Ghana head coach Otto Oddo has named his final 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, with Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Richard Ofori missing out.
Oddo did himself no favours with the inflated squad list of 55 players and had some tough decisions to ponder over the last few days with several high-profile players being cut.
The Black Stars, who ousted Bafana Bafana and Nigeria for a place in Qatar this month hold a strong core with Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey, Mohamed Salisu, wonderkid Kamaldeen Sulumena, Inaki Williams, and the Ayew brothers, Andre and Jordan on the final list.
Oddo, who was lured from Borussia Dortmund to lead the nation to the Mundial replaced Milovan Rajevac after their Group Stage exit at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations and while there’s been optimism around his appointment, some of their displays have largely been unconvincing with heavy defeats to Japan and Brazil in the build-up to the competition.
However, with nothing to lose and a promising crop of talent emerging, they will be hoping to emulate the class of 2010 or go one further than the quarter-finals of the global showpiece.
The West African giants are in Group H alongside, Portugal, South Korea, and Uruguay – with their tournament kicking off on 24 November against the Europeans at Stadium 974 in Doha.
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Ofori, who was the only DStv Premiership player in line to make the tournament in Qatar, was not selected by Addo as one of his three goalkeepers. There were reports about a potential injury picked up by Orofi ahead of the announcement, but Addo did not want to go into details why certain players missed out.
When contacted for a comment on Sunday, Pirates media officer Thandi Merafe told this publication that Ofori did not miss the Carling Black Label Cup due to injury but because he had a cold.
Ghana 26-man squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Lawrence Ati Zigi, Abdul Nurudeen, Ibrahim Danlad
Defenders: Denis Odoi, Tariq Lamptey, Alidu Seidu, Daniel Amartey, Joseph Aidoo, Alexander Djiku, Mohammed Salisu, Abdul-Rahman Baba, Gideon Mensah
Midfielders: André Ayew, Thomas Partey, Elisha Owusu, Salis Abdul Samed, Mohammed Kudus, Daniel-Kofi Kyereh
Forwards: Daniel Barnieh Afriyie, Kamal Sowah, Issahaku Abdul Fatawu, Osman Bukari, Inaki Williams, Antoine Semenyo, Jordan Ayew, Kamaldeen Sulemana
