Ghana player who swapped shirts with Luis Suarez after his infamous 2010 World Cup handball reveals his wife is demanding he GETS RID of it - as their country prepare for revenge today
- Derek Boateng traded shirts with Luis Suarez years after his infamous handball
- The former Ghana midfielder's wife insisted he should ditch the Barcelona shirt
- Ghana will take on Suarez's Uruguay in Friday's match after 2010 heartbreak
- Find more of Sportsmail's stories from the 2022 World Cup on the live blog
- Click here for the latest World Cup 2022 news, fixtures, live action and results
Former Ghana midfielder Derek Boateng swapped shirts with Luis Suarez years after his infamous handball against the country at the 2010 World Cup.
The 39-year-old Boateng, who played 47 matches for Ghana between 2001 and 2013, said he forgives Suarez for his actions 12 years ago - claiming he would do the same thing if the roles were reversed.
The two sides face each other again on Friday in a 'grudge match' in the final group stage games of the World Cup in Qatar.
![Derek Boateng revealed he swapped shirts with Luis Suarez years after his infamous handball](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/12/02/13/65170345-11494901-image-m-58_1669986455516.jpg)
Derek Boateng revealed he swapped shirts with Luis Suarez years after his infamous handball
![Suarez denied Ghana in the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup, becoming a hate figure](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/12/02/13/65172655-11494901-image-a-56_1669986392182.jpg)
Suarez denied Ghana in the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup, becoming a hate figure
Boateng was on the bench when the controversial Uruguayan stopped Ghana from scoring in Johannesburg, during a quarter-final clash which the African side went on to lose. It made Suarez a hate figure for many in the country.
Boateng was not among those. Years later, when Boateng's Eibar faced Barcelona. Boateng saw his opportunity to get the Uruguayan's club shirt. Suarez spent six years at Barcelona between 2014 and 2020. The swap was not a decision supported by his wife.
Boateng told Sky Sports: 'After the game I changed my shirt with him, so I brought the shirt home and I put it in the laundry and my wife saw it.
![Boateng, an unused sub then, felt no grudge towards Suarez, coming up against him for Eibar](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/12/02/13/65172651-11494901-image-a-55_1669986383058.jpg)
Boateng, an unused sub then, felt no grudge towards Suarez, coming up against him for Eibar
![The controversial Uruguayan figure spent six years at Barcelona between 2014 and 2020](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/12/02/12/65170769-11494901-image-a-47_1669983658232.jpg)
The controversial Uruguayan figure spent six years at Barcelona between 2014 and 2020
'I was sitting in the sitting room watching the TV and she came in front of me and asked me, 'So, of all the players you were playing against you could not see anybody to change the shirt with, only Suarez?' I said, 'Come on, this is nothing, it is a football match.'
'I don't have anything personal against him. A lot of people in Ghana still hold that grudge but for me, no. I don't hold anything against him.'
Some Ghanaians hold more than a 'grudge', going so far as to claim he is the 'devil'. Boateng's wife is among them. Boateng said 'She asked me to take it out of the house.'
![Boateng revealed his wife, right, asked him to get Suarez's Barcelona shirt out of their house](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/12/02/13/65172649-11494901-image-a-54_1669986342390.jpg)
Boateng revealed his wife, right, asked him to get Suarez's Barcelona shirt out of their house
A draw might be enough for Ghana to make it to the knockout stage in Qatar, but Uruguay must win. It promises to be an intense battle - and Suarez is once again a figure to look out for.
The only member of Ghana's team that remains from those events from 2010 is captain Andre Ayew. As for the rest, Boateng said: 'I know they are going to play their normal game and show they can win the game.
![Boateng hopes the current Ghana squad do not think about revenge in Friday's group match](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/12/02/13/65172661-11494901-image-a-57_1669986442962.jpg)
Boateng hopes the current Ghana squad do not think about revenge in Friday's group match
![Captain Andre Ayew is the only member of Ghana's 2022 squad who featured 12 years ago](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2022/12/02/13/65172731-11494901-image-a-59_1669986698883.jpg)
Captain Andre Ayew is the only member of Ghana's 2022 squad who featured 12 years ago
'I hope we don't think about revenge. I hope we just think about the game. We have an advantage over Uruguay. They have to win, so they will come hard at us. They will use all their experience so we need to be brave and just move the ball and stay compact.'
Ghana's players may have to follow the instructions of manager Otto Addo if they want to secure the result that will see them progress.
Boateng, however, had no plans to follow his wife's orders over Suarez's Barcelona gift. 'I hid the shirt. I have just put it on the wall of my house now. In the games room. She doesn't go in there.'
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2017/08/02/636x90_facebook_ad_sport.png)
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