England – Ghana special: Can the Black Stars inflict a first ever African defeat on the Three Lions?

FIFA World Cup 1990 : Stephen Tataw (Cameroon) vs Gary Lineker (England) – (Gettyimages)

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Oh, what might have been. Had England decided to perform in South Africa they would have faced Ghana in the second round instead of Germany. Tonight is the rematch of what never was and as with all friendlies there are lots of betting opportunities.

Fabio Capello has made a raft of changes for the match after the dispatching of Wales on Saturday. He’s continued to play ‘pass the armband’ with Gareth Barry taking charge at Wembley this evening. Perhaps more of a shocker is that the Manchester City midfielder was told in advance he was getting the gig!

England have never lost against African opposition, winning 11 and drawing five. The most memorable game remains their thrilling win over Cameroon in Italia ’90 (right). They’ve won all five of the home friendlies against African sides.

Ghana will pose a far greater threat than Wales did and, with several of their stars playing in the Premier League, should guarantee an entertaining game. Sunderland stars Asamoah Gyan and John Mensah have spoken of the significance of playing against England. William Hill have opened a book on any of Ghana’s Premier League based stars to score. At 2.50 the odds are inviting too.

* Any Premier League player to score for Ghana @ 2.50 (William Hill)

As with all friendly matches, goals and lots of changes look the likeliest of scenarios. Under Don Fabio only one of England’s friendly games at home has gone under 2.5 goals, which was the 2-0 defeat of the United States early in his tenure. The other eight games all went over the 2.5 goal radar.

* Over 2.5 goals @ 2.10 (William Hill)

There’s an argument for suggesting that tonight’s game means more to Ghana than England. Never have these sides met before and Ghana would relish being the first African side to beat their former colonial masters.

You can get Ghana on the double chance @ 1.91. Asamoah Gyan is 3.0 to score during the 90 minutes with England’s Andy Carroll 2.20 to be on the mark.

Expert Eye
Craig Perry, William Hill Sportswriter

“I expect an open game as Ghana have an attacking style and that should lead to an entertaining encounter with plenty of goalmouth action. Richard Kingson is an erratic performer in goal for the visitors and if he starts the game then there is always the chance of a howler from a corner or set-piece. Therefore I would back both teams to score @ 1.95 and over 3.5 goals @ 4.0.”

Match Odds: England 1.73, Draw 3.50, Ghana 5.0 (William Hill)

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