World Cup 2022: Williams and Semenyo, two dual nationals tasked with filling Gyan's boots
Semenyo and Williams to fill Asamoah's boots. Since Gyan's retirement, Ghana have struggled to find a new striker.
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Asamoah Gyan, the former Ghana striker, is Africa's top scorer at the World Cup with 6 goals across 3 World Cup campaigns. For their 4th World Cup, the Black Stars would love to find another prolific goalscorer among newcomers Iñaki Williams and Antoine Semenyo to support André Ayew.
After missing the 2018 World Cup and going out of the Africa Cup of Nations in the group stage, Ghana secured their ticket to Qatar by beating Nigeria. That qualification helped the Ghanaian Football Federation persuade Iñaki Williams to represent the country of his heritage.
Inaki Williams or Antoine Semenyo, the key choice
In the Ghana squad since September, Iñaki Williams has fans hoping they have found a new Gyan. Mobile, powerful and unselfish, the Bilbao striker can bring variety to Ghana's attacking play. After 3 games, the 28-year-old centre-forward has yet to score for the national team. He says he is grateful to Ghana for taking him to Qatar, and he will be under pressure in a group featuring Portugal and Uruguay, a prospect that brings back bad memories.
Meanwhile, Antoine Semenyo opened his account against Switzerland in Ghana's last outing before the World Cup. Younger and less well known than Williams, Semenyo has not started a single game since joining the squad in June.
But the player, born in England in 2000, has qualities to offer despite his lack of experience at the top level. A target man who is good at flick-ons and clinical in front of goal, Semenyo can give the Black Stars a fresh lift.
With 3 goals and 2 assists this season, compared with 8 and 12 last season in the Championship, the Bristol forward has lost his place since the injury he picked up on his first Ghana appearance. Is it time to show it was worth the gamble? The answer comes in Qatar, with a first game against a tough opponent: Portugal, this Wednesday at 16:00 GMT. So far, no African side has scored a single goal in this tournament.