AS Roma youngster Felix Afena-Gyan and Antoine Semenyo will be in the Ghana squad for the upcoming 2022 FIFA World Cup play-off games against Nigeria, editors.3news.com can confirm.
The Ghana Football Association (GFA) has refused to reveal the squad citing a technical decision, but editors.3news.com has reliably learned that the two forwards have been invited by interim coach Otto Addo.
The addition of Afena-Gyan comes as a surprise, considering he had turned down two call-ups from former coach Milovan Rajevac, saying he was not ready for national team duty.
Rajevac, first called him for World Cup qualifiers against Ethiopia and South Africa last November, and then the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year.
Otto Addo may have been assured of Afena-Gyan’s availability before deciding to invite him.
It has been a little over a year since AS Roma announced the signing of Afena-Gyan from lower-tier side EurAfrica FC.
Afena-Gyan signed for the U-19s but his development has been rapid as he is now recognised as a first-team player.
Jose Mourinho is fond of the 19-year-old who has made 21 appearances this season and scored two good goals.
For Semenyo, he is relatively unknown among Ghanaians. The striker was born in west London to a Ghanaian father.
He plays for English Championship side Bristol City where he is finally flourishing after a string of loan spells.
Semenyo has scored six goals and provided eight assists this season.
He has been linked with several top-flight clubs in Europe including West Ham, Celtic and RB Salzburg.
Ghana and Nigeria will lock horns twice in the space of four days with the winner qualifying for World Cup in Qatar. The first leg will be played on Friday, March 25 with the return leg on 29 March.
Source: editors.3news.com|Ghana
