Ghana’s national soccer team has made three FIFA World Cup appearances – 2006, 2010, and 2014.
Compared to other African soccer giants such as Nigeria, Cameroon, and Ivory Coast, Ghana was a relative newcomer to top-level world soccer. However, they made their debut World Cup appearance in 2006, marking the beginning of their golden generation.
The Black Stars made everyone take notice when they made it to the quarterfinals in 2010. Ghana was only the third nation in Africa to achieve the feat. Ghana’s accomplishment was even more significant as the 2010 FIFA World Cup was held in Africa for the first time, and they were the only African nation to qualify from the group stage.
Advance To Knock Out Stage
Ghana secured a 1-0 win over Serbia and a 1-1 draw with Australia in the group stage. Asamoah Gyan scored both goals from penalty spots. However, in their final group game, they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Germany. Regardless, they qualified for the knockouts as they secured second place with four points.
In the round of the last 16, Ghana was drawn against the United States of America. The Black Stars made a flying start as English premier league star, Kevin-Prince Boateng scored the opening goal in the fifth minute of the match. In the 62nd minute, Landon Donovan converted a penalty kick to tie the game and force extra time.
Once again, Gyan proved to be the difference-maker for the Black Stars as he struck the match-winner in the third minute of extra time.
In the quarterfinals, Ghana was pitted against South American giants Uruguay. This tie proved to be one of the most entertaining and controversial games at the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The African nation took the lead through Sulley Muntari in the first half’s injury time. Diego Forlan equalized from a free-kick for Uruguay in the 55th-minute.
The score remained the same in standard time, and the extra time was played.
The game seemed destined to go to the penalties when something extraordinary happened on the pitch. In the 120th-minute of the match, Luis Suarez blocked Dominic Adiyiah’s goalbound header with his hands on the goal line. As a result, Suarez received a red card, and Ghana was awarded a penalty.
However, Gyan could only hit the crossbar from the spot, and thus, he missed a golden opportunity to take the Black Stars to the semi-finals. The game was eventually decided on penalties, which Ghana lost 4-2. John Mensah and Dominic Adiyiah missed their kicks for Ghana while Maxi Pereira missed for the winners.
Ghana World Cup Squad 2010 Goalkeepers
Â
Daniel Agyei
Date of Birth: 10 November 1989
Height: 186 cm
Shirt number: 1
Position: Goalkeeper
First international: Angola – Ghana (18 November 2009)
Stephen Ahorlu
Date of Birth: 05 September 1988
Height: 179 cm
Shirt number: 16
Position: Goalkeeper
Richard Kingson
Date of Birth: 13 June 1978
Height: 182 cm
Shirt number: 22
Position: Goalkeeper
First international: Brazil – Ghana (27 March 1996)
Ghana World Cup Squad 2010Â Defenders
Â
Samuel Inkoom
Date of Birth: 1 June 1989
Height: 179 cm
Shirt number: 7
Position: Defender
First international: Ghana – Tunisia (19 November 2008)
Samuel Inkoom makes up several players who have successfully transitioned from Ghana’s world champion U-20 squad to the senior Black Stars. During the recent CAF Africa Cup of Nations in Angola, the Swiss-based defender played every match for Ghana. After narrowly losing to Egypt in a tight deciding game in Luanda, Ghana finished second.
Despite an injury-hit side, Samuel Inkoom proved to be a solid force in the defense, mainly in the soccer full-back position.
Earlier this year, his performance in the Black Satellites’ Under 20 FIFA World Cup triumph in Egypt had been one of the best. As a result, Ghana became the first African side to win the FIFA World Cup at that age level after successfully converting a penalty in a shootout against Brazil after the final in Cairo.
In addition, he had participated in several of the senior side’s preliminaries, during which time the team easily won their group and qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
Sekondi Hasaacas was the club where Samuel Inkoom began his senior career as a teenager. Asante Kotoko took note of his potential and signed him within months at the start of 2008. By the end of the year, he had won his first international cap against Tunisia. Basel signed him to a three-year contract for $700,000 in April 2009.
Samuel Inkoom was rewarded with a new contract following his success at Rwanda’s 2009 African Youth Championships. In addition, he represented Ghana at the Under 17 level, helping the nation qualify for the 2005 U-17 World Cup in Peru, but did not make the squad.
Hans Sarpei
Date of Birth: 28 June 1976
Height: 178 cm
Shirt number: 2
Position: Defender
First international: Ghana – Zimbabwe (7 October 2000)
John Paintsil
Date of Birth: 15 June 1981
Height: 178 cm
Shirt number: 4
Position: Defender
First international: Algeria – Ghana (5 December 2001)
John Mensah
Date of Birth: 29 November 1982
Height: 177 cm
Shirt number: 5
Position: Defender
First international: Algeria – Ghana (5 December 2001)
Jonathan Mensah
Date of Birth: 13 July 1990
Height: 182 cm
Shirt number: 8
Position: Defender
First international: Ghana – Malawi (5 January 2010)
Isaac Vorsah
Date of Birth: 21 June 1988
Height: 180 cm
Shirt number: 15
Position: Defender
First international: Ghana – Benin (29 March 2009)
Ibrahim Ayew
Date of Birth: 16 April 1988
Height: 176 cm
Shirt number: 17
Position: Defender
First international: Angola – Ghana (18 November 2009)
Lee Addy
Date of Birth: 7 July 1990
Height: 178 cm
Shirt number: 19
Position: Defender
First international: Argentina – Ghana (30 September 2009)
Ghana World Cup Squad 2010Â Midfielders
Â
Anthony Annan
Date of Birth: 21 July 1986
Height: 171 cm
Shirt number: 6
Position: Midfielder
First international: Brazil – Ghana (27 March 2007)
Despite being only 23 years old, Anthony Annan has participated in at least two CAF Africa Cup of Nations finals. Despite starting both tournaments on the bench, the hardworking midfielder finished in his country’s starting lineup. In 2008, he won bronze for Ghana against Côte d’Ivoire on home soil in the bronze medal play-off.
