Not many people get second chances in life, but for James Kwasi Appiah he has been privilege enough to be given another shot in his coaching career. After guiding the Black Stars to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil, he was unceremoniously sacked after the team’s scandal-ridden campaign.
But for some twist of fate he was re-appointed in May 2017 to engineer Ghana’s 2019 AFCON qualification and also win the country’s first AFCON title in over three decade.
That arduous task has started with one victory and one defeat after two games. The recent defeat to Kenya has come with harsh criticism with many questioning his competence and choice of players but the former Kotoko and Black Stars captain says there is no cause of alarm yet.
Kwasi Appiah in this interview justifies his penchant for calling new players into the Black Stars, stating that “I want to build a team for the future”.
One criticism that has usually been levelled against the former Kotoko left-back is his perceived lack of guts and control of the Black Stars players. Kwasi Appiah rejects the criticism, explaining that he loves to give people the room operate but once they abuse it he cuts the rope on them.
Coach Kwasi Appiah downplays the significance of the Kenya defeat on the Stars’ chances of qualifying for the 2019 AFCON. He makes a bold prediction that Ghana will qualify for the tournament with a game to spare.
He has been tasked to win the 2019 AFCON but Kwesi Appiah says he is under no pressure to win the tournament, expressing belief in the current crop of players who make up the Black Stars.
The former Al Khartoum boss shares how his wife and kids who live in the United Kingdom deal with the numerous verbal attacks and sometimes threats that come his way.
Kwasi Appiah also explains the reason behind his foundation which is to seek the welfare of retired footballers. He urged active footballers to take a cue from the plights of some of the aged footballers.
Watch the entire interview here
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