By: Jason De Vos, CBC
With a little over a week to go until the World Cup, the 32 teams involved in the tournament have finalized their 23-man rosters.
Some players have missed out on the opportunity of a lifetime because they have been deemed surplus to requirements, while others have missed out through injury.
German defender Heiko Westerman was the latest player to suffer such a fate, having been ruled out of the tournament with a broken foot. He joins German captain Michael Ballack on the sidelines, and their absence will surely have a detrimental effect on the three-time World Cup champions.
One of the most disappointing absences is Ghanaian midfielder Michael Essien.
Injured while training with Ghana for the African Cup of Nations back in January, Essien has failed to recover and will miss out on the chance to lead his country in South Africa.
What makes it even more frustrating for Essien is that his injury was initially thought to be relatively minor. A torn meniscus in his left knee was expected to keep him out of action for four to six weeks, a diagnosis that proved to be wide of the mark.
Surely Essien's injury spells the end of Ghana's chances in South Africa, doesn't it? I don't think so.
Deep team
Ghana is not a one-man team, and its showing in the African Cup of Nations proved that. Without Essien in the lineup Ghana still managed to make it to the final, where it fell to Egypt 1-0.
Milovan Rajevac, Ghana's Serbian coach, will have more than enough talent in midfield to compensate for the absence of Essien. Players like Sulley Muntari, Stephen Appiah, Kwadwo Asamoah and Anthony Annan could all be relied upon to play significant roles in the middle of the park, as could youngster Andre Ayew.
Ayew is the son of former Ghana star Abedi Pele, and has shown in recent years that he is capable of following in his father's footsteps. He captained Ghana to the U-20 World Cup title in 2009, the first world title in Ghana's history, and he also took part in his country's second place finish at the African Cup of Nations.
The loss of Essien might just be the making of Ayew, if Rajevac chooses to utilize the youngster.
Had Essien been available for the World Cup, it is likely that Ayew's role would have been less significant. After all, Essien is probably the world's pre-eminent defensive midfielder, and would have been a lock to play every game for Ghana.
Runs out of room
If you consider the experience of Muntari and Appiah, and the likelihood of their involvement, you see that Rajevac quickly runs out of room in his team for an up-and-coming, yet ultimately unproven, Ayew.
As it stands, Essien's misfortune could be Ayew's opportunity.
On one hand, I am disappointed that we won't be seeing the power and precision of Michael Essien in South Africa. He is one of the most complete midfielders in the game, and being a former defender, I have always had an appreciation for world-class defensive midfielders.
It is a position that gets little glory, but every successful team must have someone in the Essien mould who sits in front of the back four, denying space and time for the opposition to create scoring opportunities.
On the other hand, Essien's injury might be the springboard to greater things for Andre Ayew. His chances of playing significant minutes in South Africa increased the moment Essien was ruled out of the tournament, and it is up to the youngster to grab that opportunity with both hands and make the most of it.
Many people have labelled Group G as the Group of Death, because one of Brazil, Portugal or the Ivory Coast will fail to advance to the knockout stage. But Group D, containing Germany, Ghana, Serbia and Australia, is equally, if not more difficult.
The injuries to star players like Ballack and Essien make the group even tighter, and the Serbs and Aussies will both provide stern opposition. The group is primed to see a breakout performance, and with the World Cup on African soil for the first time, perhaps it will come from the African team in Group D.
Do you agree with Jason's thoughts about the replacement for Essien? Please let your views be known in the box below: