Why Semenyo, Kudus, others struggle when they play for Ghana - Laryea Kingston explains

Legendary Ghanaian footballer Laryea Kingston has cited the pitch at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium as a determining factor in the defeat suffered by the Black Stars in the game against Angola on Thursday, September 5, 2024.

A late goal from Angola’s Felicio Milson handed the Black Stars their first defeat at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in over two decades.

The goal was made possible by a poor clearance from Ghanaian center-back Abdul Mumin, who could not effectively deal with a cross.

Reacting to the game, Laryea Kingston mentioned that the state of the pitch contributed significantly to the outcome of the match.

Laryea Kingston said that with Ghana setting out to build up play from the back and not using long balls, the terrible state of the pitch affected ball progression.

The former Black Stars winger noted that the likes of Mohammed Kudus and Antoine Semenyo are unable to replicate their club form for the national team because of the bad pitches in the country.

“Football has changed. Previously, we could launch long balls and get results, but now the game has changed. Now teams and coaches have advanced; teams are able to deal with long balls. People might say that we previously got results from playing on these same bad pitches, but we should know the style of play is different. The more you put the ball on the ground, the more advantage you have as a team.

“If you look at the goal we conceded, the ball was not on the ground. They whipped in a cross from the wide area, and I have no doubt that if the ball was on the ground, Mumin would have stood and cleared the ball.

"Look at Kudus at West Ham and Semenyo at Bournemouth. They perform fantastically for their clubs, but when they come here, they struggle because of the poor quality of our pitches,” he said.

The Black Stars have meanwhile arrived in Morocco to continue preparation for their second game of the 2025 AFCON qualifiers, which is against Niger.

The team will be hoping to get back to winning ways when they play Niger on Monday, September 9, 2024.

EK