Ghana coach Ratomir Dujkovic has called on Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien to deliver the goods in Thursday's crucial Group E clash with the United States.

A win would send the Black Stars through to the knock-out stages, while a draw could suffice if Italy beat the Czech Republic at the same time.

Dujkovic believes it is time for Essien to get his name on the scoresheet.

"He has been as reliable as always and he plays a very important role for the Black Stars," the Ghana boss stated.

"I believe he will continue (his good form) and I expect him to start scoring goals from now on."

US coach Bruce Arena has urged his players to shut down the Chelsea star, and Manchester City midfielder Claudio Reyna admitted he was impressed by the rising talents of the 25-year-old.

"He is very impressive and very powerful - a modern-type midfielder at the highest level," Reyna said.

"He can defend and attack. He is good on both sides of the ball. He is strong and covers a lot of ground."

Reyna also hailed Essien's influence on the Black Stars.

"He seems to do more for Ghana as far as his responsibility is concerned," the 32-year-old added. "He is their main man and for Chelsea that seems to be a little bit different."

Ghana have been the surprise outfit of this summer's showpiece, with Dujkovic revealing how he steered them to their first-ever World Cup finals.

"When I took over (in December 2004) I found a very strong team with a lot of talent," he explained.

"We found we had a chance if we changed something, especially as far as the discipline is concerned - the overall discipline of the players. That was the key to a successful qualification campaign. I tried to discipline their brains."

Asked how he had inflicted some traditional European strictness into the African squad, he replied: "I just talked to them and gave examples.

"If one player comes late for lunch or breakfast, it will also affect his performance in training. He must be there in time when the bus leaves for training camp - otherwise he cannot be disciplined on the ground either and that is always negative."

Meanwhile, laid-back Arena has predicted an entertaining clash.

"It will be a great match for the fans," said Arena. "Because those are two teams with a lot of self-confidence.

"We certainly need to score and defend better than we did in the first two matches.

"We are very confident. If we end up with four points and not qualifying, that's life."