Where are they now? The Ghana Black Stars XI defeated by Uruguay in the 2010 World Cup

An entire Continent  was behind the Ghana Black Stars on the 2nd of July 2010 as they clashed with Uruguay in Johannesburg in the 2010 World Cup. The Black Stars managed to reach the quarter finals in the 2010 World Cup held in hosted by South Africa after beating the USA.

Ghana became one of the three African countries that have gone farthest in the World Cup after beating USA 2-1 on the 26th of July 2010.  Cameroon was the first when they did it in Italy 1990, before being eliminated by England. Along the way, they defeated reigning Champions Argentina in the opening match in Milan.

The next team to have done this was Senegal in the 2002 World Cup, co-hosted by South Korea and Japan. They shocked reigning champions France in a 1–0 win in Seoul during the opening match, and shocked Sweden in the Round-of-16 with a golden goal, before being eliminated by Turkey with a golden goal.

Ghana Black Stars advanced from Group D in 2010 in South Africa, being the only African team to advance from the Group Stage, before being eliminated by Uruguay in a penalty shootout in Johannesburg.



The memory is still fresh in our memories, most especially, Asamoah Gyan, the man who became the scapegoat. It is always hard and difficult to think about the events that occurred that night, but we can take positives from it – the talented team made history.

There were a number of talented players in the starting lineup that faced Uruguay that evening, but where are they now?



 

GK: Richard Kingson (39)

The Black Stars captain was instrumental in the helping Ghana reach the 2010 World Cup and put out series of performances and helped the team reach the quarter finals. He signed for Accra Great Olympics in 2015 and failed to make a single appearance for the club before retiring. He is currently the Goalkeeping coach for Ghana Black Stars.



 

RB: John Pantsil (36)

The former West Ham, Fulham and Leicester player have been under the radar after the 2010 World Cup. He retired from professional football in 2016 and is now an assistant manager to South Africa’s Kaizer Chiefs.

CB: John Mensah (35)

The Black Stars player captained his team in the 2010 world cup and was heart of the defence for the Ghanaian team. He retired from the national team in 2012. The former Lyon, Sunderland and Asante Kotoko player is now in the Swedish league playing for Athletic Football Club Eskilstuna.



 

CB: Isaac Vorsah (29)

The Ghanaian defender has enjoyed different spells in Germany with Hoffenheim and Red Bull Salzburg. He was injured in Ghana’s first game in the 2010 World Cup but was fit for their last game against Uruguay in the quarter finals. He was released by South Arabian club Ohod Club after his contract expired in 2018. He is currently without a club.



 

LB: Hans Sarpei (41)

The Black Stars enjoyed six seasons with VfL Wolfsburg from 2001-2007, he later moved to Bayer Leverkusen and then Schalke. He retired from international football after the world cup and retired from professional football two years later. In 2016, it was announced that Sarpei would be a host on the Netflix reality show Ultimate Beastmaster.

DM: Anthony Annan (31)

The Black Stars midfielder has been moving from clubs to clubs. The former Rosenborg and Schalke player is now playing in Finland for Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi and is still available if the Black Stars decides to call him up.



 

RM: Samuel Inkoom (29)

The Ghanaian defender played a different role in the 2010 World Cup, he played as a right midfielder. The Black Stars player has played in teams based in eight different countries. His last club was FC Vereya and is currently a free agent. He also available if the National team decides to call him up.

CM: Kwadwo Asamoah (29)

The Black Stars in definitely one of the few players from the Ghana World Cup 2010 squad who are still making waves in Europe. He made 114 appearance for Udinese before moving to Juventus in 2012 and has so far made 116 appearance for the Italian club. He retired from the national team in 2014. He is currently playing in Italy for Juventus.

CM: Kevin-Prince Boateng (31)

The Ghanaian midfielder is also one of the few Black Stars 2010 World Cup squad that are making waves in Europe. He was suspended from the national team for allegedly abusing the team coach James Kwesi Appiah, Boateng and Muntari were sent home hours before their game against Portugal in the 2014 World Cup. In the club level, he’s had an impressive spell in different clubs in Europe, from Milan to Schalke, Las Palmas and now at Frankfurt where he won the DFB Pokal cup with the club after beating Bayern Munich.



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LM: Sulley Muntari (33)

The Deportivo La Coruna joined the Spanish side in 2018 after playing in Italy for Milan and Pescara. Sulley Muntari and Kevin were sent home at the 2014 World Cup for disciplinary reasons.  Muntari reportedly assaulted Moses Armah, a member of former manager James Kwesi Appiah’s coaching staff. He has made only for appearances for La Coruna since he joined the club.

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ST: Asamoah Gyan (32)

The man that made the headlines after the unforgettable penalty miss against Uruguay in the 2010 World Cup. He received numerous backlashes and threats after the incident which made him vow never to take another penalty for the Black Stars. He is still the captain of the Ghana Black Stars and currently plays for Turkish side Kayserispor.