World Cup 2022: Profile of Denis Odoi

Denis Odoi known as the Professor in football circles has been included in Ghana's final squad for the 2022 World Cup which will be held in Qatar.

Qatar will host the World Cup from November 20 until December 18, 2022. After the tournament in South Korea and Japan in 2002, this will be the second World Cup completely hosted in Asia and the first World Cup to ever be held in the Arab world.

Furthermore, the tournament is planned to be the last with a 32-team field; for the tournament in the United States, Mexico, and Canada in 2026, the field is planned to grow to 48 teams.

Odoi was born in Leuven, Belgium, and started playing football at the age of five. He later joined K. Stade Leuven and played for them for five years.

Odoi rose through the ranks at Oud-Heverlee Leuven and spent two years playing for the reserve squad. After that, he was promoted to the first squad, and on April 28, 2007, against Royal Antwerp, he made his Oud-Heverlee Leuven debut. He started the game and played for 80 minutes before being replaced, and the club won 1-0.

Odoi signed a three-year contract with Sint-Truiden in July 2009 after departing Oud-Heverlee Leuven.

In the season opener against Standard Liège, Odoi made his Sint-Truiden debut and played the entire game.

On April 29, 2011, it was revealed that Odoi had signed a four-year deal with Anderlecht for the rumored sum of 1.5 million euros.

Odoi began the season opener for Anderlecht against his former team, Oud-Heverlee Leuven, where he made his debut for the club. However, he was sent off in the 33rd minute for a professional foul, and the team went on to lose 2-1.

Odoi moved on to play for Lokeren and Fulham, he currently plays for Club Brugge.

He changed his nationality to play for Ghana in 2022 and made his debut against Nigeria in a 0-0 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying match on March 25, 2022.