'Don't be emotional about Otto Addo' - Austria coach Rangnick tells Ghanaians

Ralf Rangnick, head coach of Austria, has urged Ghanaians to be patient with Otto Addo despite the Black Stars’ humiliating 5-1 defeat to his side.

Rangnick pointed out that Otto Addo led Ghana to qualify for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, demonstrating his quality, and stressed that fans should not overrate the outcome of a single friendly match.

The former Manchester United interim manager noted that results in friendlies ahead of major tournaments often differ from performances during the actual competition.

Match Report: Austria humiliate Ghana 5-1 in Vienna

“Ghana qualified for the World Cup with Otto Addo as manager. So the most important thing is that they qualified. At least we don’t overrate this game and this result. I remember that we played Turkey two years ago before the Euros. We beat them 6-1 here, but then we played against Turkey again in the round of 16 at the Euros and we lost 2-1, unfortunately. But luckily for Turkey,” he said during the post-match press conference.

The Austria manager also stressed that Otto Addo has proven to be a top coach and argued that the result could have been similar under a different manager, urging Ghanaians to exercise restraint despite the poor performance.

“So, I wouldn’t rate that too much. Let’s wait and see how they play against Germany on Tuesday, and then it might be a completely different story again. Don’t be so emotional about your coach. Otto is a good one, and I don’t think that with another manager it would have been a different result,” Rangnick added.

Otto Addo now faces the daunting task of turning things around in the second friendly against Germany, where a decent result or performance will be crucial to easing the pressure ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Ghana will face Germany in their second friendly on Monday, March 30, 2026.

SB/MA

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