Ghana Matches at World Cup 2010

Ghana World Cup Profile

We explored Ghana ahead of the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations which took staged earlier in January. Now LiveSoccerTV.com is back in Ghana to refresh your knowledge on the African country ahead of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

Ghana – The country, the football

Ghana is a West African country – also known as the Republic of Ghana. La Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Togo, and the Gulf of Guinea are the four neighbors of the nation formally referred to as Gold Coast. The entire Ghanaian territory reaches an estimate of 238,535 km2, as it is the home of about 23,837,000 people.

Ghana has one of the longest histories in the African continent, having obtained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1957 to be the first Sub-Saharan African country to gain its liberty. Success in previous Africa Cup of Nations raised the Ghanaian flag high in football, but mostly, it is their entry - as well as their run - during the 2006 World Cup which truly elevated their standard in the sport.

A smooth qualification for the 2010 FIFA World Cup has indeed simplified things for the Black Stars (Ghana's national football team) prior to the tournament’s finals in terms of preparation. Due to the strong support the respected side have been collecting from most African football lovers, Ghana will be desiring to illuminate their return in the World Cup with a brilliant campaign.

Ghana – the road to the 2010 FIFA World Cup

Just like 47 other African countries, Ghana began their 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification from the Second Round. Together with eleven other strong teams, the Black Stars were seeded in Pot A before the real start of the qualifiers.

Second Round:

Following the draw which happened in the South African city of Durban, Ghana arrived in Group 5 alongside Gabon, Libya, and Lesotho. As a result of the low threats posed against the Black Stars, many were expecting the former Africa Cup of Nations hosts to progress into the next round with ease.

Somehow, the Ghanaians lived up to expectations, and they quickly proved it by defeating the Libyans 3-0 in their first 2010 World Cup qualifier. Later on, a tiresome trip to Lesotho could only give the Black Stars a debatable 3-2 victory, before a disappointing form from the 2006 World Cup participants saw them losing 2-0 in their next game away to Gabon.

The second leg qualifier in opposition to the Gabonese national football side didn’t seem similar for Ghana, as they bounced back to conquer their opponents by two goals to nil. With 12 points already acquired from four games, the Black Stars were almost sure of registering their name in the Third Round; yet, things slightly slowed down for them next to a narrow 1-0 defeat to Libya on match-day five.

Anyway, a final and crushing 3-0 win over minnows Lesotho for the Ghanaians was the perfect score line to seal their qualification into the 2010 World Cup qualifying Third Round (CAF zone), as their quest for a place in the finals still went on.

Third Round:

Having been capable of retaining the 25th place in the FIFA World Rankings in October 2008, Ghana were eligible for another seat in Pot 1 previous to the Third Round draw.

On October 22, 2008, the Black Stars were placed in Group 4 with Benin, Mali, and Sudan all included in their table. In some ways, Ghanaian fans didn’t have many reasons to complain about their fate, as their group seemed to be as challenging as the four others.

A first game at home against Benin was eventually the first defy of Ghana in the Third Round. But as always, Ghana managed to thrive, thanks to a convincing 1-0 win. The African giants then won by a 2-0 score line in their next matches over Mali and Sudan (away and at home against Sudan). This saw them strengthening their place at the top of their table.

With only two games to go, the 2006 World Cup participants were confident of reaching their target of entering the finals as wanted. Nevertheless, they suffered a shock away to Benin, losing 1-0 to the home side.

Despite this fact, there wasn’t much to do, and the Black Stars knew that whatever happened, they would still have their name listed for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Fortunately, Ghana were able to avoid defeat in their last qualifier at home to Mali, luckily earning a 2-2 draw in the end.

Ghana – 2010 FIFA World Cup group stage

Ghana still had to wait until December 4, 2009 to get an idea of their destiny in South Africa, as this was the date of the final draw for the tournament’s finals.

During the unique event, the Black Stars were given the final available place of the 2010 World Cup’s Group D, to join the likes of Germany, Australia, and Serbia. This draw was arguably a strange one, as each and every match for the Ghanaians seemed to have an equally high value.

Match-day 1: Serbia vs Ghana

The Serbians will welcome Ghana at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, on June 13, at 16:00 local time.

Serbia is the hometown of former Black Stars coach Ratomir Dujković, who led the African country into a FIFA World Cup tournament for the first time in their history. The Ghanaians now have another Serbian manager, this time, known by the name Milovan Rajevac. Milovan Rajevac is set to light up the campaign of the Black Stars in South Africa with a memorable achievement, which could obviously start with a positive score line in their favor, against Serbia.

