Asked in the mixed zone at Toronto Stadium whether he wants more than the role of impact substitute for the Black Stars, Brandon Thomas-Asante of Coventry City gave an honest answer that reflects how he has spent much of his career fighting to start games.
"I want to start every game, but in my career, you know, that's not how football is. You have to be ready for any occasion. And today my job was to try and impact it from the bench, and I'm happy that I could contribute in some way."
Since making his debut for Ghana in 2024, the striker has only started one game and has mostly been used as a substitute. In the pre-World Cup friendly against Wales, Thomas-Asante once again made an impact from the bench as the team's performance improved drastically once he came on.
It's almost as if at the international level, Thomas-Asante has become Ghana’s archetypal game-changing forward.
He demonstrated that on Wednesday evening, when he came on in the second half for Kamaldeen Sulemana with the score still 0-0, the 27-year-old immediately gave Ghana the directness and physical presence they had lacked all evening.
He stretched the Panama back line, won fouls in dangerous areas, and, deep into stoppage time, produced the run and pass that decided the match.
After collecting possession from Antoine Semenyo, he skipped past a sliding challenge and drove into the box. With the Panama defence collapsing back towards goal, he had a half-chance to shoot but instead chose to pass it across the six-yard box for Caleb Yirenkyi to tap home the 95th-minute winner.
"In all honesty, you know, as an attacker, when you're a game changer, when you're in that sort of position, your first thought is, can I? Your first thought is, 'Can I score?' And then if it's in a position where you think that you can't, you look all right, who's in a better position? And I think that's what I did."
He admitted that a goal of his own would have been the cherry on top, but he was not going to dress up the brief.
"Yeah, I mean, I just wanted to do what I did, really. I would have probably liked a goal as well, but the main thing was the win and my style of play. I'm very fortunate that a lot of the time in my career, even if I'm on the bench, there's an opportunity to come and impact the game."
He was equally quick to push credit outwards, particularly to the teammates who kept Panama at bay in the first half before he was sent on. Lawrence Ati Zigi’s early save, the aerial work of Jerome Opoku and Jonas Adjetey, had all kept the scoreline level long enough for the bench to swing the night.
"But it's about their team performance because to go to that point at 0-0 defending solidly, having a few chances, you know, that's from what the team did before I came on. So credit to them and to Caleb for the goal."
That decision to scan and find the better option to slide the ball to Yirenkyi rather than back himself, turned the 20-year-old into a record-breaker.
At 20 years and 153 days, the FC Nordsjaelland midfielder became the second-youngest Ghanaian ever to score at a World Cup, and his goal at 94 minutes and four seconds is now the latest the Black Stars have ever found the net at the tournament, surpassing Asamoah Gyan’s 92:38 strike against the United States at South Africa 2010.
Thomas-Asante, who has watched the young midfielder closely through Ghana’s pre-tournament camp, said the rest of European football would soon be doing the same.
"And Caleb, he's a young player, but he's already shown that he can turn up and not only provide defensive cover and support, but going forward, he's such a talent. So I'm going to, you know, I'm going to have to have an eye out for him after the tournament because I'm sure he's due a big move."
Ghana next face an England side that opened with a 4-2 win over Croatia in Dallas on Wednesday, with Harry Kane already among the goals. Thomas-Asante asked about the Three Lions, allowed himself a small smile.
"It's been the most covered, and a lot of people have been having their eyes on it. I feel like we can do something, so we'll have to see."
The Black Stars are back at their base camp in Rhode Island and have had a recovery session as they intensify preparations ahead of the game against England on June 23rd.
