FIFA World Cup 2010, Group D: Ghana vs Germany, Boateng vs Boateng
Ghana is perhaps the only team left in the World Cup that the African continent can pin its hopes on to be their flag bearers. After Nigeria and Ivory Coast disappointed their fans, the onus is on Ghana to match the exploits of their previous World Cup campaign, and progress to the next round. Tonight, they can do so at the expense of Germany, who they face in a crucial encounter at the Soccer City in Johannesburg.
The Black Stars are on the brink of securing their qualification to the next round, and a draw tonight may be enough to ensure their progress. In the process, the Black Stars will put a spanner in the works of the German national side, and stop them from progressing to the next round for the first time ever, should the Germans come away with anything less than a win.
Germany’s performance in the first game against Australia was more than a statement of intent, where they bamboozled the Socceroos, beating them a whopping 4 goals to nil. It was a match where they showed their strength as a team to the T, but this is a tournament where Monday’s marvels are Friday’s flops, and that’s exactly what happened to Germany in their next game, where they suffered an unimaginable 1-0 defeat at the hands of European minnows Serbia.
It was a strangely subdued Germany that jeopardized its own progression with an abject display of football, but tonight, the coach Joachim Loew has vowed that his team can bounce back, and their loss was only a minor setback.
Ghana’s build up to this game has been overshadowed by recent controversies. The Internazionale midfielder, Sulley Muntari, was dismissed from the squad and was sent home for insulting his coach Milovan Rajevac. However, he was later called back into the squad in a bizarre turn of events. And tonight, Rajevac needs to keep the balance and composure of his side intact, as they face a mighty opposition in Germany, and are also carrying the hopes of an entire continent on their shoulders.
However, an intriguing subplot to the game is regarding the Boateng brothers; Portsmouth Kevin Prince Boateng and Manchester City’s recent recruit Jerome Boateng will become the first siblings in the history of football to play for two different national sides, should their managers select them.
Kevin Prince, born in Berlin to a German father and a Ghanaian mother, switched his nationality in the name of football, while his younger brother didn’t. Tonight, both will face each other knowing that a win for either might dump the other out of the competition. Besides the obvious, there is also the common knowledge of Kevin being the public enemy number 1 in Germany after the antipathy he received from the German fans following his tackle on Michael Ballack that ruled the German national captain out of the World Cup. And to add to the spice, the two brothers are not on talking terms with each other after Jerome made some remarks about his elder brother in the press.
These two sides have only met once before at the international stage, with Germany running riot with a resounding 6-1 win that night.
Ghana, if they make it to the next round tonight, will become only the second African side ever to reach the knockout phase of two successive World Cups, with only Nigeria managing the feat so far in 1990 and 1994.
An interesting point to mention here is that in the 6 games that the Ghanaians have played at the World Cup, so far they have been awarded 4 penalties and have scored in 3 of them.
Tonight at the Soccer City Stadium, the Ghanaians should expect no mercy from the Germans, as after the Serbia loss, Germany are like a wounded tiger looking to make amends. With their own qualification at stake, they will not be taking anything lightly.
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