westernGH.com » Sports

Nations Cup to hold minute’s silence after Egypt deaths

Nana Esi Monney — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:28:26 +0000

A minute’s silence for the victims of Egypt’s stadium disaster will be held at this weekend’s Africa Cup Nations quarter-finals.
Seventy four people died and at least 1,000 were injured when supporters invaded the pitch at a match in Port Said on Wednesday.
Most of the deaths were among people trampled in the crush of the panicking crowd while others fell or were thrown from terraces.
“African football is in a state of mourning,” said Issa Hayatou, president of the Cairo-based Confederation of African Football (CAF) in a message of condolence to the Egyptian Football Association.
The quarter-finals of the African Nations Cup are played in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon on Saturday and Sunday.
Egypt, who won the last three tournaments, failed to qualify for this year’s edition.

Andre Ayew claims shoulder injury not serious

Nana Esi Monney — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:25:20 +0000

Ghana midfielder Andre Ayew claims he is fit for the quarter-final clash against Tunisia despite struggling with a shoulder injury.
The 22-year-old was on two occasions aided by his teammates and the medical team to fix a dislocated right shoulder during Wednesday’s 1-1 draw with Guinea.
Ayew had to be substituted in the 87th minute by Charles Takyi as a precautionary measure.
It is feared that his long-standing shoulder problem could rule him out of Ghana’s next match but the Olympique Marseille ace says he is fit.
“I am fine, it was nothing really. This tournament is a tough competition so expectations that we would be hammering teams are off the mark,” Ayew said.
“We have qualified for the quarter finals from a tough group but we made it and topped the group too.
“We now focus on the challenge ahead and we still want to win the title and you will see that our play will show our commitment and determination to do that.
“Our games so far have been tough and we knew we would be facing up to tough teams but that’s why it is a tournament for the best 16 teams in Africa.”
Ayew scored a beauty in Ghana’s 2-0 win over Mali and was named Man-of-the-Match.

Gyan relishing difficult Tunisia test

Nana Esi Monney — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:18:19 +0000

Ghana striker Asamoah Gyan is envisaging another difficult game against Tunisia at the quarter finals of the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations.
The Black Star drew 1-1 in their final Group D game against Guinea which saw them through as group winners to set up the tie with the 2004 winners.
The Ghanaians who were coming from the back of an impressive 2-0 win over Mali in their second group game failed to live up to expectations against the Syli Nationale.
And Gyan who admits he played against the stiffer side so far in the competition against Guinea believes Tunisia will be a much tougher side to beat.
“It is another difficult match for us,” Gyan said.
“The Tunisians are one of the best in the tournament although they lost to Gabon.
“We have seen them play and for me they are favourites for this competition so we really have to be on top of our game in order to beat them.”
Ghana who aim to end a 30-year wait for an African title have looked very inconsistent in their performance, casting doubts over whether they really are title contenders.
The Black Stars will play their quarter final match on Sunday evening against the Carthage Eagles who hosted and won the CAN in 2004.

Agyemang-Badu revels in historic Nations Cup goal

Nana Esi Monney — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:10:08 +0000

Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu has revealed he was oblivious that he had made a piece of history by scoring Ghana’s 100th Nations Cup goal but expressed his excitement.
The 21-year-old scored a goal of the tournament contender when he blasted home a classy volley from 20-yards after 28 minutes for the opener-his debut Nations Cup goal.
But the celebrations were cut by a first half extra-time equalizer by Razzagui Camara in the 1-1 draw on Wednesday night.
It was his fourth international goal for the Black Stars as an offensive midfielder.
Badu was excited to know he had etched his name in Ghana’s history books.
“I didn’t know anything about it. I’m very happy to score this 100th goal. I have to continue like this and focus on Tunisia,” Badu said.
I’m really really happy and I thank God it (goal) came.”
Wilberforce Mfum scored Ghana first Nations Cup goal at the 1963 finals on home soil.