And in the inaugural tournament of this year, Ghana shocked most observers by reaching the final, only to lose to Egypt. Annan has already earned over 30 caps for Ghana, having made his debut against Brazil in Stockholm more than three years ago.
A solid showing at the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa will likely earn Annan a move to a top division. As a teenager, he played for Sekondi Hasaacas before joining Hearts of Oak in 2005. In his first season with IK Start in Norway, Anthony Annan’s club was relegated.
It was difficult for him to adapt to the Scandinavian conditions vastly different from those of his home country. As a result, Stabaek took him on loan from the start in 2008. Rosenborg signed him for £1.2 million after a trial at English premier league team Blackburn Rovers in England.
Despite his departure from Stabaek before they won the Norwegian league title, his influence cannot be disputed, as he proved in 2009 as Rosenborg won the Norwegian championship.
Derek Boateng
Date of Birth: 2 May 1983
Height: 185 cm
Shirt number: 9
Position: Midfielder
First international: Mali – Ghana (25 December 2001)
In almost a decade of playing for the Black Stars, Derek Boateng has become a forgotten man in Ghanaian football. Nevertheless, his timing is impeccable when he pops up for the top tournaments.
Despite playing just four minutes in the 2010 qualifiers and winning just two caps since early 2007 when the teenager first appeared on the international scene, the striker has again performed well enough to win a place in the 2010 FIFA World Cup squad.
Boateng made a similar comeback from obscurity before the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He played in his first match after two years with former coach Ratomir Dujkovic on the eve of the Germany finals.
Nevertheless, Derek Boateng made enough of a good impression in a friendly against Jamaica and the subsequent training camps to gain a place in the squad. In the tournament, he played in three of Ghana’s four games.
On his debut for Ghana, Boateng scored after just 9 minutes against Mali and represented Ghana at the 2002 CAF Africa Cup of Nations finals in Mali. After that, Boateng was a regular in Ghana’s qualifiers for the 2004 continental tournament.
Nevertheless, when Ghana did not make the final – they were humiliated by Rwanda in an embarrassing loss – he was one of those axed from the squad.
He was called up last October for the 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Benin as a late injury replacement. However, his Spanish club Getafe refused to release him for the tournament in Angola since the call-up didn’t come with the required notice.
Stephen Appiah
Date of Birth: 24 December 1980
Height: 178 cm
Shirt number: 10
Position: Midfielder
First international: Benin – Ghana (24 December 1996)
Sulley Muntari
Date of Birth: 27 August 1984
Height: 180 cm
Shirt number: 11
Position: Midfielder
First international: Slovenia – Ghana (17 May 2002)
Andre Ayew
Date of Birth: 17 December 1989
Height: 175 cm
Shirt number: 13
Position: Midfielder
First international: Ghana – Senegal (21-08-2007)
Kwadwo Asamoah
Date of Birth: 9 December 1988
Height: 168 cm
Shirt number: 21
Position: Midfielder
First international: Ghana – Côte d’Ivoire (09-02-2008)
Ghana World Cup Squad 2010Â Forwards
Â
Kevin Prince Boateng
Date of Birth: 6 March 1987
Height: 182 cm
Shirt number: 23
Position: Forward
Kevin Prince Boateng was contacted by the Ghana Football Association about representing Ghana at the 2006 World Cup. FIFA had to decide on his eligibility under a lengthy process and he missed the chance to play for Ghana at the FIFA World Cup finals in 2006.
Kevin Prince Boateng’s decision to switch his allegiance back to Ghana in 2009 was made possible by FIFA’s decision to reverse the rules. During the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, Kevin Prince Boateng was selected to represent Ghana.
The manager of Ghana, Milovan Rajevac, wanted the English Premier League star Kevin Prince Boateng to replace the injured Michael Essien. In the first match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, he started for Ghana against Germany. His brother Jérôme Boateng was part of the starting lineup for Germany.
Ghana defeated Germany 1-0 after scoring a lone goal in the 60th minute. In the history of the World Cup, it was the first time two brothers were on opposite teams. A left-footed shot from outside the penalty area gave Kevin Prince Boateng the winning goal in the knockout game versus the USA.
Asamoah Gyan
Date of Birth: 22 November 1985
Height: 186 cm
Shirt number: 3
Position: Forward
First international: Ghana – Somalia (19-11-2003)
Prince Tagoe
Date of Birth: 9 November 1986
Height: 179 cm
Shirt number: 12
Position: Forward
First international: Togo – Ghana (11 January 2006)
Matthew Amoah
Date of Birth: 24 October 1980
Height: 175 cm
Shirt number: 14
Position: Forward
First international: Ghana – Morocco (21-01-2002)
Dominic Adiyiah
Date of Birth: 29 November 1989
Height: 170 cm
Shirt number: 18
Position: Forward
First international: Angola – Ghana (18 November 2009)
Quincy Owusu-Abeyie
Date of Birth: 15 April 1986
Height: 180 cm
Shirt number: 20
Position: Forward
First international: Ghana – Guinea (20 January 2008)
Ghana World Cup Squad 2010 Coach
Â
Milovan Rajevac
Country: Serbia
Date of Birth: 2 January 1954
