Coach Stevanovic's crunch meeting with GFA deferred

The envisaged crunch meeting between the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and Black Stars head Coach, Goran Stevanovic on the Serb’s future with Ghana has been deferred following issues with the latter’s late arrival due to his passport.

Stevanovic was scheduled to arrive in Ghana on Monday ahead of the meeting on Tuesday, which the GFA said would determine the fate of the Serb but a communiqué from the Association points to another deferment.


The GFA said in statement that ‘a letter dated 12th March, 2012 from Mr Goran Stevanovic has been received by the GFA informing us of some problem with his passport. In that regard he has reported to the police to rectify the problem and this will be done by Wednesday, 14th March, 2012.


‘He will then travel to Ghana on Thursday, 15th March, 2012. Mr Goran Stevanovic is expected to have arrived in the country on Monday, 12th March, 2012 to meet the 5-member committee on his contract with the GFA on Tuesday, 13th March, 2012. ‘The meeting will now come-off on Friday, 16th March, 2012, that is, if he arrives on Thursday, 15th March, 2012.’


If the coach arrives in time, the 45-year old trainer who received 200, 000.00 euros as entitlement fee when he signed as Ghana's trainer in January 2011, would know by close of the week if he would be shown the exit as speculated by the media or would be allowed to continue with the job that fetches him a 30,000.00 euros monthly salary which includes net of taxes and all deductions. If retained, the Coach per the contract would be rewarded with 100, 000.00 Euros if he wins the 2013 African Cup of Nations slated for South Africa and 250,000.00 Euros if he qualifies the Black Stars for the 2014 World Cup billed for Brazil.

Per the same article (6.1.2.4), the former Partizan Belgrade trainer would earn 500,000.00 Euros if the Black Stars qualifies to play in the finals of the Brazil World Cup and a whooping 1,000,000.00 euros if they win the global tourney, which an African country is yet to claim, if he is allowed to carry on as the head coach.


The GFA would for the first time exercise their powers as sole right holders of extending or terminating Stevanovic’s contract since his appointment a year ago.


In article 9.1 of the two year contract, the GFA insisted that ‘as stipulated at clause 2, herein the duration of this contract shall be for two years but the Association alone shall have the right to extend the contract after a period of two years but where the Association does not terminate the Coach’s contract after the first two years, the Coach shall be entitled to a 25 percent increase in his monthly salary.’


Coach Stevanovic has been under intense pressure after only leading the Stars to a fourth place finish at the 2012 African Cup of Nations in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea where he promised to end Ghana’s trophy drought after a three decade wait as he raised the expectations of the passionate Ghanaian sports enthusiasts of a good outing.