World Cup Group D preview: Serbia v Ghana
In times of trouble, big players need to stand up and be counted.
Following Michael Essien's injury, which has ruled him out of the competition, Ghana will need to look to their fellow experienced players to perform in order to qualify from an open-looking group. It starts for the Africans on Sunday as they face Serbia in the opening match of Group D in Pretoria.
Star man Essien missed a lot of the Premier League season with a serious knee injury, and he has been unable to regain fitness in time for the finals. Ghana were the only African team to reach the second round of the 2006 World Cup and much of that success was down to the Chelsea midfielder's eye-catching displays in the heart of the midfield.
Ghana are a very talented, but very young side, and the key to their path will be how they deal with the loss of their main man and if the experienced heads in the camp can help the younger players along.
Asamoah Gyan is a player that falls into that experienced category, with 20 goals from 32 caps, and the Rennes striker is confident that his side can prosper from the group.
"You saw at practice everybody is happy," Gyan told a press conference.
"We are relaxed, that is how we are, that is how we psych ourselves. We have quality players and we were the first team to qualify for the World Cup [from Africa]. The confidence is there and we are ready to play."
Gyan will need to fill the void left by Essien against Serbia, by taking the bull by the horns and inspiring his side, but up against him will be midfielder Dejan Stankovic, the Serbia captain.
The Serbian playmaker has dampened the fears of their national press that the players are not focused on the job in hand.
"We stay in our rooms and don't really go out anywhere," Stankovic told a press conference. "We have been given many instructions about security. There is a sense of tension but we are concentrating on the football.
"This is the first time we are representing Serbia as a separate nation at the World Cup, so we know our responsibility. ... I just want to go home with my head held high."
Serbia finished top of their qualifying group, which included France, and are many people's tips to be the surprise package in this year's competition. They have however struggled in their warm-up matches, but with the likes of Nemanja Vidic in their ranks, they are unlikely to concede many goals.
As the world waits to see how Ghana copes without Essien, it may be Serbia that step up and perform, rather than a Ghanaian replacement.
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