With the chips beginning to fall at the FIFA U-20 World Cup in Turkey, Africa’s representation has been made the worst casualties, with three of its teams failing to survive the turbulence of the keen competition unleashed mainly by their European combatants.
After nearly 1,620 minutes, Ghana appears the only survivor on the stage, but the story of Ghana’s survival remains one of the intriguing parts of the football drama.
Having qualified to the Round of 16 by the skin of the teeth, the Black Satellites of Ghana last Wednesday delivered another surprise package to the pundits when they beat the highly-fancied Portugal to earn a berth in the quarter-finals. This was after the Ghanaians had made a disastrous start in the competition, losing 1-3 to France and 0-1 to Spain with elimination starring them in the face.
For many keen observers who watched the 2009 generation of the Satellites thrill in Egypt, that feat did not confound them. The generation of Andre Dede Ayew, Dominic Adiyiah and Ransford Osei - gems that were destined to succeed — many not compare with the talents of this current generation of Ghana U-20s.
Long before last Wednesday, the heat has become unbearable for the Young Pharaohs of Egypt and Mali who joined the first group of casualties.
Egypt’s showing at this year’s competition must have come to many keen followers of African youth football as shocking and intriguing, with an impressive ensemble of African talent ready to be showcased to the world.
Indeed, the North Africans resembled Ghana’s case in 2009 in terms of sheer array of talents and depth of exposure. In their squad were talents like Rami Rabin, Yassin and Ahmed Hassan ready to explode and confound the world.
However, when the real battle began the Egyptians, who were expected to hoist the Africa flag and sustain the African challenge, which has always been one of the attractions of FIFA’s second-rated competition, they failed to transform themselves to the anticipated glitter and crumbled under the lightweights of Iraq, Chile and England.
Of course, England have straddled the global stage before, while Chile have qualified for the quarter-finals.
The case of Mali, who used the 1999 U-20 World Cup to first announce the potential of Seydou Keita, could be pardoned. Battling the likes of Mexico and Paraguay, both perennial combatants, could be unnerving.
Nigeria, rated second after Ghana in terms of accomplishments at the U-20 level, provided some promise after qualifying to the Round of 16, a group that included Portugal, only to crumble before Uruguay last Tuesday.
With this sombre development, Ghana remain the only African survivor, but whether they can sustain that force to the last four will be determined tomorrow when the Satellites take on Chile in another crunch encounter in Istanbul.
And it will be for strikers Richmond Boakye-Yiadom and Kennedy Ashia, midfielders Moses Odjer, Seidu Salifu and defenders Baba Abdul Rahman and skipper Lawrence Lartey, the main actors so far on the stage, to decide that destiny.
By Andy Quao, Instanbul, Turkey
Courtesy Stanbic Bank/Seasons Travel and Tours International
The Mirror/Ghana
