World Cup call so surreal – Semenyo
Bristol City forward ‘never imagined’ he would be playing in the global showpiece
ANTOINE Semenyo still has to pinch himself at his meteoric rise to the World Cup finals. When France triumphed in Russia four years ago, the Bristol City striker had just finished a loan spell with Bath City in the sixth tier, and on the final day of that season, he was handed his Robins debut, coming off the bench as a substitute in a defeat against Sheffield United.
Fast forward four years and 22-year-old Semenyo’s journey reached another major milestone this week when he was named among Otto Addo’s 26-man squad heading to Qatar. He is the only current Bristol City player at the tournament in the Middle East.
Just as soon as the World Cup is mentioned, Semenyo produces a beaming grin. His happiness and pride are infectious as he describes the moment he learned of his call-up to play on the biggest stage of all.
“I got a number from Ghana, but I wasn’t sure and I was sceptical about picking it up,” Semenyo, right, said.
“The assistant coach said I had been selected. It felt so surreal, I couldn’t believe what he was saying.
I thought it was a fake number at one stage. When he told me I was so excited, I was so happy. It’s all the hard work that has gone into it.
“You don’t get so many memories like this, it’s so surreal I am talking about going to the World Cup. I never imagined getting this far.”
Semenyo’s journey to Qatar began at South Gloucestershire and Stroud College when he worked with former Forest Green and Leeds boss Dave Hockaday. The college’s partnership with City allowed the club to offer the then 17-year-old a two-year deal
after being alerted to his potential. Loans at Bath, Newport County and Sunderland followed until Semenyo became an established member of the City first-team during the 2020-21 campaign, which saw Nigel Pearson replace Dean Holden as boss.
A long-term injury knee injury threatened to disrupt his progress at the beginning of last season, but he returned at Christmas to transform City’s attack. His form then earned him his debut for Ghana against Madagascar.
Semenyo said: “I can’t describe the feeling, I saw my mum and dad in the crowd smiling. My uncles and aunties saw me on TV and it felt so surreal.
“I can’t wait to get out there again. The family will be out there for sure, 100 per cent. I’m trying to get a few of them out there, that is in the pipeline.”
His international debut was marred by a shin injury picked up following his second cap against Brazil that ruled him out of preseason before returning, and scoring, in the Carabao Cup victory over Wycombe in August.
“It’s been a long journey,” Semenyo said. “I was speaking with friends from home recently and saying the journey from college to here has been so crazy.
“You’ve got to work hard, be resilient and you have to graft and it gets you to these places, so I am happy. The injuries have been tough, but I’ve massively prepared myself to work hard to make sure I come back better and stronger.
“I study my game to be the best I can be, I have done enough to get where I am now, so I have to keep going.”
With Portugal, South Korea and a bitter reunion against Uruguay, Semenyo is under no illusions about the task in hand.
Twelve years ago, Ghana became just the third African side to reach the knockout stages. That ended in quarter-final heartbreak when Asamoah Gyan missed a last-gasp penalty after Luis Suarez’s handball on the line.
Ghana’s squad is not exactly full of star-studded names. Arsenal’s Thomas Partey is perhaps the most notable but they have quality in Brighton’s Tariq Lamptey, the Ayew brothers and Athletico Bilbao’s Inaki Williams.
“We’ve got a lot of players who have played in the Premier League,” Semenyo said. “You can see where the quality is and it makes you want to work harder when you’re with these players. I want to be playing, I want to be involved.”