On Friday, Benjamin Asare became the oldest Hearts of Oak player to make his debut for Ghana at thirty years. His appearance against Chad was also the first for a Hears of Oak goalkeeper for the Black Stars, since 2005.

Many, including journalists who attended the team's open training sessions, were surprised by Otto Addo’s selection. Not because he was poor. He was not. In fact, he was the most popular player, drawing the applause of fans with every kick of the ball, and every dive to save one.

Typically, local-based players appear shy and are not as competitive enough when invited to the national team. Asare was different. He was out to take the opportunity handed him, and gobble it up for all of its worth.

Benjamin Asare was Ghana's first choice goalkeeper against Chad on Friday

Yet, there were still doubts about Otto Addo’s appreciation of him and whether or not he would throw him into such a game. In the end, Otto Addo confirmed what everyone had seen when he told journalists that "they all did well in training. Benjamin [Asare] did a bit better [ahead of Ati-Zigi and Wollacott] and that is why we decided to play him."

Even after Otto Addo’s assuring explanation, there are still those who feel Asare did not deserve his place. That, his twelve clean sheets in the Ghana Premier League, along with a ton of eye-catching saves, should not compare with the exploits of Lawrence Ati-Zigi and Joseph Wollacott.

There is a reason Friday’s decision was met with surprise and not outrage; the two goalkeepers who were dropped have had more than enough opportunities over the years but have failed to lock down a place in the team.

Lawrence Ati-Zigi made his Black Stars debut in a friendly match against Iceland on June 7, 2018, starting and playing the full 90 minutes in a 2-2 draw.

Lawrence Ati-Zigi, one of Ghana's goal-keeping options

Since then, he has started in twenty-two out of seventy-seven Black Stars matches. In percentage terms, his 23 appearances would be just 29.8%.

The other prominent feature for Ghana since then, has been Joseph Wollacott, who made his debut in a 3-1 win against Zimbabwe on October 9, 2021, during the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification.

The Crawley Town goalkeeper has since made eleven other appearances out of 62 matches that Ghana has played since then. In percentage terms, that is just 19.35% of the 62 matches played.

Wollacott arrived in the national team three years and four months after Ati-Zigi. Before Wollacott’s arrival, Ati-Zigi did not have any other-worldly contender for the number one spot. Yet, he failed to make it his own. Wollacott has followed a similar trajectory in the (nearly) five years that he has been in the national team.  

Jojo Wollacott has been in Ghana colors since October 2021

Lawrence Ati Zigi is into his eight year in the national team, and Wollacott is into his fifth, yet, neither goalkeeper has done enough to lock down a place in the team across five different coaches (Kwesi Appiah, C.K. Akonnor, Milovan Rajevac, Chris Hughton and now Otto Addo.)

Despite significant exposure - Zigi has been to three AFCON'S (2019,2022, 2023) and a World Cup (2022), Wollacott has been to two AFCON's (2021, 2023) and a World Cup (2022), there is little evidence of the experience it comes with.

Both have difficulties in asserting command in set piece situations and general defensive organization.

So even before Asare, the two goalkeepers who were dropped for him, were struggling to get consistent minutes and it is not difficult to understand why.

At some point, he has to make a choice of who his preferred goalkeeper is and back him to the hilt. If Asare does not suffer a similar illness as Sammy Adjei did in Kinshasa in the World Cup Qualifier in 2005, there would be no need to change him.