Sports
Partey ‘ll be big in Ghana’s campaign
Partey (centre) Ghana’s midfield loom
There has been an assortment of commentaries regarding Ghana’s upcoming involvement in the 2022 Qatar World Cup tournament, raging on the heels of the Black Stars’ recent two friendlies during the international break.
Talks of an ominous disaster in Qatar appears to have dominated the discussion, sadly, since the double friendlies – with a decent number of fans insisting that the Black Stars are not ready to compete for honours at the Mundial.
That interesting sense of pessimism was drawn from what they termed an uninspiring performance by the 2010 World Cup quarter-finalists. Well, can you begrudge them?
Do not forget Ghana has more than 30 million coaches, all of whom have their own football philosophy, strategy and sophistry.
For the records, Ghana slumped 3-0 to Brazil in the opening friendly played in France on September 23. The Stars made amends in a solitary 1-0 win over lowly-placed Nicaragua. Teenager Issahaku Fatawu netted 10 minutes before halftime in Lorca, in south-eastern Spain, with a rasping left-footed shot from outside the penalty area.
Ghana could have won the Nicaragua game by at least 5-0 had the team not been profligate in front of the post. That slim scoreline may have irked Ghanaians who thought the Stars could not be ready for such an engaging campaign that would demand ruthlessness in the goal area.
In the glum of that low conversation, there seems to be some glowing light. That glimmer is Thomas Partey.
Though he was penciled to show the stuff he got against Brazil, the Arsenal swashbuckling midfielder did not even take part in the two friendlies, ostensibly due to injuries. Was he really injured? The Ghana medical team says his absence from the Stars’ game was precautionary. Well, let us give them the benefit of the doubt!
Rather interestingly, he was full-loaded for Arsenal’s North London crack derby against Tottenham Hotspur less than a week later. Though his participation in last week’s Premiership tie will naturally raise eyebrows after missing the Ghana friendlies to stage a superb performance in their 3-1 win, Ghanaians would still be thrilled by his sterling show in London.
The Stars’ burly centre-man stringed a sweet array of gorgeous telepathic passes that drew lots of applause from the fastidious Arsenal home crowd, capping it with a goal of majestic quality.
Partey’s man-of-the-match performance may have been drawn from a 94.6 per cent passing accuracy; 65 touches, four great passes, 55 passes in total, two shots, and one strike on target.
And that goal – a right-footed corker that exploded into the top corner, was something special. Prayer of Ghanaians is that the Arsenal man maintain or even improve on his form whilst he endeavours to steer himself out of injuries.
It is the belief of many followers of Ghana football that had Partey featured in the two friendlies, a different story could have been told.
So far, Real Mayorca’s Iddrisu Baba has not demonstrated enough brain and brawn during Partey’s absence and could hardly be relied upon to boss the midfield. Truth is that, he needs to improve remarkably ahead of the campaign or face a shock exit from the final squad.
The Stars will take on Portugal, South Korea and Uruguay in Group H at the World Cup finals, but before have one more friendly against Switzerland in Abu Dhabi on November 17; barely a week before their opening game against Portugal in Doha.
The degree to which they perform in this last friendly could determine how far they can go in their fourth finals in Qatar. Let us pray for them.
PlainTalk With John Vigah
Ghana Premier League side, Nations FC, may have suffered the drop in the just ended Premier League and are destined for a fresh campaign in the Division One League (DOL).
But they stand a huge chance of remaining in the elite stage of the game as they face Dreams FC in an epic MTN FA Cup final at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium tomorrow at 6pm.
Dreams FC have been there before; going ahead to taste the honours in the 2022-23 season after defeating King Faisal.
Coming from a season that saw them crawl from the initial stages of the league to finish on a respectable fourth position, they come in as strong favourites to double their honours in the nation’s second top football competition.
History favours them in this regard. On their first final, they conquered and based on this, connoisseurs of the game have tipped them to make it ‘two-on-two.’
But Nations FC have been empowered by the age-old adage that “He that is down need fear no fall.”
