Kickoff (Cape Town)
11 August 2008
Ghana's quartet in the French top flight got their seasons off to a slow start as Ligue 1 got underway at the weekend.
Four Ghanaian players are seeking to write their names in glory, but the opening weekend was a tale of cameos and mere observation by the four members who are all expected to play a part as Ghana seeks a place at the 2010 World Cup.
The most high profile of the four, stand-in Black Stars captain John Mensah, was not even in the Lyon side that got their quest for an 8th straight League title off to a winning start by thrashing Toulouse 3-0.
The 8.5-million Euro acquisition from Stade Rennes has not fully recovered from an injury he picked up in pre-season, but expects to be fit for Lyon's next game away to Lorient.
Asamoah Gyan, however, did make his competitive debut for Stade Rennes in their thrilling 4-4 draw against Olympic Marseille, but the Black Stars striker was pulled off after the first half with the home side trailing by 1-3.
It was not the best of starts by the former Liberty Professionals man, but he is confident he will eventually come good.
Ghana's two other players will be hoping that as the weeks develop, they will also grow in influence at their various clubs.
Dede Ayew was not in the Marseille squad that travelled to Rennes, but Moussa Narry made his competitive debut for Auxerre as they beat Nantes 2-1 at home on Saturday.
The former Etoile du Sahel player was an 86th minute substitute for the French side. Not quite the start he would have envisaged.
Another League that got underway at the weekend was the Scottish Premier League, where Laryea Kingston is hoping he can help Hearts reach at least the Uefa Cup.
That ambition got off to a good start with Hearts winning an exciting game against Motherwell 3-2 at Tynecastle. Laryea played 77 minutes of that game.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 Kickoff. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
