2 brothers, 2 teams, 2 contrasting experiences at Qatar 2022

DOHA: Joy for the Williams family of Spain on Wednesday at the World Cup. Then despair for the same Williams family, who are also of Ghana, on Thursday.

Williams brothers Iñaki and Nico have managed to mark both sides of their family’s heritage in a remarkable way at this World Cup in Qatar by playing for two different countries. They were both born in Spain but their parents are from Ghana.

Nico was part of the young Spain team that beat Costa Rica 7-0 on Wednesday in the tournament’s most compelling performance so far. He came on as a second-half substitute to make his World Cup debut in Spain’s record win at the tournament.

A day later, big brother Iñaki played his first World Cup game for Ghana, a 3-2 loss to Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal.

That meant a complicated 24 hours in the family home back in Spain with celebrations for 20-year-old Nico no doubt swiftly followed by commiserations for 28-year-old Iñaki. The same for the two brothers, who Ghana coach Otto Addo said both feel as Spanish as they do Ghanaian.

“I know that they both have a good strong relationship with their mother and their fatherland,” was how Addo put it.

Because of his love for his parents’ country, Iñaki’s integration into the Ghana team has been very easy, Addo added, even if he was born in Bilbao and raised in the Basque region.

Iñaki, a forward just like Nico, played the whole game for Ghana against Portugal and stood in the center circle at Stadium 974 in Doha at the end with his hands on his head and looking bitterly disappointed with the loss.

“Maybe for some it’s difficult to understand but I think it’s really possible to have two countries in your heart,” Addo said of Iñaki. “And surely he has Ghana in his heart from day one.