A US- based Ghanaian college soccer player says Ghana's soccer authorities have to cast the talent- hunting net wide to include Ghanaians based in America. In this regard, the player Kobby Osei Wusu, has embarked on a one-man crusade to break new grounds by getting a call up to national duty..
His mission is to show respect for Ghanaian soccer players in America
The 19 year-old wants to score a historic first and send a strong message to Ghanaians in general and the FA in particular and become the first US -based Ghanaian to play for a national youth side. His aim is to change the negative attitude of Ghanaians towards American soccer which many regard as inferior and unattractive.
Even though the Ghana -US World Cup grudge match in Brazil belongs to history, Kobby is an example of the spin-offs.. He symbolizes how Ghana soccer has gained great respect and admiration and is planted deep inside the American soccer psychic.
The Ghana brand is visible expecially, on high school and college campuses where demand for skillful Ghanaian players has soared since Brazil 2014 galvanizing coaches into a desperate search for that delicacy called a Ghana midfielder or attacker, to add flavor to their team.
Thus, if you are identified as a Ghanaian, you are likely to get a broad smile followed by high-fives from your soccer-loving peers to certify your status as a potential game changer just arrived on campus. Indeed, every Ghanaian, is assumed to be a God-sent soccer jewel thanks to good advert of Ghana soccer at the Mundial by the Black Stars, despite the 1-2 loss to the Americans.
It is against this background that George Washington University won the toss out of many and , opened its doors widely to Koby Osei-Wusu, early this year as one of six recruits..The 170lb central midfielder is expected to utilize his deft touches and creativity to propel GWU to great heights during the current soccer calendar. Coach Craig Jones says "Koby comes to us locally from DeMatha, which has a strong tradition of winning championships, including last year's WCAC championship, and he is also a member of the Olney/Bethesda Soccer Club in the USSDA. He will be looking to add some attacking options and creativity to our midfield game and will be pressing for playing time."
The six-foot plus business administration student, is on a mission to accomplish a great feat in college soccer that will propel his career to the next level. He says college soccer is a stepping stone to fulfill his major dream of playing professional soccer and is detrmined to dribble his way into stardom and Ghanaians must watch out for him..
His mission is to argue a case for the call up of numerous US-based Ghanaian soccer talents into Ghana's youth soccer teams. These players he argues, have been underestimated and overlooked by Ghanaian soccer authorities because of the low esteem of American soccer in the eyes of Ghanaians. His position is that, the time for change of mindset is now and he sees himself as poster boy of that agenda.He asserts that there is the need for Ghana to cast the talent hunt net wide in this era of globalization of soccer.
Koby justifies his arguement by pointing to the fact that American soccer has vastly improved and cannot be treated with contempt anymore by Ghanaian authorities.He says Ghana needs to learn from the Americans who are recruiting and grooming talents from all over the world including Ghanaians like him, to build formidable national teams. It was this strategy that paid off in Brazil, with the defeat of Ghana.
He curses the day in the near future, when he wiould be compelled by circumstances beyond his control to play for USA against Ghana his motherland. He prays that day will never materialize.
There are a number of Ghanaians who sign paychecks in the Major League Soccer (MLS) but have not been invited to contend for the Ghana national team jerseys, all because the MLS is, deemed to be of low quality compared to Euro leagues and or African editions.It is this erroneous mindset of Ghanaians that Koby has set out to change. A justification of this point is that most of the USMNT players that beat Ghana, were plucked from the MLS
The Americans under the umbrella of the United States Soccer Development Association ( USSADA) are enticing young players like Kobby into their national teams and Ghana will rue the day it treated such players with contempt.
This explains why Koby is determined to utilize an opportunity to endear himself to Ghanaians, if he is invited to any of the Ghana national youth soccer teams to justify his inclusion. While that day will be a fulfilment of a personal ambition, he is committed to seizing the moment to create a veritable platform of recognition for other young Ghanaian players in the US. As he puts it, there are so many players in the diaspora ready to serve Ghana and not America.The Bowie, Maryland based Kobby is so proud of his Ghanaian roots that he displays his patriotism boldly to the discomfort of his American soccer hosts. Even when on duty at club or national level, he displays his Ghanaian heritage by wearing red, gold , green arm bands of Ghana national colors and this attracts criticisms from his coaches. But to Kobby, its Ghana or no other country. He is one of the targeted players on the list of the Americans , having been ranked among the best youth players in the country by various ranking institutions like the All Gazete First Team and media organizations like the Washington Post
He is unhappy that Ghanaian coaches ignore US-based national players despite the tremendouus strides that the Major League Soccer (MLS) has made over the years.To Koby, the time is ripe for total recognition of US soccer in the scheme of affairs in Ghana. He says Ghanaians need to get rid of the psychological impression that US soccer is inferior moreso college soccer. He states that soccer is making progress due to the inclusion of immigrant players from strong soccer cultures. H e says one should not necessaritly be playing in an European league before getting a shot at the national teams expecially when it is a known fact that, some of the Europe-based players do not get adequate playing time and have been reduced to warming the bench.
Kobby has eyes trained on the national Under 20 team Black Satellites and the Olympic team Black Metoers. Despite his age, he has some accomplishments to his name that have sent signals loud and clear that he is a player with vision and a mission.
The midfielder with brilliant ball control, and excellent dribbling and passing abilities, laced with speed and scoring skills, was a member of the 2011 DeMatha High School team that won the national soccer championship. He also played a key role at the Olney -Bethesda Soccer Club of the USSDA and was a member of the juveniles team of MLS side DC United.
Kobby says there is no turning back on his soccer ambition, which has been endorsed by his supportive parents, his soccer-playing father Prosper and Roberta Osei-Wusu.
The sky is the limit for Koby and all eyes will be on him if the Ghanaian soccer authorities break from tradition and score a first: by inviting an American-based teenager on a trailblazing mission into the national youth team.