On 18th February, 2012, Asamoah Gyan announced an indefinite break from international football.
In Gyan’s last appearance for his country, he missed a penalty in a 1-0 semi-final defeat at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations against eventual champions Zambia.
The striker’s failure to score from the spot echoed the World Cup quarter-final in 2010, when he hit the cross-bar with a penalty in the final moments of extra-time.
Had he scored, Ghana would have certainly gone through to the semis. Instead they lost the subsequent shoot-out to Uruguay. He was therefore heavily criticized by Ghanaians, for breaking their hearts in crucial times.
A letter sent by the striker to the Ghana Football Association reads “My decision had the full backing of family and friends,” His manager Dentaa also confirmed the decision via his Twitter account saying: “It’s a break for a while.”
Gyan at that time had scored 28 goals in 59 appearances for the Black Stars and made history when he became the first ever Ghanaian to score at a FIFA World Cup goal in Ghana’s 2-0 win over Czech Republic.
In 2008, Gyan and his brother Baffour left the national team camp during the Africa Cup of Nations on home soil following similar backlash from media and fans.
Gyan later rescind his decision to quit international football and was subsequently named as the captain of the Black Stars to replace injury prone John Mensah.
In Gyan’s last appearance for his country, he missed a penalty in a 1-0 semi-final defeat at the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations against eventual champions Zambia.
The striker’s failure to score from the spot echoed the World Cup quarter-final in 2010, when he hit the cross-bar with a penalty in the final moments of extra-time.
Had he scored, Ghana would have certainly gone through to the semis. Instead they lost the subsequent shoot-out to Uruguay. He was therefore heavily criticized by Ghanaians, for breaking their hearts in crucial times.
A letter sent by the striker to the Ghana Football Association reads “My decision had the full backing of family and friends,” His manager Dentaa also confirmed the decision via his Twitter account saying: “It’s a break for a while.”
Gyan at that time had scored 28 goals in 59 appearances for the Black Stars and made history when he became the first ever Ghanaian to score at a FIFA World Cup goal in Ghana’s 2-0 win over Czech Republic.
In 2008, Gyan and his brother Baffour left the national team camp during the Africa Cup of Nations on home soil following similar backlash from media and fans.
Gyan later rescind his decision to quit international football and was subsequently named as the captain of the Black Stars to replace injury prone John Mensah.
No comments:
Post a Comment