Nothing can be worse than suffering relegation and exiting the limelight as far as exposure is concerned.
But the FA offers a decent opportunity to make them stay relevant.
Conquering Dreams FC would not just make them MTN FA Cup champions. It will grant them the prestigious slot to represent Ghana in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) second tier club competition- the Confederations Cup.
With Dreams FC harbouring the same ambitions, the stage is, therefore, set for a final that promises to be explosive and uncompromising.
The situation of Nations FC might have come to many as a surprise, considering their promising start to the season, with their defence especially, marshalled by Black Stars defender, Razak Simpson, and colleague central defender, Raymond Grippman, earning a lot of reviews.
But despite the struggles they endured at certain times of their campaign, the MTN FA Cup always provided slices of good fortunes as they managed to navigate their way to the final.
Road to the top
Nations FC began the MTN FA Cup competition on a promising note, enjoying some good runs with a win over DOL Zone Two side, Ebony FC, in the Round of 64.
That landed them in a tricky encounter with another high-flying Zone Two candidate, AshantiGold SC, a side that eventually won the title from the zone to qualify to the Premier League, but escaped.
At the round of 16 stage, they encountered and defeated Ghana Premier League side, Swedru All Blacks, 2-1 to gain progression to the quarter final stage where they edged Berekum Chelsea on penalties.
A dicey semi-final awaited them against Aduana FC in Swedru. It was a game Nations was given little chance to escape considering Aduana FC’s form but once again, they conquered to secure a final berth.
In total, the Abrankese-based club have scored eight goals and conceded only two throughout the competition, making them one of the strongest defensive sides in the tournament.
For Dreams FC, they defeated Division One League Zone Three side, Semper Fi, 2-1 to progress to the next stage of the competition where they accounted for Division Two side, Asanska FC, 2-0.
That handed them a quarterfinal berth where they faced Inter Allies and drew one all before winning 4-3 on penalties.
The happiest moment in their success story was a 3-2 semi-final win over GPL winners, Medeama SC.
With that feat, Dreams have been touted as potential winners as the match comes at a time the Nations FC side may be psychologically down over the weight of the challenge they face in the next season.
However, the competition has gain notoriety for not following any form guide and outcomes mostly coming as major surprises.
In this regard, Dreams may be tipped as favourite candidates but though Nations are wounded, the stakes could revive an insatiable desire to apply the brakes to turn the dreams of Dreams FC into a nightmare.
Support
The support from MTN Ghana has no doubt improved competition among the clubs with the attractive incentive packages for participating clubs.
MTN Ghana, which is celebrating 30 years of operations in Ghana, formally became headline sponsors of the Ghana FA Cup in the 2010/2011 football season after the competition had returned from an eight-year hiatus.
The first edition under MTN sponsorship was won by Nania FC, who defeated Asante Kotoko 1–0 in the final at the Accra Sports Stadium.
Since then, the competition has been known as the MTN FA Cup, with MTN renewing its sponsorship several times — in 2013, 2017, 2020 and again for subsequent seasons.
By Andrew Nortey
The Black Stars have opened camp in Cardiff ahead of next week’s international friendly against Wales.
The team is being taken through training drills by head coach Carlos Queiroz.
Thirteen players trained at Dragon Park on Monday, with others expected to join the squad on Tuesday.
They include Ernest Nuamah, Brandon Thomas-Asante, Jordan Ayew, Caleb Yirenkyi, Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, Elisha Owusu, Gideon Mensah, Marvin Senaya, Jerome Opoku, Benjamin Asare, Joseph Anang, Solomon Agbasi, and Alidu Seidu.
The Black Stars will train in Cardiff for one week ahead of the international friendly against Wales on Tuesday, June 2, before traveling to the United States of America.
Coach Carlos Queiroz will use the period to assess his players before naming his final squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the United States.
Twenty-six players will be submitted to FIFA on Monday, June 1, as mandated by the competition regulations.
The Black Stars are drawn in Group L with Panama, England, and Croatia. They will open their World Cup campaign against Panama on June 17 in Toronto before facing England and Croatia in their other group matches.
