The recent nationality switches of Tariq Lamptey and Inaki Williams have not caused European powerhouse nations – England and Germany to desist from capping European-born players of Ghanaian descent.
During the latest FIFA international break, as many as 10 new young players have been capped by Italy, Germany, Ireland, England, the Netherlands, and several other nations.
Just as it has been the norm and practice over the last 20 years, these top nations scout players from the production mills of Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Inter Milan, Hamburg SV, and several other top clubs to build the foundations of their youth systems.
In times past, Germany capped David Odonkor and Gerald Asamoah at the senior level with both players playing in the FIFA World Cup for the country while Italy profited from the use of Mario Balotelli whose parents are from Ghana.
The list of players is endless however, the most accomplished of these players is Marcel Desailly who won several top trophies with France.
Ghana assistant manager George Boateng is one of such players. Boateng was born in Nkawkaw – an Eastern regional town but moved to the Netherlands at an early stage of his life and ended up playing for the Netherlands.
Below is a list of players with Ghanaian heritage who played for European nations during the latest international break.
- Joel Agyekum (Hamburg SV) – Germany U18
- Josh Acheampong (Derby County) – England U17
- Samuel Amo-Ameyaw (Southampton) – England U17
- Samuel Rak-Sakyi (Chelsea) – England U17
- Kobbie Mainoo – (Manchester United) – England U17
- Joshua Quarshie (Hoffenheim) – Germany U19
- Ernest Poku (AZ Alkmaar) – Netherlands
- Forson Omari (Manchester United) – England U19
- Darko Gyabi (Leeds United) – England U19
- Justin Kumi (Sassuolo) – Italy U19
- Enoch Owusu (Inter Milan) – Italy U18
- James Abankwah (Udinese) – Ireland U19
- Nico Williams (Athletic Club) – Spain
- Brian Brobbey (Netherlands) – Netherlands
Recently players like Cody Gakpo and Brian Brobbey have committed themselves to the Orange nation while Danny Welbeck turned down an opportunity to play for the Black Stars to stick with England.
The Ghana FA however have managed to convince Brighton defender Tariq Lamptey, a promising defender who was highly rated by the English system, to play for Ghana and he made his debut against Brazil last Friday. Inaki Williams, Stephan Ambrosius, Elisha Owusu, and several others have recently committed their international futures to Ghana.
It was expected that the trend could cause some of the European nations to think twice about handling further call-ups to players of such nature.
However, examples from the latest international break show there is no stopping these countries.
