All eyes will be on Luis Suarez when Ghana and Uruguay face off on Friday afternoon at the World Cup.
The above-mentioned teams will vie for the remaining spot in the knockout phase from Group H and hope South Korea do not cause an upset by beating Portugal, who have already booked their place in the last-16 of the competition.
As well as being a decisive fixture in the context of the competition, this fixture also presents a chance for revenge in the case of Ghana. Still scarred by what occurred when they played Uruguay at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, the Black Stars will be hoping to right the wrongs of this evening in Johannesburg.
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Indeed, Suarez was called 'the devil himself' in a press conference on Thursday as the former Liverpool striker refused to apologise for the incident that still causes anger in Ghana to this day.
With the teams tied at 1-1 as penalties loomed in their quarter-final clash, Suarez took matters into his own hands to prevent his country crashing out in the final minutes of extra time. Heading for the back of the net, Dominic Adiyiah saw his headed effort beaten off the goalline by the ex-Liverpool striker to leave Ghana furious. Shown a red card for his actions, Suarez could only watch on from the sidelines as the opposition stepped up to take a pressure penalty.
Visibly upset as he left the field of play, Suarez was then pictured punching the air just moments later after watching Asamoah Gyan strike the crossbar from 12-yards. It was at this moment the striker a pantomime villain in the eyes of the millions around the world tuning in to watch as Ghana's hopes of becoming the first African nation to reach the semi-final in the competition's history were ended following a subsequent penalty shootout triumph for Uruguay.
Rushing onto the pitch to join in with the celebrations of La Celeste as their spot in the last four was confirmed, El Pistolero's antics left a sour taste due to a lack of sportsmanship on show. His reputation worsened just months later after biting Otman Bakkal of PSV when still at Ajax and arrived at Anfield in January 2011 under a cloud. Further incidents that occurred during his time at Liverpool did little to enhance his reputation, though it's safe to say the people of Ghana are unlikely to ever view the 35-year-old in a positive light.
Andre Ayew the only remaining member of 2010 Ghana squad as the countries prepare to go head-to-head for a place in the Round of 16 in Qatar, though those in action will require no added motivation to get over the line. The country's president Nana Akufo-Addo has already made his stance clear: a sense of unfinished business is clear. “We’ve had to wait for 12 years to get revenge against Uruguay," he said. "We assure them that this time the hand of Suarez will not save them against the Black Stars of Ghana. They are going down!”
John Pantsil was one player involved on the night and has no doubt in his mind who is responsible for Ghana's exit from the World Cup 12 years ago. "We were cheated," he told BBC Sport. "To clear the ball from the line with your hand - it's supposed to be a goal. After the penalty was missed you came out and then celebrated like you're on top of the world by hurting people. At least be a professional, feel the pain. Just go to your dressing room and celebrate and then nobody will see it."
Pantsil's team-mate Hans Sarpei adopted a similar tone, stating: "I can't forgive him because it was not an accident. He knows what he has done. We were crying and you see someone who has cheated us is celebrating. How can I forgive him? Never. Never ever."
The man who missed the penalty that would have sealed the Black Stars' spot in the semis, Asamoah Gyan, was surprisingly sympathetic to his opposite number and admitted he would have acted in the same manner as Suarez.
"He's a hero in his country. He stopped the ball with his hand, he stopped Ghana from qualifying. He had to to qualify for the semi-finals. That's football," he told L'Equipe in 2014. "On one side, there's a hero, on the other, a ruined man. That's the story of sport. In the end, he was right. In my country, people hate him, but I'm a footballer and I know if I had been in his place, I would have done the same. After that, he could take a lap of honour and I was left to cry. It was up to me to write history, and I didn't do it."
During an interview with Peace FM in April of this year, however, Gyan conceded he once contemplated assaulting the four-time La Liga winner. “I remember a game between Sunderland and Liverpool. We were playing at home on that day and all players were shaking hands. I wanted to hit him [Suarez] because people had said things that stuck in my mind," he revealed. "I was naïve at that time but when I thought about it later, I realised that I had to let it go because I would have done the same thing if I was in his position.”
Suarez's thoughts on the situation only rubbed salt into Ghanaian wounds, having insisted his handball was simply a 'sacrifice' for his team - nothing more, nothing less. “Gyan is the one who missed the penalty, but everyone said that I had done something terrible or that I had been selfish. But I had stopped a goal with my hand because I had no choice," said the Salto-born forward.
"In fact, it wasn’t even a case of making a choice; it was a reaction. Thanks to the handball, Uruguay were in the semi-finals. More than having cheated, I felt as if I had made a sacrifice. It certainly wasn’t selfish. It was giving everything for my country and for my team. That’s the way they saw it in Uruguay.”
The rematch between Ghana and Uruguay is tantalisingly close and only thing is certain as this game approaches - you wouldn't bet against Suarez having the final say, for better or worse.
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