The Football World Cup Site

The coach of Ghana Milovan Rajevacs first name on his team sheet is Black Stars defender Samuel Inkoom. Inkoom emphasises the name given to the latest crop of Ghanaian youngsters aptly nicknamed ‘young and wild ones.’ Inkoom came to prominence during the U-20 World Cup 2009 in Egypt. During the tournament Ghana reached the final to stun the Brazilian team to lift the World Cup.

After the talented Ghanaian made the switch to Europe by joining FC Basel and is a regular in the team which sits second in the Swiss Super League.  Of his form in the Swiss league Inkoom states “I’ve been very pleased with my performances so far, I think I’ve been playing well up to now and I’ve slotted into the team nicely.”

Although when he initially arrived in Switzerland things never went that smoothly as he had to adapt to Swiss driving. In Ghana driving is virtually un regulated,  Inkroom said of the transition “The biggest problem for me to begin with was driving. In Ghana, you can pretty much do whatever you want. Here in Switzerland it’s a lot harder and you have to pay attention to a lot of things at once. I was caught by a speed camera as soon as I got here and had to pay a fine, but now I’m a good driver,”

In addition to the lifestyle changes the FC Basle are also much stricter on discipline with players expected to arrive on time. “At FC Basel, discipline ranks high on the agenda. Everything is very well organised, and you always have to be on time. That wasn’t always the case in Ghana,” said the Sekondi-Takoradi born full-back.

What reason did a Ghanaian defender have to move to FC Basle?   ”Europe is a beautiful place. The training facilities at Basel are excellent and I feel completely at home here. Everything’s going really well for me at the moment. There were a few clubs across Europe interested in me, but I decided to sign for Basel because they have brought on a few talented young players over the years. I can learn for my future here whilst giving my all for the team. Aside from that, Switzerland is a great country.” Said Inkoom.

Inkoom is likely to finish runner up in a league for a second year running as he finished second in the Ghanaian league last season. Of these seasons Swiss campaign Inkoom states “It’s difficult to say where we’re going to finish at the end of the season, but one thing is clear: I believe in the team. If we continue to work hard and take our chance when it comes, we’ll win the league and I’ll be able to realise my dream of playing in the Champions League,”

It is not down to luck that this 20 year old Ghanaian defender has been successful so far. His ability to defend the ball is excellent and is the reason he has a 2009 African Youth Championship and U-20 World Cup title under his belt.

With the 2010 World Cup fast approaching the Basel No22 is aiming to cause an upset at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa as part of the Ghanaian senior national squad. “I’m certain that we can go all the way in South Africa. We have the necessary quality and have a great chance of winning the World Cup. It’s not going to be easy by any stretch, but we’re in it to win it,” he said with youthful exuberance.