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This latest news is a horrifying one for the Germans who are reportedly struggling to find a solution which will cover Michael Ballack’s absence from the team. In truth, did Kevin Prince Boateng intentionally hit the Chelsea midfielder at the benefit of his professional career and of Ghana during the World Cup?
Explanations Behind This Thought
CAN 2010 silver medalists Ghana will face Euro 2008 runners-up Germany in the group stages of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Ghana are poised to make the most of their battles against Serbia and Australia while the Germans analytically look to be the biggest threat against the Black Stars’ hope of going beyond the first round. But without the services of their influential midfielder Michael Ballack, Germany’s play and mentality could seriously be affected.
Obviously, the Ghanaians will have a greater opportunity to upset Group D’s top seeds then and thus qualify into the Last 16 with fewer difficulties. Now the title of this article only suggests whether the entire Ghanaian team is behind Saturday’s alarming incident involving Ballack and Boateng. As things stand, there is absolutely no proof confirming this idea. However, as long as the GFA (Ghana’s Football Association) don’t issue a public statement condemning Kevin Prince Boateng’s unprofessional tackle which has cost Michael Ballack a place at the 2010 World Cup, such a rumor will always remain likely to fill the atmosphere.
Reasons Behind Kevin Prince Boateng’s Brutal Act
Firstly, readers will have to be reminded about Kevin Prince Boateng’s origins. The 23-year-old is an attacking midfielder born from a Ghanaian father and a German mother. The former Hertha Berlin lad played for Germany’s U-21 but then he turned down the option of representing Germany at the senior level. He rather forced his way to hold a Ghanaian passport and to therefore be eligible to feature in the Black Stars’ 2010 World Cup squad.
Boateng’s nationality decision was something which came much to the fury of German supporters. The player, who prefers to be known as Kevin Prince Boateng in honor of his father Prince, is very much attached to Ghana. “The Ghetto Kid”, as he calls himself, once said about one of the thirteen tattoos on his body:
“Here, you see Africa and Ghana from my father.”
Kevin Prince Boateng publically expressed his relief at winning the right to represent Ghana in South Africa a few weeks ago. The powerful midfielder looks set to do all that it takes to experience a wonderful adventure as a Black Stars player. Now if it that will mean ‘to weaken Ghana’s strongest opponent Germany’, why wouldn’t he do it? Moreover, Michael Ballack is believed to be Kevin Prince Boateng’s long time foe.
In a recent statement, Kevin Prince Boateng’s father gave his thought about his son’s horrible tackle on Michael Ballack. The 56-year-old man explained:
“It upsets me a lot, but you have to look at the whole story. [In 2006] Kevin had just scored his first goal for Hertha [Berlin]. Then, they played against Bayern Munich. He had an argument with Ballack. Ballack told him: ‘You’ve scored one goal, now you think you are the best!’
“Kevin has never forgotten that. Unfortunately, Kevin is not very diplomatic.”
This statement needs not to be analyzed to understand the supposed plot behind Kevin’s unforgivable tackle on Germany’s Michael Ballack. The 23-year-old is quickly turning into hate figure in Germany following this incident. It seems like he is following the path of Cristiano Ronaldo, who became a hate figure in England and eventually all over the world following his involvement in Wayne Rooney’s red card against Portugal during the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
No one will ever know the truth behind Kevin Prince Boateng’s brutal foul on Michael Ballack. In an apology to the German captain, Kevin said:
“I am sorry, there was no intent to harm Ballack. I was late and hit him with full force. The tackle looks very stupid.”
To German fans, Kevin’s obvious apology will sound like the Ghanaian is purely playing pretending. Questions upon his reckless challenge on Ballack therefore remain: was it premeditated for one or many specific purposes? Why didn’t he receive a red card as he should have but escaped with only a yellow? More questions can follow these ones…
Well, what is certain is that it will kill German fans to see Kevin Prince Boateng shining in a heroic manner against Joachim Lowe’s side and during Ghana’s entire 2010 World Cup campaign. In such a case, they’ll definitely all feel that Kevin bought his success through an intentional tackle and at the price of Michael Ballack’s ankle.
(Read this related article: 2010 World Cup: Why Australia Could Be Favored By Ghana)
