GHANA’S FA have officially ended their pursuit of Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah ahead of the 2022 World Cup.
The Gunners forward had previously announced his willingness to make the switch in an interview, which brought renewed interest from the Black Stars, but he has since remained hesitant to declare for the west African side.
Nketiah is the all-time record goalscorer for England’s under-21 side with 14 strikes in 12 games, but is yet to be called up to England’s senior side.
The decision from the Ghanaian FA was reported by ghanasoccernet.com and comes with just a month to go until the start of the tournament in Qatar.
But Nketiah is not the only Premier League talent to be of interest to Ghana, who have already sealed the future loyalty Mohammed Salisu and Tariq Lamptey, as well as Athletic Bilbao’s Inaki Williams.
Ghana had also been monitoring the future of Chelsea starlet Callum Hudson-Odoi.
However the Black Stars had hoped that Nketiah would make the switch to lead the line for them in winter, with Ajax youngster Mohammed Kudus and Crystal Palace’s Jordan Ayew now set to feature.
Nketiah had told The Beautiful Game Podcast in April: ‘My parents are both Ghanaian, so of course, it’s a possibility. I am open to both – playing for Ghana or England.
‘Like you said, I’ve played for the youth teams so naturally when I was obviously younger, they called me up to go play for them.
‘Being from Ghana, you are obviously happy they have qualified for the World Cup. I know players like [Thomas] Partey, I am happy for them as well. It’s always good to have that opportunity to potentially do that.’
Since signing a new long-term deal at the Emirates over the summer, the 23-year-old has once again struggled to nail down a starting spot in the side.
The Gunners then signed Gabriel Jesus from Manchester City, and the Brazilian’s brilliant start to life in north London have made him almost impossible to dislodge.
Mikel Arteta has been equally consistent in his selections of both Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli on the right and left flanks respectively, thus making it difficult for Nketiah to break into the side.
The striker has still managed two goals and an assist from his three Europa League starts, though he is yet to register in the Premier League.