Ghana will come better against Tunisia-Stevanovic

Nana Esi Monney — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:06:26 +0000

Ghana coach Goran Stevanovic has promised a better performance against Tunisia in the quarter-final of the Nations Cup.
The Black Stars have been criticized for an unconvincing display against Guinea on Wednesday which however earned them top spot in Group D.
Ghana’s title winning credentials are in doubt and must dust themselves off before their knock-out stage clash on Sunday.
Stevanovic admits his side were handed a reality check by the Guineans who failed to qualify.
“It was a very tough game,” Stevanovic said after the game.
“It was a very nervous game because Guinea needed to win and that complicated the situation.
“We started to win 1-0 but after one strange goal [Guinea equalizer] we continued to play and tried to win. We qualified but not practically [performance].
”The only thing on our head is maybe not too much ambition, not too much intensity. We would be better in the next game.”

Adiyiah, Kingson dropped from Ghana’s AFCON squad

Editor — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 12:25:56 +0000

Turkey-based striker Dominic Adiyiah has been dropped from Ghana’s final 23-man squad for the Africa Cup of Nations.

The Karsiyaka player has been placed on a three-man stand-by list to be unveiled by the Serbian coach when the squad is released on Thursday.

Experienced goalkeeper Richard Kingson was also dropped from the final squad to be officially unveiled during Thursday’s press conference.

South Korea-based striker Derek Asamoah was a surprise inclusion in the Black Stars final 23-man for next month’s tournament.

Just two home-based players made the final squad list. Goalkeepers Daniel Agyei and Ernest Sowah will make the trip to the tournament.

Stromgodset duo of Mohammed Abu and goalkeeper Adam Kwarasey will make their maiden appearance in Africa’s flagship tournament.

All the key players in the Black Stars will make the trip to the Nations Cup apart from Kingson who has fallen out of favour with coach Goran Stevanovic.

According to insiders, John Mensah, Jonathan Mensah, Lee Addy, Isaac Vorsah, Daniel Opare and Samuel Inkoom made the cut.

Other key players are Derek Boateng, Agyemang Badu, Andre Ayew, Sulley Muntari, Kwadwo Asmaoah, Asamoah Gyan and Prince Tagoe.

Ghana will be seeking to win their fifth continental title and Serbian coach Goran Stevanovic presented his final squad to the Ghana FA over the weekend.

Nyantakyi calls for effective leadership

Editor — Fri, 27 May 2011 15:53:06 +0000

President of the FA, Kwesi Nyantakyi yesterday gave a presentation on leadership when the first business conference on African football opened in Ghana.

The conference on Thursday gathered participants from various backgrounds for the two-day event aimed at improving the business aspect of African football.

Nyantakyi, the Ghana FA President, addressed participants on the topic: “Ensuring Effective Leadership And Governance In African Football In The 21st Century”.

According to Nyantakyi, with his experiences as head of an Africa Football Association and positions on WAFU and CAF, he believes effective leadership is a quality very much in demand to turn around the game on the continent.

“Africa abounds in football talent. Its incumbent on all of us to adopt the right leadership and governance modules to raise the level of football in Africa from the current level of deprivation, neglect and a lack of adequate financial and material resources to one of excellence, efficiency and resourcefulness,” Kwesi Nyantakyi said.

Other experts who addressed participants at the opening day of the conference included Ghana-born ex-France captain Marcel Desailly, ex-Ghana international Tony Baffoe, Supersport International director Gary Rathbone and former BBC Africa football editor Martin Davies.

Source: GFA

AC Milan buy Ghana’s Boateng outright from Genoa

Editor — Tue, 24 May 2011 22:09:22 +0000

Italian champions AC Milan have completed the full signing of Ghana’s Kevin-Prince Boateng from Genoa.

The 24-year-old played for Milan last season but was part owned by Italian rivals Genoa, who bought him from English club Portsmouth a year ago.

Genoa president Enrico Preziosi said a deal had been struck for Milan to buy out Boateng’s contract.

