The subject of Black Stars coach over the years has proven to be a touchy subject and almost always, after the coach quits or is sacked, the sports media goes into speculation overdrive.
Of the many issues that come up in the discussions as to who becomes the next coach are; local or expatriate; terms of contract; his assistants; expectations of fans and of course his relations with the media during his tenure.
That no local coach can handle the Black Stars as the views of Ghana legend, Mohammed Ahmed Polo, is very well documented in the media. At least I have heard him twice on different electronic media platforms assert thus.
First was on Ghana Television’s Sports Lite program, the ‘dribbling magician’ was a panelist alongside ace commentator, Kwabena Yeboah, during which time he spoke about no local coach being able to handle the Black Stars as at now.
Then was the radio interview on Accra based Happy fm and subsequently published online by ghanaweb and several other internet portals. The central reason for Polo’s claims had to do with egos of some players, which he says are difficult to control/tame at certain times.
The question that arises is this; who is a local coach? Furthermore, what have these expatriates over the past decade or so done so exceptionally that the local coaches cannot do?
I take it that a local coach is any of the many men who are in charge of all other national teams and of the premier league as well as teams in the lower rungs of the football chain.
Indeed even at that level of their being coaches, there is a further segmentation that arises from those who have the necessary licenses to so declare themselves as coaches. That is; those with Confederation of African Football (CAF) and Union of European Football Association (UEFA) licenses.
From the above if we are to decide today that only locals should submit their documents for vetting as Black Stars coach, certainly it is a select few of people who’d dare put their feet forward – and rightfully so.
The many expatriates who have come in to coach the Black Stars team since the days of to Ratomir Djukovic, Monsieur Claude Le Roy, Milovan Rajevac and Goran Stevanovic, have done their bit but have failed to deliver the goods, i.e. get us a major trophy.
At worst, they have always promised either with their passable English or through translators to tell the Ghanaian football fan what they could not do and in the exception of Goran (who was sacked) have all abandoned ship during the tirade.
Each time they failed we are back to where we started from and the search for the next man. What really is the worse that could happen to the Black Stars in the event that the ego bearing players decide to quit?
An answer is in 2010 Angola, during which time but for Kwadwo Asamoah and Asamoah Gyan, all the other ‘big boys’ were absent. The answer to that fine run and painful loss to Egypt was simply the hunger to achieve.
Two years down the line, 2012 and we lost the tournament more on grounds of discipline and tactical disposition. This one arrow head strategy hurts badly when Gyan is outplayed on a day that the midfielders fail to score.
It is not for me to judge the technical competence of Goran or any other coach yet, we must all push our ‘common-sense’ buttons to realize that against Zambia, the coach was heaping too much pressure on I suspect a half fit Gyan.
His substitution at a time that Ghana was pushing for an equalizer and possibly extra time was highly questionable (i.e. pulling off Gyan and Dede Ayew) the very pair who looked like salvaging the team if at all.
If Polo puts ego management out as a benchmark that disqualifies local coaches, I ask; so with Ghanaian players playing in top leagues in Europe forming the nucleus of the Black Star team; would a local hand ever be put in charge?
Just recently, former Super Eagles coach, Sampson Siasia, waded into the debate calling for an expatriate to be put in charge of the Black Stars because the red hot favourite, Marcel Desailly alsbeit qualified on paper did not have any prior coaching experience.
Very well and good, Siasia certainly got it wrong as the variables between Nigeria and Ghana football. The incidence of novice managers doing a good job of their first appointment is well documented in football history.
Ghana football is at a time that anyone who takes charge needs maximum support from interested parties to Ghana football, the GFA, players, the media and the fans within and without Ghana.
The GFA would announce a successor to Goran Stevanovic and the first hurdle as things stand now is qualification to CAN 2012 and a good performance in the qualifiers for Brazil 2014.
Whether Desailly, Sellas, Hebert or any local hand, the job is well cut out and I wish him well. Till then we await the FA’s declaration.
© Abdur Rahman Shaban Alfa
