Ghana profile – solid foundations can pave the way for progress
Published:Ghana are 13/8 to become the first African side to qualify for a World Cup semi-final, and the overall quality of their side suggests that they are ready to create history.
Goalkeeper
Despite being Wigan’s third choice goalkeeper last season, Richard Kingson has impressed between the sticks for Ghana.
With 83 caps, Kingson is an experienced and vocal part of the Ghanaian defence which has kept seven clean sheets from their last 13 games. Another clean sheet against Uruguay is priced at 11/5.
Defence
Black Stars captain John Mensah is a towering presence in central defence, and he has been a steadying influence for his centre-back partner Jonathan Mensah, who is known as ‘Jonathan’ to avoid confusion.
The 19-year-old Jonathan has earned glowing reviews at the World Cup, where he has helped his side to a draw and a win against Australia and the USA, and only a narrow loss to a potent German side.
Ghana’s quarter-final tie with Uruguay seems set to be a tight affair, and a total match goal count under 2.5 is convincingly priced at 2/5.
Midfield
The Black Stars have also impressed in midfield, where a youthful, tenacious group of players have overran their opponents.
Kevin Prince Boateng and Udinese’s Kwadwo Asamoah provide the creative thrust for Milovan Rajevac’s side, and they are both a tempting 14/1 to score first against Uruguay.
Anthony Annan is a spiky holding midfielder, and his club Rosenberg are bound to be contacted by a host of interested parties following his eye-catching performances.
Annan and the Ghanaian back four will be wary of Uruguay’s double striking threat of Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez, who are 4/1 and 9/2 to open the scoring.
Should Ghana hold Uruguay, they will be confident of winning after extra-time (14/1), having done so against the USA in the round of 16.
Attack
The scorer of the winner in that fixture, Asamoah Gyan, has been excellent in a lone forward role for Ghana, and with three World Cup goals to his name already, the Rennes striker is an enticing 6/1 to score first against Uruguay.
Do you think Ghana can seal a semi-final spot without extra-time? They are 16/5 to win inside 90 minutes. See the full Uruguay vs Ghana market.
