on display.

Their main strikers are Borussia Dortmund's steely poacher Matthew Amoah, who has a decade of European experience behind him, and Modena's Asamoah Gyan, their equal top scorer in the qualifiers alongside Appiah.

Defence on the face of it remains their weak point with full backs John Paintsil and Emmanuel Pappoe highly beatable and the only solid experience coming from former Bayern star Sammy Kuffour at centre back.

But their real Achilles heels are a lack of strength in depth, as proven at the African Cup of Nations, and an unpredictability under pressure at their first World Cup Finals.

Key Player

Steven Appiah, the midfield dynamo whom Ghana's Serbian coach Radomir Dujkovic described as 'my right arm', is well known to Serie A watchers having spent nine years in Italy with Udinese, Parma, Brescia and Juventus.

An all round athlete and complete footballer, Appiah excelled in the qualifiers with his box to box runs, defensive covering and four goals.

His experience will be vital for a team sure to be affected by the big occasion and as a reassurance to his midfield partner Essien, who has had a nervous season at Chelsea.

One to Watch

Michael Essien, Africa's most expensive footballer, has not set the world alight in his first season at Chelsea from his defensive midfield position but has begun to show the type of buccaneering runs that persuaded Roman Abramovich to part with $46 million last summer.

A complete player, Essien is as good a midfielder as there will be at the finals and has the chance to truly prove his worth to the world for the first time. There was a falling out after Dujkovic questioned his absence from the African Nations Cup but there followed a tearful reconciliation. Ultimately there was no way Ghana would be going to the finals without their best player.

Coach

Radomir Dujkovic, 59, previously managed Venezuela, Myanmar and Rwanda before taking over Ghana in December 2004.

He started as a part of the coaching staff of Red Star Belgrade during their glory years that culminated with their 1991 European Cup win.

Dujkovic says his players' European experience has given them enough technical and tactical ability and that he has largely been there to instill discipline. His anger at Essien's absence from the African Cup of Nations was proof he means business but, if as expected, defeats arrive in Germany then he will have to delve deep into his man-management skills.

Previous World Cups

Despite having produced Euro-stars like Abedi Pele, Tony Yeboah and Nii Lamptey, this is Ghana's very first appearance in the World Cup Finals.

Soccerphile says

Their opponents are ranked 2nd (Czech Republic), 4th (USA) and 14th (Italy) in the world so Ghana are prime candidates for the wooden spoon. But first time African qualifiers are often underrated by their opposition and arrive with nothing to prove and often play fearlessly as a result. On this basis, Ghana may well be as successful as Nigeria in 1994 or Senegal in 2002. They can certainly throw a spanner in the works of at least one of their group opponents, who are probably expecting three points when they play them.

Possible Line Up

Adjei, Paintsil, Pappoe, Kuffour, Mensah, Essien, Muntari, Appiah, Dramani, Amoah, Gyan

World Cup Squad

Bet on the World Cup

Goalkeepers Sammy Adjei (Moadan Sport Ashdod), Richard Kingston (Ankaraspor), George Owu (AshantiGold); Defenders Eric Addo (PSV Eindhoven, Holland), Issah Ahmed (Randers, Denmark), Shilla Illiasu (Asante Kotoko), Sammy Osei Kuffuor (AS Roma, Italy), John Mensah (Rennes, France), Habib Mohammed (King Faisal), John Painstil (Hapoel Tel Aviv, Israel), Addoquaye Pappoe (Ashdod Tel-Aviv, Israel), Daniel Quaye (Hearts of Oak), Hans Adu Sarpei (Vfl Wolfsburg, Germany)
Midfielders Otto Addo (FSV Mainz 05, Germany), Stephen Appiah (Fenerbache, Turkey), Derek Boateng (AIK Solna, Sweden), Haminu Dramani (Red Star Belgrade, Serbia & Montenegro), Michael Essien (Chelsea, England), Sulley Ali Muntari (Udinese, Italy)
Forwards Matthew Amoah (Borussia Dortmund, Germany), Asamoah Gyan (Modena, Italy), Razak Pimpong (FC Copenhagen, Denmark), Alex Tachie-Mensah (St. Gallen, Switzerland)

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