Sowah, Lamptey and Hamid named in Black Stars final squad

Medeama SC’s top sharp shooter Jonathan Sowah is leading the contingent from the Ghana Premier League in the Black Stars. The Yellow and Mauve marksman is joined by clubmate Abdul Fatawu Hamid while Asante Kotoko’s Richmond Lamptey is rewarded for his impressive outings for the Porcupine Warriors.

Ghana coach Chris Hughton named the final 27-man squad during a conference in Accra on Monday. While the initial squad included Felix Kyei, Derrick Fordjour and Abdulai Nurudeen from Medeama, only Jonathan Sowah and Hamid made it to the final ensemble.

John Duku Antwi and Godfred Kingsley Atuahene from Dreams FC as well as Emmanuel Antwi and Benjamin Asare from Great Olympics all missed out. Razak Simpson of Nations FC has also been omitted while Young Africans’ Wontah Hafiz Konkoni could not also make it.

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Richard Ofori from Orlando Pirates is among the three goalkeepers selected for the tournament. Ofori returned recently to the squad after missing the major parts of last year and 2022 due to injury. His absence saw the emergence of Jojo Wollacott who led the nation to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar only to miss out through injury.

However, both are now back in the team and will face stiff opposition from Lawrence Ati-Zigi who discharged himself creditably well during the World Cup but has not been able to command the trust of Ghanaians since then.