Match-day 2: Ghana vs Australia

Ghana will then meet the Socceroos at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg, on June 19, at 16:00 local time.

The Black Stars have played twice against Australia since their qualification into the 2006 World Cup, and their first meeting since then ended in a 1-1 draw with Junior Agogo getting the equalizer for Ghana in his first appearance for his country.

The second meeting in Sydney went badly for the Africans, as a disconnected play saw them losing 1-0, following a defensive mistake in the second half. This time around, Ghana are believed to gather the knowledge they have about Australia, with the intention of launching the perfect attack which could facilitate their progress into the 2010 FIFA World Cup’s knockout phase.

Match-day 3: Ghana vs Germany

Ghana will finally face the hosts the 2006 World Cup at the Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg, on June 23.

The Black Stars are greatly valued by the Germans, who consider them as the “Brazilians” of the African continents. Both sides unfortunately have no idea about each other’s secret techniques, as they have never met since both countries reshuffled their national football team.

Perhaps, determination and belief will be Ghana’s most important forces to possess before facing the DFB-Eleven, taking into account the inexorable raids of the European top seeds. Expect all eyes to be on Ghana's Kevin Prince Boateng, whose injury to Michael Ballack in May 2010 ruled the captain out of the World Cup. There will also be a reunion for Kevin with his German brother Jerome Boateng, who plays as a defender in Joachim Lowe's side.

Ghana – Quick Analysis: Expectations from the country and its top stars

Ghana is undeniably one of Africa’s strongest sides, and they own quality players who also enjoy praises from fans related to top football clubs in Europe. Playing at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa should therefore not be a big deal for the Black Stars; after all, they have almost everything it takes to at least reach the last 16 stage of the tournament.

Asamoah Gyan:

Following several months of critics towards the 24-year old Ghanaian striker, Asamoah Gyan happily got his name included in his country’s 23-man squad for the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations. Thus, a place for the forward in the Black Stars team for the 2010 World Cup could be possible, depending on his shape in Angola.

Asamoah Gyan became famous after scoring the 2006 World Cup’s earliest goal, as his side shocked the Czech Republic by defeating them 2-0. Gyan might not repeat such a historic moment in South Africa, consequently, he will prefer to go for general success, instead of individual credits.

Andre Ayew:

The 20-year former captain of the Ghanaian U-20 national team has already won a World Cup. The only difference between his accomplishment and the task ahead of him is that he achieved a wonderful record at a youth level, whereas the 2010 FIFA World Cup is the toughest football competition from the professional level.

Nevertheless, the son of the legendary Abedi Pele is known for his incomparable strength of mind, and fighting some of football’s strongest stars is not supposed to be a huge problem for him – who was capable of humbling an “unstoppable” Brazilian side in Egypt back in October 2009.

Of course, remaining hopeful is always an option for him, as his future will be based on his performance at the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola, as well as his health later on.

Ghana – Current 2010 FIFA World Cup squad

Goalkeepers:

Stephen Ahorlu; Daniel Agyei; Richard Kingson

Defenders:

Jonathan Mensah; Isaac Vorsah; Lee Addy; Rahim Ayew; Hans Adu Sarpei; Samuel Inkoom; John Mensah; John Pantsil

Midfielders:

Derek Boateng; Andre Ayew; Stephen Appiah; Quincy Owusu-Abeyie; Kevin-Prince Boateng; Sulley Muntari; Anthony Annan; Kwadwo Asamoah

Forwards:

Dominic Adiyiah; Prince Tagoe; Asamoah Gyan; Matthew Amoah

Ghana – Relevant Quote

Milovan Rajevac: “The Germans are Ghana’s main threat”

The Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac is hopeful that the Black Stars will qualify into the last 16 stage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup finals in South Africa; however, he admits that playing against Germany will not be easy.

“I cannot say that I am overjoyed by the draw, no,” says Milovan Rajevac.

“Germany are a quality team, and Serbia too, but I still believe we can match them. In my opinion, Germany are the best country in Europe, but I think we can make it into the second round.”

Ghana – FIFA World Cup record

It is only the second time the Black Stars will feature in a FIFA World Cup tournament, but already, they are not too far from being considered as experts in the tournament. Below is the record of Ghana in the World Cup’s history.

2010: Qualified as participants

2006: Round of 16

How far will Ghana go? Know everything about their 2010 World Cup campaign right here, on LiveSoccerTV.com!
 

Ghana World Cup Videos

• Jun/19/2010 Ghana vs Australia (1 - 1)