Upsetting the odds: Black Stars’ near-impossible job

Surely not many African teams can survive in a World Cup Group which includes the likes of Germany and Portugal. For a team like the Black Stars seeking a semi-final berth at Brazil 2014, it couldn’t get any more difficult than this in the preliminaries.

Definitely, the Black Stars have a tall order if they are to confine Asamoah Gyan’s horror penalty miss at South Africa 2010 to the history books. Having fluffed such a golden opportunity three years ago, the Al Ain goal poacher and his team have been looking forward to righting their wrongs.

We had every opportunity to make history in South Africa. Now the task looks laborious as we come against a German side that has made the semi-finals in the last four World Cups and a Christiano Ronaldo-inspired Portugal which has made at least the quarters in the last two finals.

In a Stephen Appiah-Michael Essien-Sulley Muntari-powered midfield, we were probably gifted with possibly the best midfield trio on the continent in 2006. Frankly, not much has changed since then. Good old Essien is still around; Muntari may have seen some resurgence at AC Milan, but there’s no doubt he’s lost his sting.

Now there are the Dede Ayews, Kevin Prince Boatengs and the rest—but can they survive the onslaught of the Germans, the Portuguese and the Americans? With a team built on the success of Bayern and Dortmund, the German machine especially will be hard to break down.

Such was the dominance of these two clubs (Bayern Munich and Dortmund) that they took their rivalry to the UEFA Champions League finale. To think that Bayern’s €37 million record signing, Mario Götze, can only manage a place on the bench of the Germans speaks well of the talent at their disposal.

Against Germany in 2010, we were able to hold them for an hour before a long-range strike from then Werder Bremen playmaker Mesut Özil broke the Black Stars resolve. The German shaft has improved considerably and the game against the Stars at next year’s World Cup will be won from the midfield.

Barring any injuries, the Germans are likely to call up midfield dynamos like Özil, Khedira, Schweinsteiger, Podolski, Gündo?an, Bender, Schürrle, Draxler, Müller, Bender, Kroos, Götze and Reus.

Germany has only lost a game in the whole of 2013. It was a much depleted side that succumbed to the USA in a friendly. However, against tough oppositions like England, Sweden, Italy, Paraguay, etc., Germany survived.

Comparatively, though making it to the finals, Ghana is yet to prove it has the materials to withstand world-class opposition. The Black Stars have lost three games in just 2013 alone and previous Africa Cup of Nations tournaments (2012 & 2013) all ended tragically, which is worrisome.

Our present squad -- full of players on the fringes of lower-tier teams -- looks like it is on a collision course if nothing drastic is done between now and June 2014. Save Kwadwo Asamoah, we have no other player playing regularly in a top club at the moment.

Our general captain, Essien, has his own problems at a team where he was once hailed. He has fallen behind the pecking other and that situation is not likely to change -- at least not before the World Cup. Sorry Essien. Muntari blows hot and cold every now and then; Christian Atsu, the only spark in the team, is somewhere battling for a position in the Eredivise -- FC Twente -- on loan from Chelsea.

The Black Stars may have had a smooth passage to the World Cup, but they must prove their worth when the big boys come to the party. In 2006, Ghana didn’t get any better draw—Italy, Czech Republic and USA. The Czechs were second-best ranked team on the globe and Italy, the eventual winners, made it look like our debut was going to end in disaster. The Stars shone on that occasion. In 2010, we drew Serbia, Germany and Australia.

Where Ghana’s qualification chances open could be in the opening match against USA. We may have beaten them in the last two finals, but the Americans under Jürgen Klinsman are tough customers.

To have any realistic chance of second-round qualification, the Stars must -- at all cost -- win their opening game. You wouldn’t want to go into a game with Germany expecting a win. That’s a suicide mission.

In recent World Cup history, the Portuguese have come up against only one African side -- Angola -- in Germany 2006. That match ended 1-0 in Portugal’s favor, and was more of a compliment to their former colony who were making a historical appearance.

Portugal’s second game against USA could be the turning point of the group. It will have a huge bearing on who eventually gets out of the group. By the time the Ghanaians face Portugal in the last group game, the fate of the group should be known.

Looking at the Euro qualifiers, it is more than black and white that Portugal faltered. As Ibrahimovic said, “They finished second in a group they should have won.” The Portuguese team are naturally inconsistent and the Black Stars should ride on that.

They have arguably the world’s best footballer in Ronaldo but football is a team sport and his teammates would matter as much.

Kwasi Appiah needs “help”

The tough draw has resurrected the debate on whether the Black Stars need a Technical Director. The quality of opposition alone should urge us to beef up our technical team. That’s not to say Kwasi Appiah must be replaced. But it is obvious there’s more room for backing up.

Just look at the quality of the Brazilian technical team: two World Cup winning coaches, Luiz Felipé Scolari and Carlos Alberto Perrera. The latter is serving as the Technical Coordinator (Director). There’s never a room for complacency.

We may have been the most consistent African side in the last two finals, but we also acknowledge that our performance in the prelims in South Africa was not emphatic as in Germany, four years earlier. In South Africa, we managed four points from three games and scored just two goals, all of which came from the spot.

Our preparation for the World Cup will be boosted if we get our players to play regular competitive football. For footballing reasons, I think our leading marksman, Asamoah Gyan, should consider leaving Al Ain, at least on loan, in the upcoming transfer window.

He’s going to play against some of the best defenders in the world so there’s the need for him to be sharper. As it stands now, he’s a little sluggish -- and the opposition he plays against regularly has everything to do with it.

This also goes to all our other players. Kwesi Appiah must be firm and insist that he’s not taking any benchwarmers to Brazil. Majeed Warris, Christian Atsu, Samuel Inkoom, Fatau Dauda and co. must sit-up. They must fight for first-team football.

If we should get our acts together, at least a second-round qualification should not be above the Stars’ reach. And lest I forget, Kwasi Appiah should do well to avoid employing mathematicians to do his qualification maths; his destiny is in his own hands.

Wish him good luck.

The writer is the author of Rhythms of Thoughts, a column published in the Weekend edition of the Business and Financial Times (B&FT).