Former captain of the Black Stars, Stephen Appiah, has revealed that the Ghanaian national team felt incomplete during the 2006 and 2010 World Cups due to the absence of Laryea Kingston.
Kingston, a key player who played a crucial role in the team’s qualification, was unfortunately suspended and missed Ghana’s opening game in the 2006 tournament.
However, despite his significant contributions, he was surprisingly excluded from the final squad for Ghana’s historic first-ever World Cup appearance.
Appiah, speaking on Joy Sports, attributed the decision to naivety, suggesting that the team could have benefited from Kingston’s presence, similar to how England relied on Wayne Rooney during the same period.
“We were naive [in 2006] about the rules… England took Rooney to the World Cup despite him being on suspension.
“If we had that knowledge in 2006, we would have pleaded with the GFA to add Laryea to the team because it was two games,” he told Joy Sports’ Prime Take.
Laryea yet again missed out on Ghana’s final squad for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa after he was drooped from the provisional squad.
“I am [pained] because Laryea was one of the players that when I look back, even though we played at the World Cup in 2006 and 2010, it looks as if we were not complete.
The former Juventus midfielder believes Kingston deserved and earned the right to play at the World Cup due to the sacrifices he made for the team.
“Not because of his football but he should have been there because of his sacrifices. He was part of those who sacrificed. To date, I still feel bad.”
Laryea Kingston disclosed that he was pained by the decisions to drop him for the two edition but that of the 2010 World Cup left him devastated.
“The 2010 World Cup was the one that finished me. Immediately after the 2006 World Cup, I joined the team again and I played all the games in the qualifies the friendly games and I was out again,” he said on MX24.
He added, “I was not on suspension and I don’t know what happened. A day before they moved to South Africa, I was asked to go home. I am still searching for answers and criteria they used to take me out.”