Desailly declares interest in Ghana coaching post

The race for the vacant Ghana coaching post has been thrown wide open after Marcel Desailly finally declared interest in the job.

The former France captain TWICE turned down the opportunity to coach the Black Stars, claiming he was not ready for the hot seat.

But after spending some time to gain his coaching certificates in Europe the Ghana-born star says he is ready to take over from Milovan Rajevac.

“I am now ready to coach the Black Stars,” Desailly said during an interview on Viasat TV with ex-Ghana international Tony Baffoe on Wednesday night.

The 42-year-old former Chelsea defender faces stiff competition from nearly thirty European coaches who have already applied for the post only 24 after the post became officially vacant.

Desailly flatly turned down the chance of coaching the four-time African champions in 2005 before the job was handed to Serbian Ratomir Dujkovic. When Frenchman Claude Leroy quit the post after the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations he was approached again but he turned the opportunity down.

Coaching the Black Stars has become enticing for coaches after they excelled at the World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations with young players.

The future of the side is now looking bright so the inexperienced Desailly is unlikely to be given the job on a silver platter like the two previous occassions.

Former Chelsea defender Desailly was born in Ghana before later playing international football for France, but he has previously admitted a desire to one day coach the country of his birth.

There are now powerful voices within the Ghanaian FA saying his time has come, despite the 42-year-old having no management experience.

Desailly retired four years ago after a glorious playing career which included winning the World Cup in 1998 and the European Championship two years later. Despite being born in Ghana Desailly made 116 appearances for France.

His best days domestically came at AC Milan, where he won the Champions League and two Italian League titles before joining Chelsea in 1998.

Desailly was born Odenke Abbey in Accra but changed his name when his mother married the head of the French Consulate in the Ghanaian capital.

He moved to France as a four-year-old but has affectionate ties with his homeland and raised a smile among spectators when colourfully celebrating Ghana goals while working as a pundit for ITV at the World Cup this summer.

Rajevic will be a tough act to follow. The Serb joined the Black Stars in 2008 and led the team to runners-up in the Africa Cup of Nations this year before their best World Cup performance in South Africa.