Ghana’s coaching dilemma- A country without faith?

Recently, Sir Cecil Jones Attuquayefio, an outspoken soccer coach, was quoted as saying “Ghanaians were not ready for a local coach to train the national soccer team- the Black Stars”.

Attuquayefio gave a basketful of reasons.

Days after that, I read another story which confirmed Sir Jones’ fears - the Ghana Football Association (GFA) was in touch with one Coach Toppmoller of Germany as part of the search to replace Ghana’s former coach -Claude Le Roy, also of France, who could not stand criticisms from a nation which is so passionate about the world’s most popular sport.

A week later, I watched the Black Stars play Australia on May 23, 2008, under the guidance of an all-Ghanaian technical bench spearheaded by Sellas Tetteh, and Akwasi Appiah - who himself was a former captain of the national soccer team until the1992 African Cup of Nations held in Senegal.

If there was any difference I saw in the Black Stars, it was their style of play, which was rather very cohesive, and technically composed, the best performance that I have ever seen after the 2006 World Cup in Germany, considering some of the relatively unknown players who featured in that match.

The 1-0 score line in favor of Australia should not deceive Ghanaians of the team’s performance, as Laryea Kingston and a "new discovery" - Agyemang Badu, showed to the world what a Ghanaian can accomplish when given the opportunity.

Ghanaians should be guided by the fact that even "Almighty Brazil" does not win all matches. Recently, Brazil was humbled by Venezuela 2-0. And on June 8, 2008, the USA drew with Argentina. Argentina is ranked number one in the world.

Soccer is about team work, and the Black Stars gave meaning to that throughout their encounter with the Socceroos of Australia. Whoever decided to include Agyeman Badu of local side-Berekum Arsenals in the Black Stars line-up must be an excellent scout the Ghana Football Association (GFA) must trust, the individual I believe, is also a Ghanaian who “believes in Ghana and her people".

My playing days with the Bishop O’Rourke School soccer team in Takoradi taught me, that the skillful nature of players, coupled with team work can “make or unmake” an excellent coach, and our head teacher , Joe De-berg, proved that to us.

The usual label on Ghanaian coaches has been their alleged inability to “control and discipline” foreign- based Ghanaian players, as well as receiving gifts from them.

But this way of thinking cannot continue to the end of the world as people do change. That mentality should change and replaced with trust in the capacity of the Ghanaian to rob shoulders with any world-class coach. That is the means through which people develop.

In reality, foreign coaches do not hold any magic wand. Personally, I believe the GFA equates quality with salary- the bigger the pay cheque, the higher the results? If this is the assumption, then GFA should pay local coaches well to deliver the much-needed results which every Ghanaian soccer fan craves for.

It is disturbing, how Kwesi Nyantakyie, the Ghana Football Association boss was recently quoted as saying Coach Sellas Tetteh is “not ripe enough to coach the Black Stars”, using “Licensing” and achievements to buttress his point.

Does Kwesi Nyantakyie have a License in football administration? And yet he was given the opportunity to excel in that capacity?

What has been Coach Toppmoller’s achievement? Recently, a football advisor at a German third division team, and sacked as national team coach of Georgia for non-performance? Former Leverkusen coach without a Bundesliga title?

The news being circulated is that, Tony Baffoe, former Ghana international, and Ghana Football Association International Liaison is the brain behind the recruitment of Toppmoller. If this is true, then the reasons must be made known to Ghanaians, rather than questioning Coach Sellas Tetteh’s competence.

I am not against any foreign coach, as “foreign” is fast eroding in the global soccer lexicon, but I must also admit, that under Coach Sellas Tetteh, the Black Stars are playing excellent soccer, and this is what should guide Ghanaians when stating their case for his “ascension to the throne” – Coach of the Black Stars.

If as a nation we cannot find solutions to “perceived” problems with our local coaches, while we continue to look beyond our borders for coaches, preferably a white/foreign coach, it is indicative of a failing football administrative system that must also be replaced.

It implies that Kwasi Nyatakyie & Co. must also leave; after all they look for solutions not from within their own country, but beyond it.

Just imagine how a local coach guiding the Black Stars in preparation for their match against Lesotho in South Africa, and an FA President- Kwesi Nyantakyie, sits in Accra, Ghana, saying, the same coach is not fit for the job. What a paradox?

Comparative and cross-administration training are not bad arrangements as new techniques/skills can be copied and transformed to suit local needs, but following an entirely "African phenomenon" may not help the Ghanaian situation.

Alhaji Grunsah, Chief Executive Officer of King Faisal Babies Football Club in Kumasi, Ghana, may not have all the educational degrees and certificates Kwasi Nyantakyie and Co. have, but I do admire his managerial skills in football at the club level. He is one administrator these “big names with big degrees” can learn from.

A month ago when he described the GFA as “incompetent”, I found it harsh. But who should blame him? From my perspective, a better headline should have been “A Stereotypical GFA which does not believe in Ghanaians”.

The debate is on, but I do believe Sellas Tetteh, Akwasi Appiah, and the present technical team of the Black Stars can be re-oriented, upgraded with some efficient management and technical skills to help them put their capabilities into good use, and for the benefit of Ghana soccer.

Let’s start believing in Ghanaians, let's offer them the opportunities to prove themselves as some of our shortfalls just define our humanity, and that is same in every corner of the world- from Australia to Zimbabwe.

The argument being that, if we can pay white/ or foreign coaches good enough, then it is equally important that we look into the salary structure of a local coach for the senior soccer team and attach the results component. After all, Claude Le Roy could not help Ghana win CAN 2008, and yet he was offered a contract extension which he refused to sign.

Can the GFA explain whether a local coach can be given a contract extension for failing to win the African Cup of Nations?

The fact remains, that unless we begin to develop interest in local coaches, trusting that they can change and make things work better, Ghana soccer would remain static, and the big paychecks would always go to foreign coaches who “come and go in two years” to enjoy accrued savings from the Ghana Football Association.

The popular notion is that foreign coaches use the Black Stars bench to “advertise” themselves. For this reason, this is the time to “advertise” Ghanaian coaches, illuminating the call, that “the Blackman is also capable of defining the soccer credentials of his country”. If I am wrong on this, guess who is the new coach of Zambia? A French national and former assistant coach/physical trainer of the Black Stars during CAN 2008.

Governments have been warned by FIFA, the world’s soccer controlling body, not to interfere in local football administration, but it would not be "suicidal" if the government of Ghana”whispers" into the ears of the Ghana Football Association supremo – “Would it be a good idea to consider a Ghanaian as the next head coach of the Black Stars?” I believe a suggestion of this kind would not attract FIFA’s attention.

Two heads, they say, are often better than one.

Views expressed by the author(s) do not necessarily reflect those of GhanaHomePage.