Equip technical department to help national teams - Osam

Mr Fred Osam Duodu, Technical Director of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) Tuesday said the technical directorate must be equipped with modern telecommunications gadgets to monitor players and ensure that those invited to the national teams are in good shape to deliver their best.

Speaking to the GNA Sports, Mr Duodu said it is unfortunate that the Technical directorate does not receive the recognition it deserves from the GFA but rather, it is perceived as an insignificant unit of football administration.

He said he does not understand why a computer could not be installed in this office to store data on all national team players and furnish the coaches with such information before players are invited to camp.

The Technical Director said he had on countless occasions requested for a computer from the GFA but his request was turned down without any explanation.

Mr Duodu said being a holder of UEFA coaches license and a member of the British Coaches Association, he had instituted a monitoring scheme on Ghanaian players in Europe, using his friends and colleagues in the European Associations.

He said he could not, however keep, such information on files and in notebooks in this era of information technology.

He said the best way to keep data on our overseas legion is by "a computer in my office which would be available to all coaches of the national teams to acquaint themselves with the current fitness and form of the players before they are invited."

Mr Duodo said the technical department has been relegated to such irrelevant level that national team coaches, who should by rule, send match reports to it, do not do so.

On the chances of the Black Stars in the World Cup qualifiers, the technical director said if the local stars are blended with the Europe based stars who are doing well in their clubs and thoroughly psyched up, they could win the rest of their matches and qualify.

He said he has been talking to some of the foreign-based stars who called him for an explanation on why they were snubbed in the match against the Super Eagles of Nigeria.

"I talk to them as a father to soothe their pains and disappointment over their exclusion from the team for that match and make them understand that they are still relevant to our World Cup and Nations Cup campaigns."