Ghanaian players abroad: Team of the Year

Published on: 01 January 2011

No.1 Richard Kingson

Nations Cup

World Cup

Blackpool

Goalkeepers they say improve with age and Kingson did more than enough to demonstrate this in 2010.

After failing to hold down a place at Wigan in the 2009/2010 season, Kingson, stormed the Angola 2010 Nations Cup and shouldered the Black Stars to the grand-finale.

The unrivalled gloves man then turned his attention to the Fifa World Cup event and put up a more stellar showing.

His superior reflexes, positioning, ability to organize his back line won the heart of the English Premier League's most hilarious manager Ian Holloway, who drafted him into the Blackpool set-up.

Kingson has stepped in for injured Matthew Gilk and has established him as the new number after keeping two successive clean sheets.

No.2  John Pantsil

World Cup

Fulham-Europa League

Pantsil was the most consistent Ghanaian player across the globe in the 2009/10 season playing almost every game for Roy Hodgson's side which reached the finals of the Europa Cup.

He missed the Nations Cup due to a knee injury but returned after regaining his form for the World Cup finals in South Africa.

Pantsil dropped down the pecking order by new Fulham coach Mark Hughes but the former West Ham defender kept his focus and has regained his position as right-back.

No.3 Harrison Afful

Nations Cup

Esperance-Caf Champions League

Afful was a bench warmer at the Africa Cup of Nations but returned to his club in Tunisia and helped them to push for a final berth in the 2010 Caf Champions League where they lost to TP Mazembe.

The left-back scored in the final leg but that could not help his side.

He was left out of the World Cup squad by then head coach Milovan Rajevac.

No.14   Isaac Vorsah

Nations Cup

World Cup

TSG Hoffenheim

Wasn't he phenomenon in 2010? Isaac Vorsah became the most improved Ghanaian player in a major European league.

His ability to adapt to different roles at club and international games made him indispensable for TSG Hoffenheim and the Black Stars.

Vorsah partnered Lee Addy in central defence at the Nations Cup in Angola and earned the plaudits.

His exploits at the World Cup in June triggered speculations in most of Europe's tabloids that Manchester City Roberto Mancini was watching him with keen interest.

Vorsah has scored some incredible goals for Hoffenheim this season in the Bundesliga.

No.5  Jonathan Mensah

Nations Cup

World Cup

Granada FC/ Udinese

A certain John Mensah should have occupying this position but a compelling performance from the 20-year-old can do nothing but edge the Sunderland player out of the team of the year.

Jonathan Mensah was able to translate his performance at the 2009 Fifa World Youth Championship to the Africa Cup of Nations in Angola and at the World Cup where he excelled in the three he played for Ghana.

No. 6 Anthony Annan

Nations Cup

World Cup

Rosenborg BK-Europa

Your ball winning midfielder, Pablo Aimar as he is affectionately called, played an instrumental role in the success of the Black Stars at the Nations Cup and World Cup.

The diminutive middleman involved in some sort of skirmishes in the Norwegian league but his total contribution for both club and country was superb.

He ended up being voted as Rosenborg's player of the Year by the club's fans.

No.7   Derek Boateng

World Cup

Getafe

He is one of the most consistent players in the Spanish La Liga and Ghanaian players in the major European leagues.

Boateng missed out of the Nations Cup after his club refused to release him when Milovan Rajevac handed him a late call-up.

He has since more action after the World Cup where he was an unused substitute and scored two goals for his Spanish La Liga side this season.

No.8 Kevin-Prince Boateng

World Cup

Portsmouth/AC Milan

The Ghetto-kid made the best decision of his footballing career by choosing to play for Ghana ahead of the 2010 World Cup finals.

Kevin Boateng did not play any part in the qualifying rounds for the summer event but managed to become the fans favourite at the mundial.

After a successful outing at the World Cup, Boateng was courted by many European clubs and ended up on loan at Serie A and European giants AC Milan.

Boateng has since become a resolute member of the Rossoneri campaign and has so far scored two goals to force the Milanese to hold talks with his mother club Genoa for a permanent stay at the San Siro.

Early 2010, he played a key role for the financially-troubled Portsmouth which got relegated last season and was instrument in their FA Cup campaign which saw them lose to Chelsea in the final.

No.9 Asamoah Gyan

Nations Cup

World Cup

Stade Rennes/ Sunderland

At 25, Gyan has risen to become an imposing figure in attack at the international stage.

He notched home 13 goals in the 2009/10 season the French Ligue 1 but that did not earn him the global attention until he crucified Nigeria in the semi-final stage of the Nations Cup and nailed the United States to progress to the last 8 of the World Cup.

Not to forget the heartbreak of missing a last minute penalty kick against Uruguay that could have landed Ghana into the semi-final.

His efforts led Sunderland to break their all-time club report for signings in a 13 million pound deal.

Gyan scored on his debut appearance for the Black Cats and continued to score six impressive goals in eleven appearances for the club.

No.10 Kwadwo Asamoah

Nations Cup

World Cup

Udinese

Although he did not meet the World Cup standards, Kwadwo Asamoah is one player that you cannot bypass if you want to name Ghana's best eleven in 2010.

His talismanic display in Angola alone was enough.

Asamoah is a regular at Italian side Udinese and has been rewarded for his dexterity as Caf Most Talented Young Player.

No. 11 Andre Ayew

Nations Cup

World Cup

Arles Avignon/Olympique Marseille

Arguably, the best Ghanaian footballer in 2010. Andre Ayew inspired Ghana to the quarter-finals with a crashing header that sent Burkina Faso packing from the Angola 2010 tournament.

He went on to secure promotion for Arles Avignon to the French Ligue 1 before proceeding to break into the final best three young talents at the World Cup.

Andre's morale on the pitch at 20 still beats understanding and his non-stop fighting power has helped him to re-establish himself as one of the finest crafts at the Olympique Marseille.

Line-up:

22.  R. Kingson

8. Jonathan Mensah 14. Isaac Vorsah

3. Harrison Afful 4. John Pantsil

6. Anthony Annan

23. Kevin-Prince Boateng

13.  Andre Ayew 10. Kwadwo Asamoah

3. Asamoah Gyan

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