Ghana are sweating over the fitness of key striker Asamoah Gyan ahead of their African Nations Cup semifinal with Equatorial Guinea in Malabo on Thursday.
Gyan was injured in the closing stages of Sunday's 3-0 quarterfinal victory over Guinea after what appeared to be a deliberate boot into the midriff by opposition goalkeeper Naby Yattara.
The Ghana camp are so incensed by the incident, with the fear of losing Gyan evident, that they have called on the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to impose a one-year ban on the player.
Gyan travelled from Malabo to Mongomo, where the only MRI scanner in the small country is located, to have the damage to his stomach assessed.
"We are awaiting the results before a decision can be made on whether he plays (in Malabo)," said team spokesman Ibrahim Sannie.
Gyan has been in the wars this tournament, he missed the opening match against Senegal after contracting a mild bout of malaria.
The loss of Gyan would be a blow to the side, adding to further negativity around the team that has left Grant having to defend his every action and even that of some of his players.
Jordon Ayew is the latest to come under scrutiny from the Ghanaian press pack, who seem to find little positive to write about despite their improving side's canter to the semifinals.
Christian Atsu will again be key for them providing extreme pace and the ability to conjure goals and assists from seemingly innocuous positions.
But Grant will also be pleased with the form of Andre Ayew and John Boye, for who he received some criticism over his selection but has now been vindicated.
Grant also acknowledged that Equatorial Guinea had received two soft penalties in as many matches to help them to the semifinals, but says refereeing issues are out of his control.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
"If the referee will do two, three (mistakes), I cannot control (it). I can control only our performance," he said.
"I think the referees until now -- except (for) one or two games -- have been good. And I am sure everyone will be watching this and everybody who needs to take care of this will do their job." With nothing to lose having already exceeded expectations, Equatorial Guinea coach Esteban Becker says they are not just thinking about making the final, but also winning the competition.
"It will be difficult to win the Cup of Nations, but I pray to still win it," he said.
"We like the challenge, we are hungry to win. We are a young team, a team for the future. We have at least 10 top young players, but we want to take it one step at a time.
"All the same, I'm very happy for a small country like Equatorial Guinea, even though we lined up many young players who are playing their football in the lower leagues in Europe.
"It's incredible, I'm proud of what we have so far achieved."
They will again rely on the attacking talents of Portuguese-based forward Javier Balboa, who has emerged as one of the stars of the competition.
