Gyan opens up on Boateng-2014 WC sacking

by Staff Reporter

Saturday Oct 07, 2023. 11:00

Ex-Ghana star Kevin-Prince Boateng was sent home and suspended from the Black Stars squad for disciplinary reasons during the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals.

It was only hours before the West African giants’ final group match against Portugal at the Estádio Nacional Mané Garrincha in Brazil’s third-most populous city, Brasília on 26 June 2014.

Then-Ghana captain Asamoah Gyan has now responded to a tweet criticizing him for not supporting Boateng and the former pointed out that the team had supported the German-born teammate behind the scenes.

However, then-Black Stars head coach Appiah was tired of Boateng who had repeatedly disrespected him prior to the incident at the team’s training ground.

“Kevin’s case happened at the training grounds between him and the coach in front of everybody,” Gyan wrote on his official X account.

“So that was the coach’s decision because the coach felt Kevin disrespected him several times with his choice of words.

“One thing Kevin didn’t know is we defended him behind the scenes several times. But on that day, the coach couldn’t take it anymore and reacted.

“That was the first time I saw Kwesi Appiah get angry and react. So Kevin’s case was the coach’s call. That’s the truth as the captain of the team.”

Gyan and Boateng are both now retired from professional football having played 109 games and 15 matches respectively for Ghana.