FA PRESIDENT KWESI NYANTAKYI INSISTS KEVIN PRINCE BOATEN IS INJURED AND CAN’T FEATURE FOR GHANA

President of The Ghana Football Association, Kwesi Nyantakyi has downplayed reports that AC Milan’s midfielder Kevin Prince Boaten is feigning injury in order not to join his colleagues in Ghana’s Nation’s Cup qualifier and international friendly against DR Congo and England respectively.

The German-born Ghanaian international pulled out of Sunday’s vital African Cup of Nations match in Brazzaville claiming he aggravated an ankle injury after his Club’s clash with Palermo last week.

A Ghana football website, Ghanasoccernet, reports that the Ghana international who featured for the Black Stars in the last World Cup in South Africa, might have faked his injury.

It quoted a statement from AC Milan’s website dated Wednesday 23 March, 2011, which shows that he has been released to join the Black Stars. However, Mr Nyantakyi in an interview with Xfm reporter, Abena Asiedua Tenkorang said the report on AC Milan’s website does not support the allegations of Kevin Prince Boaten not wanting to play.

He said the statement on AC Millan’s website is “just a statement on availability of players”.

According to him, Kevin Prince Boaten’s team, AC Milan has written to the FA informing it about an aggravated angle injury that the player had suffered, and that it would take about five to six days for him to start training. “So if you reconcile the two, the conclusion is that, he is available to play, however, he is injured and so cannot feature for the national team. And he is not the only one; so it is not a peculiar case with Kevin Prince Boaten. Meanwhile, Mr Nyantakyi is very upbeat about the impending match between Ghana and England.

Sounding very confident and optimistic, the man whose presidency saw the Black Stars first qualification to the World cup, said the game is not just an international friendly, but historic.

“This is the first time the two are meeting at that level. England introduced football to Ghana, being their colonial subjects, the English would be looking forward to teach us lessons in football, we also would be looking forward to teaching them lessons. But apart from that, it also carries a lot of diplomatic and international relations implications for the two countries. Ghana and England already have good relationship, and so this match would be seen as a focal point around which the relationship could be deepened further”.

Kwesi Nyantakyi would not say how the score line should read at the final blast of the referees whistle but said, “the worst should be a draw to keep the morale going”.