The Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has launched a scathing attack on the credentials and competence of Black Stars coach James Kwasi Appiah after Ghana’s disastrous campaign at the recently ended Africa Cup of Nations.
In what is turning out to be Ghana’s most expensive yet unproductive AFCON campaign, where the Black Stars crashed out of the Round of 16 stage- the worst in the country’s history in over a decade, it has been revealed that the state spent over $4.5m.
The abysmal performance of the team has since been laid squarely at the doorstep of the coach Kwasi Appiah by many followers of the game.
Speaking in Parliament earlier this week, Okudzeto Ablakwa expressed the need for the government to recruit a fresh and more competent coach to handle the Black Stars.
“It is not that the coach is a Ghanaian coach that is why he is being criticized. I think that in Ghana we have many other Ghanaian coaches. I would like to see many more Ghanaian coaches. If there can be a better Ghanaian coach to bring competition to help us achieve our dreams, why not. I do not think that in the whole of Ghana it’s only Kwasi Appiah who can take us to the promise land”.
Kwasi Appiah was offered a new deal by the Normalization Committee following the expiration of his initial two-year contract. The new contract, according to reports will end in December.
But addressing Parliament on Wednesday, Sports Minister Isaac Asiamah stated that his outfit is awaiting a comprehensive report from the NC upon which a definite pronouncement will be made about Kwasi Appiah’s future.
“The Ministry has called for a comprehensive report from the Normalization Committee after which a study and determination of what went wrong will be made and recommendations will be made for the way forward of Ghana football in particular and sports in particular”.
The Sports Minister hinted of a possible axing of the coach when he said “The head coach and captain of the team have intimated severally that they’ve had the best of preparations ever in recent times. Indeed all their demands were met and onus lied on the team to deliver”.
