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Black Stars head coach Chris Hughton has selected Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer to replace the injured Inaki Williams for Ghana’s upcoming Africa Cup of Nations qualifying match against Madagascar.
Williams, who was initially named in the 24-man squad for the June 18 qualifier, has been ruled out due to a knee injury.
In a statement, the 28-year-old Athletic Bilbao forward revealed he had been playing through knee pain but based on medical advice, he has decided to prioritise finding a solution to the injury and would be unavailable to join the Black Stars.
Williams expressed his commitment to the national team, stating he would be available if they deemed it appropriate to invite him”.
“Since a few weeks, I’m playing with pain in my right knee. I’ve decided to play until the end of the season but talking with the medical services, we’ve decided to stop and solve the problem to stay 100 per cent at the preseason.
This decision wasn’t easy to take because I won’t be able to stay with the national team during the next meeting.
“I want to say that I am fully committed and I will come back to the Black Stars if the coach deems it appropriate,” he said in the statement.
Williams was in action for Athletic Bilbao in their Spanish La Liga clash with Real Madrid at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu last Sunday.
Königsdörffer, who currently plays for SV Hamburg in the German Bundesliga II, is set to join the squad in Accra when they begin camping on June 12 in preparation for the qualifier.
Coach Hughton will have four forwards at his disposal including Skipper Andre Ayew, Jordan Ayew and Germany-based Kwasi Okyere Wriedt.
Königsdörffer has already made one appearance for Ghana as a late substitute in the team’s pre-World Cup friendly against Nicaragua at the Estadio Francisco Artes Carrasco in Lorca, Spain in September, 2022. Additionally, he was on the bench as an unused substitute during Ghana’s Nations Cup qualifiers against Angola in Kumasi and Luanda in March.
Having previously represented Spain and the Basque national team, Williams made a switch in nationality and has since made eight appearances for Ghana.
He made his international debut as a second-half substitute against Brazil in a pre-World Cup qualifier in Spain last September and featured in all of Ghana’s 2022 FIFA World Cup group matches in Qatar, as well as the team’s recent Nations Cup qualifiers against Angola.
Source: myghanadaily
