Ghana,despite an image of football dominated by the exploits and rivalry of Hearts and Kotoko, have a proud record in the African game. But now facing coaching crisis on all fronts.In as much as the nation is never in want of football talent,same cannot be compare to the current generation of coaches.Old managers like: C.K Gyamfi,E.K Afranie,Osam Duodu,Herbert Addo,Sam Arday and the legendary Sir Cecil Jones Attuquayefio had wonderful spells with clubs and national sides. After their exit most of the clubs are struggling for form.Hearts of Oak,self-styled masters of the continental game can be describe as a crest fallen outfit without Jones.The new breed of coaches are simply not good like their predecessors,and no wonder it is having a tell on local clubs and national teams.It takes a certain talent to live in happy denial,to slide toward the edge of a precipice and be perfectly relaxed about it.In this country,we tend to be suspicious of the explanations politicians give for anything,but in the case of football it appears to be accurate. Current coaches are not all that good and they need to equip themselves to save the game.After coasting through the golden period of our football-we are now suffering and there seem to be no end to our misery. In Europe there are emergence of new breed of gaffers.Pep Guadiola, Antonio Conte,Jurgen Klupp,Mourinho and others.These young coaches have strongly made impressions that the exit of Bill Shankly(he prepare the way for Liverpool to gain international reputation),Giovanni Trapattoni(confirmed Juventus status as continental force),Johan Cruyff(redefined total football at Barcelona although started at Ajax by Rinus Michels ).
Somebody asked me what total football is all about.Simply: a style in which players of high technical and tactical ability were able to inter-change at a speed and with a facility which confused almost everyone they played - until the bubble bust with Holland's 2-1 defeat by West Germany in the 1974 world cup final. The above-mentioned coaches emerged on the scene after Fabio Capello,Vicente del Bosque,Ottmar Hitzfeld,Arrigo Sacchi,Marcello Lippi and others.
The big two got into Caf champions league money zone way back 2006,and made horrible campaign,in between then and now, Hearts and Kotoko have changed nine and eight coaches respectively.If the coaches are good enough why do they have to change that much in seven years?
Jones was with Hearts for four years and won more than four titles.And for four years Hearts of Oak is yet to win anything with more than four coaches too! But every cloud has a silver lining.Ghana have massive talent,we only need good coaches to polish them.Who can tell me any brilliant young coach around today?
So where do we go from here?The GFA should save the situation by sending promising young coaches to Brazil,Italy,England,Germany and France for training. Secondly they should establish a competent school to train interested footballers.Get more people into coaching and by so doing we will get the best. Running of GFA is not only about organising friendlies between South Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia for Black stars but rather pragmatic decisions to move low level of football to top gear.
Like it, or loathe it, The standard of the game is at its lowest ebb. Simply because coaches themselves are not competent. We need to upgrade their knowledge, and also point out to them that without a certain coaching certificate you cannot be a coach in this country.
REAGAN MICHAEL FIANKO
TRUEMIKKY@YAHOO.COM
