Ghana want French coach to replace Dossena

GHANA (goalnetwork) -- Ghana have asked the French government to provide a national coach to succeed Italian Giusseppe Dossena, whose contract will not be renewed at the end of this month.

A senior Ghana sports spokesman, after a meeting to decide Dossena's fate, said that the French embassy in Ghana has been contacted to recommend a replacement before the African Nations Cup qualifiers kick off in September.

The spokesman added that France are prepared to pay the salary of the new coach but the duration of his contract will be negotiated.

After considering an evaluation report on Dossena's performance, a panel including members of the Ghana Football Association and the sport ministry's advisory board decided on Monday not to extend his contract for another 12 months on a 12-4 vote.

The panel did not take into account the Black Stars' 5-0 win against Sierra Leone in a World Cup qualifier on July 9 which appeared to hand Dossena a lifeline.

Former national hero Abdul Karim Razak will take over from Dossena until a foreign coach is named. Razak was appointed as Dossena's assistant in April.

Dossena, 42, was appointed in August 1998 and was hailed as "the saviour" after an impressive run of results following Ghana's disastrous elimination from the first round of the Nations Cup in Burkina Faso.

The former Italy midfielder led the side to almost a dozen matches without defeat, a run which ended when a weakened Black Stars lost 2-0 in a friendly against Tunisia in Sfax last December.

Dossena has already been tipped as a possible successor to Trott Moloto as South Africa coach.