Portuguese To Coach Black Stars

Ghana is set to hire Portuguese Mariano Barreto as the next manager of the country's senior national football team as replacement for the departed Ralf Zumdick , according to newspaper reports.

The State-owned Graphic Sports claimed in it's front page story on Tuesday that the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ghana Football Association were in the final stages of negotiations with the 46-year old on handling Ghana.

Ghana Football Association Chairman Ben Koufie told BBC Sports Online that the FA and the Youth and Sports Ministry were indeed in negotiations for a new coach even though he said the FA would only make a statement after a deal has been finalised.

Ghana were last managed by German Ralf Zumdick who rejected an offer for a contract extension after the expiration of his three-month contract on December 31.

Koufie says the GFA's priority is to ensure that a replacment is found as soon as possible for Zumdick.

Barreto according to the Graphic Sports report is the replacement that Koufie has found. The newspaper quotes the Portuguese who watched Ghana lose 0-1 in the Olympic qualifier to Algeria last Friday as saying he is prepared to handle Ghana because he "loves new challenges" and fancies he could take "Ghana's game to another level."

Barreto is currently assistant manager at Russian champions Locomotive Moscow and also previously worked at Sporting Lisbon in Portugal and German side Borussia Dortmund as assistant to Ottmar Hitzfield in 1997. He

If the deal goes through, Barreto would become Ghana's fourth foreign coach in barely two years.