Even before gallant losers, the Black Stars arrive back home following their dramatic and agonizing exit from the ongoing FIFA World Cup in South Africa, the grapevine is awash with the report that there was an “altercation” between “heartbroken” striker Asamoah ‘Baby Jet’ Gyan and Team Captain Stephen ‘Tornado’ Appiah. This was after the former missed the ‘golden’ penalty handed the team on the stroke of full-time (120min) in their game with Uruguay, when the South American frontman Luiz Suarez “Netballed” into play, a goal-bound header by Dominic Adiyiah.

After Portuguese Referee Olegario Benquerenca signaled for a penalty in the 120th minute of extra-time, there seemed to be a fracas between the striker who had netted three(3) goals for Ghana and was in contention for the Golden Boot award and his Captain, Stephen Appiah.

Peacefmonline.com sources within the playing body of the Black Stars say Stephen Appiah, the regular penalty taker for the team had wanted to take the “golden” spot kick, but the France-based Stade Rennais forward, who would have none of it, “brushed” off his captain’s request, and went ahead to take the kick which he (Asamoah Gyan) eventually fluffed.

Asamoah Gyan’s kick skimmed the cross bar eventhough Uruguay Keeper Fernando Muslera was sent in the wrong direction. But despite having the mental fortitude to take the first kick for Ghana during the dramatic shoot-out, the misery of Ghana’s leading goal-scorer was terrible to behold.

Interestingly, Appiah was seen gesticulating to Gyan as if to say, “i told you to let me take the kick”, after the opportunity to make history was lost.

Though Gyan had initially stated that securing the golden boot was not his top priority, his ambition being to help propel Ghana to the continent’s first ever semi-final spot in the global football fiesta, some football-loving Ghanaians are questioning why he did not heed to Appiah’s request and allow him (Appiah) to effect the spot kick.
Asamoah Gyan was handed the mantle in the absence of Captain Stephen Appiah who started all matches from the bench in South Africa, to take penalty kicks against Serbia and Australia which he scored expertly.

However, in the presence of Stephen Appiah who scored a penalty against USA in Germany 2006, the question many seem to be asking is why Appiah was not allowed by Asamoah to take the “Golden” penalty kick.

Did he really mean it when he said his main priority was NOT to emerge as top scorer at the global football fiesta?…

…AND, was Stephen Appiah wrong in “attacking” Asamoah right after he missed the penalty?…

…Perhaps it is also not out of place to speculate what would have happened if Asamoah had acquiesced to Appiah’s demands, and the former Brescia, Juventus and Fernabache midfielder had missed the spot-kick? Football, indeed is a strange and funny sport, sometimes.
“FLASHBACK- Germany 2006”
At 2006 FIFA World Cup tournament in Germany, Asamoah Gyan “missed” a penalty kick after striking it against Czech Keeper, Petr Cech’s left-hand post after Mattew Amoah was brought down by Czech defender Tomas Ujfalusi.

Gyan stepped up to strike the ball home, but referee Horacio Elizondo was busy showing the red card to the defender.

Elizondo subsequently showed a yellow card to Gyan for taking the kick prematurely which ruled him out of Ghana’s decisive Group E game against Bruce Arena’s USA team.

Asamoah later in an interview stated; “normally I’m an expert at penalty-kicks, but as people say, nobody is perfect. I’m not the first person to miss a penalty”. (That was in Germany 2006).
In the decisive Group E game against USA, the Americans went from high to low within a matter of minutes after equalizing when Oguchi Onyewu was penalized for pushing Razak Pimpong in the area. Stephen Appiah in the absence of Asamoah Gyan was perfect from the penalty spot, giving Ghana the lead when he put the ball in the roof of US Keeper Kasey Keller’s goalpost.

That guaranteed the Stars’ a place in the knockout stage where they eventually lost to 0 – 3 to Brazil.

Source: Alex Ofei/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana

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