Sports News of Monday, 22 May 2023
Source: www.ghanaweb.live
2023-05-225 Ghanaian forwards who failed to glitter for the Black Stars
L-R Accam, Ekuban, Adiyiah, Tagoe and Warris
It is no doubt that Asamoah Gyan remains Ghana's best forward in the last decade in terms of numbers.
With over 50 goals to his credit, Gyan’s name continues to ring a bell in the ears of Ghanaians with the impact he made with the Black Stars since he officially marked his debut in 2003 in a World Cup qualifier.
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Fear continues to grip Ghanaians about a possible replacement for Gyan as the 37-year-old striker last played for the Black Stars in 2019 following their disappointing AFCON campaign in Egypt.
However, the narrative still remains the same as the Black Stars continue to search for a lethal forward despite opening its doors to other great forwards.
In the last decade, a few good strikers popped up on the scene with great qualities but failed to explode when the opportunity came calling.
Ghanaweb looked into five strikers who showed great exploits but failed to glitter for the Black Stars.
Dominic Adiyiah
The 2009 FIFA U20 World Cup top scorer was the toast of most European clubs following his outstanding campaign in Egypt.
He made his official debut in 2009 and fast-forward, he was drafted into the Black Stars team ahead of the 2010 AFCON World Cup in South Africa and Angola respectively where he subsequently went on to sign for Italian powerhouse AC Milan.
Many thought he would replicate the same for the Black Stars after grabbing the Top scorer and Most Valuable Player award in 2009, but it ended abruptly for Adiyiah where he made only 20 appearances and scored 4 goals between 2009 and 2013.
Prince Tagoe
Popularly called 'Prince of Goals', due to his striking prowess, he formed a solid striking partnership with Asamoah Gyan with the Black Meteors (U-23) between 2007 and 2008.
Tagoe was undoubtedly the best forward when he joined Hearts of Oak on loan from lower-tier side Midtjylland-Mamobi and went on to clinch the league's top scorer with 18 goals.
He had a smooth transition having played at the U-20 level between 2005 and 2006 where he made his senior debut against Togo in a friendly and was included in the final 23-man squad by former trainer Rakomir Dujkovic for the 2006 AFCON in Egypt.
Standing at 6ft 2 inches tall, Tagoe played at the 2006, 2012 AFCON and the 2010 World Cup, making 37 appearances with 7 goals between 2006-2012.
Abdul Majeed Warris
Warris had a stunning two-year stay with Swedish side BK Hacken where he scored 26 goals in 55 games, earning him his first call-up to the Black Stars in 2012 under former coach Kwesi Appiah. He was included in Ghana’s 23-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. The former Right to Dream product had 4 goals in 31 games for the Black Stars since 2012.
Caleb Ekuban
Ekuban ws eligible to play for either Ghana and Italy but chose to represent Ghana in 2018.
He received his maiden call-up in 2019 for AFCON qualification where he scored his first competitive and debut goal for Ghana against Kenya in an AFCON Qualifier in 2019.
Ekuban is a striker known for his pace, technical ability and strong physique but sadly featured only 13 times and registered 3 goals.
David Accam
Accam received his first call-up to the Ghana national team for a 2014 World Cup qualification match against Sudan in March 2013, in which he was an unused substitute.
He made the provisional 26-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup by former coach Kwesi Appiah but was dropped for the final 23-man team.
He finally made his debut for Ghana as a substitute in a 2015 AFCON qualifier and was selected as part of Ghana's preliminary squad for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations. Between 2014 and 2017, Accam had one goal in 12 games for Ghana.
LSN/OGB
