CK Akonnor misses out on Guinea coaching post

Ghana legend Charles Kwabla Akonnor has missed out on coaching the Guinea national team as a Frenchman has been handed the vacant post, Ghanasoccernet.com can exclusively reveal.

This comes after French coach Didier Six was handed the post on Friday and tasked to steer the side to greatness with football betting pundits tipping the side for greatness.

landed the job after attending the interview on Thursday and notified of the decision to give him the job thanks to his extensive experience in Africa.

The decision by the Guinea Football Federation to hand the to Six also confirms that some news reports in Ghana that Akonnor has been handed as false.

Akonnor, 45, was among 17 coaches shortlisted for the job last week after the post became vacant after the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations tournament in Egypt.

The former Asante Kotoko gaffer was named in the shortlist for those to be considered but the Sylli National looked to have concentrated on French-speaking coaches.

Guinea is a Francophone country as such French-speaking coaches were given the preference in the selection process which has gone against Akonnor.

Akonnor was part of 87 candidates that submitted their CV for the job.

He was part of the five candidates selected out of the lot for the interview which was held on Thursday as they presented their project to the Federation.

Didier Six has had stints with African sides such as Togo and Mauritius

The ex-Wolfsburg player was seeking to join the West African nation as a replacement for Paul Put who was sacked after Guinea were eliminated from 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt in the round of 16 stages.

Akonnor has vast experience in coaching with his stint at top Ghana Premier League clubs namely Hearts of Oak, Dreams FC, Ashanti Gold SC, Asante Kotoko and relegated club Sekondi Eleven Wise.

He has been without a club after parting ways with Asante Kotoko a few months ago after guiding them to win the GFA Normalization Committee Special Competition.

Guinea will begin their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers campaign with Mali in November this year.

Belgian coach Paul Put was sacked as coach of Guinea after the team's elimination from the Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt at the Round of 16.

The country's football federation, Feguifoot, said in a statement that it was due to "poor results".

It also added that there had been an "atmosphere of mistrust created and maintained by the coach between the players and the technical staff."

Put has denied allegations about his handling of the team following reports of problems in local media.

Guinea was knocked out of the Nations Cup 3-0 by Algeria in the last 16.

The Syli Nationale had made it past the group stage as one of the best third-places teams following a draw with Madagascar, a loss to Nigeria and a win over Burundi.

Put had been in charge of Guinea since March 2018 and helped them qualify for the Nations Cup finals as they finished top of their group, unbeaten and ahead of Ivory Coast.