“Two clubs like Genoa and Milan can’t argue so we’ve made an agreement, he is entirely a Milan player,” he said.

The two clubs also reached a similar deal for Nigeria’s Nnamdi Oduamadi to join Milan as well, he too had been co-owned by the two clubs.

Preziosi didn’t divulge any details of payment between the clubs.

Last week both Milan and Genoa had accused the other of trying to move the goalposts on an agreement struck a year ago.

Source: BBC

Banku rated second in latest WBO ranking

Editor — Sat, 21 May 2011 07:31:44 +0000

Ghanaian World Boxing Organization(WBO)Africa light heavyweight champion, Briamah ‘Bukom Banku’ Kamoko has been rated the second contender to the champion, Juergen Braehmer of Germany in the latest ranking of the world boxing controlling body.

The sudden rise of the Ghanaian boxer is as a result of his sturdy rise in performance that has seen him conquer opponents across the continent and the Americas, the last of which was against Jorge Rodriguez Oliveira on January 29 at the Accra International Conference Center(AICC) which he won to become the WBO African Champion.

He comes directly under the WBO interim Champion, Nathan Cleverly from the great Britain and Russian Dmitry Sukhotsky, the division’s intercontinental Champion. It also put Banku in a higher position than the over-hyped New Zealand boxer, Chad Dawson who currently occupies the ninth position.

The latest ranking is expected to boost the morale of Banku who faces a mandatory challenge against the Champion,Juergen Braehmer later in the year in Accra. The fight will materialize if the champion is able to put a successful defence this weekend against the interim champion, Nathan Cleverly at the O2 Arena(Millennium Dome),Greenwich, London,United Kingdom. Banku will also have to dispose off Pedro Otas in defence of his WBO African title to set a historic date for a World title fight in Ghana.

Andre Ayew for Manchester

Editor — Wed, 18 May 2011 18:43:36 +0000

1) He was born on December 17, 1989, which by my calculations makes him 21 years of age. His birthplace was Seclin in the north in France but he is of Ghanaian descent.

2) His nickname is Dede and he is the son of Ghanaian football legend Abedi Pele, who was named as one of the top 125 greatest living footballers in 2004.

3) He predominatly plays on the left wing but can also operate on the right. His two brothers, Ibrahim and Jordan, are also footballers. Jordan, 19, plays alongside Andre at Marseille, while Ibrahim, 22, currently plies his trade in Egypt with Zamalek.

4) Andre started his youth career at Ghanaian club Nania at the age of ten and by 14 was promoted to the senior squad. He spent two years playing professional football at Nania before moving to Marseille in 2005 as a trainee.

5) After impressing at youth level for the League Un club, he was awarded a three-year professional contract in May 2007 and given the number 29 jersey.

6) Ayew made his international debut before featuring for Marseille. He initially decided to play for France before changing his mind and opting to play for Ghana. He made his debut for the Black Stars at the age of 18 on August 7, 2007.

7) Eight days after winning his first cap for Ghana he made his first-team debut for Marseille, coming on as a substitute for Modeste M’bami in the closing stages of a league match against Valenciennes.

After an impressive debut season for Marseille, Arsenal were reported to have had a £5million bid for him rejected in the summer of 2008. He subsequently left Marseille on-loan, joining fellow first division club Lorient for the entire 2008-09 season. After returning from there, he was loaned out ot AC Arles-Avignon, where he spent the whole of the 2009-10 campaign.

9) He appeared for Ghana at the 2010 World Cup and was a crucial part of the team which made it through to the quarter-finals of the tournament, before their run was ended by Uruguay in a thrilling encounter.

10) On his return from the tournament, he signed a three-year contract extension with Marseille which will keep him at the club until June 2014. He has become a permanent fixture in Didier Deschamps’ side this season and played against Manchester United in the Champions League last-16 clash last month. United fans will get another chance to look at him in the return fixture at Old Trafford on March 15. But before then, you can check out some of his best bits in this clip…