There’s been no shortage of Ghanaian football icons who have strutted their stuff in the English Premier League and/or the Champions League.

But a talented duo is hoping to replicate the achievements of the likes of Michael Essien by accomplishing both.

Despite their fledgling years, Tariq Lamptey and Mohammed Kudus are well-established EPL stars with Brighton and West Ham respectively, and the next step in their careers – and the development of their clubs – is to qualify for the Champions League, which is arguably the pinnacle of the sport in Europe.

And with the competition expanding to 36 teams for the 2024/25 season, there’s likely to be an extra place reserved in it for an English club – so can Brighton or West Ham take advantage?

Seagulls Flying High


As confirmed by Bemybet, football is the most popular sport in Ghana – with the English Premier League, and clubs like Manchester United, Arsenal (the home of Ghanaian midfielder Thomas Partey), and Essien’s old home Chelsea, having a very strong following in the country.

Sports betting is legal in Ghana, and plenty of early-season wagers would have come in for Brighton given their excellent start to the campaign – they won five of their opening six games to top the EPL table.

The Seagulls, a nickname given to the club due to its coastal location, have since fallen away in form, but their games are highly entertaining – their first 14 matches of the 2023/24 campaign witnessed a huge 56 goals – and they remain in contention for Champions League qualification.

A spate of injuries has left Lamptey frustrated on the sidelines, with the right-back restricted to just 172 minutes of action in Brighton’s first 14 games of the season. But even in that limited timeframe, the 23-year-old has delivered two assists in as many Premier League games – a reminder of his precocious talent.

Lamptey will be desperate to add to his four caps for the Black Stars at AFCON 2024, and if he can prove his fitness for Brighton before the January 14 opener against Cape Verde, you wouldn’t bet against him doing exactly that.

Coming of Age


As for Kudus, his 2023/24 campaign could not have got off to a better start.

He started it as an Ajax player in the Netherlands before West Ham swooped in with a $48 million bid for the winger.

The lure of moving to London and playing in the Premier League proved too much to ignore, and so Kudus would soon pull on the claret-and-blue jersey of the Hammers.

And what a successful switch it has proven to be – particularly in November, where Kudus scored against Arsenal and Brentford and assisted a goal against Burnley in a man-of-the-match performance.

His first game in December saw the 23-year-old once again find the net, this time in a 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace, and also be crowned MOTM for the second successive appearance, confirming that he has settled rather nicely into Premier League life.

If Ghana are to add a fifth AFCON title to their collection – and their first since 1982 – then Kudus will surely prove to be a pivotal figure.