How Kwasi Appiah used Kufuor to get first Black Stars job

After being hinted by his ‘contacts’ at the FA of a role in the technical team of the Black Stars, he hurriedly put together a CV and dispatched it to a key figure at the FA with hopes of becoming a coach of the team he played and won a trophy with.

Days rolled into weeks and into months with no feedback from the GFA about a receipt of the document and a possible interview.

It was there and then that his conscience prompted him about President Kufuor whom he crossed parts with during his days as a player for Kumasi Asante Kotoko. Kufuor was a Kotoko board member then.

If his resume was not impressive enough to have the FA look his way, a phone call from the President of the land should be enough to get him the FA’s attention.

He re-established contact with the president, relayed his mission statement to him and the president got in touch with then GFA President Kwesi Nyantakyi who quickly arranged a phone interview with him.

And this is how he got his first job as assistant coach of the Black Stars.

This disclosure which gives credence to rumours that Kwasi Appiah’s decade-plus stint with the Black Stars was down to his affiliations with key political figures is contained in his book titled “Leaders Don’t Have To Yell’.

“After Ghana’s appearance in the 2008 African Cup of Nations, I found out that there was a vacant position on the Black Stars because the coach at that time, Claude Le Roy, had sacked his assistant. I made a call to a few people I knew at the Ghana Football Association (GFA) office to inquire about the vacancy and to apply,” Appiah revealed.

“I presented my CV to the GFA representative. The person accepted my CV and that was the end of it. Like they say in Ghana, they sat on my CV. They just held on to it and did not invite me for an interview. Neither did they inform me that I was going to be considered for the job, even though I was duly qualified.

“At that time, Mr. John Agyekum Kuffuor was the president. I had a good relationship with him from my days with Kumasi Asante Kotoko where he had served for a while on their board of directors. I contacted the Office of the Ghana President to request an introduction to the GFA leaders. It was my hope that the President’s influence could get someone to take a look at my CV and let me know what was going on with my application.

“Thankfully, that influence from the President (JA Kuffuor) led to a phone interview, and then I was invited to come for an in-person interview in Accra. I flew from London to Accra for the interview. I was offered an assistant coaching job with a salary of $3,000.

Appiah said he was unhappy with the offer and made it to known to Kufour who asked him to focus on the ultimate which was the head coach role.

The salary was extremely low compared to how much they were paying the foreign coaches.

“I remember President Kuffuor reminding me not to focus so much on the money but to rather get there, excel at the job and see what happens next.

“It is possible that nothing would have happened to my application without the President (John Kuffuor’s) influence,” he narrated.