Players should be selected based on merit only - Randy Abbey

The Spokesperson of Ghana Football Association, Mr. Ransford Abbey has reiterated the fact that call ups to the senior national team should be on merit.

In an interview on Asempa FM’s Sports Morning Show on Tuesday, Mr. Abbey kicked against a quota system in the Black Stars team where locally based players will be given an automatic entry to the team.

He noted that the current system which gives every good Ghanaian footballer an opportunity to play for the Black Stars is the best.

He added that the monitoring system under the current model should rather be strengthened. This he believes would give the technical men the opportunity to assess most of the locally based players.

In a related development, Mr. Abbey told Asempa Sports that the preparation of the Black Stars is on course. He also confirmed that almost all the invited players for the Congo Brazzaville game on Friday, June 3 in Kumasi have reported.

Kevin-Prince Boateng, who most Ghanaians were expecting, has also arrived.

His arrival leaves Coach Goran Stevanovic with a near full house pending the arrival of Andre Ayew, Partizan Belgrade striker Prince Tagoe and Granada defender Jonathan Mensah.

The Black Stars coach Goran Stevanovic is said to be delighted to have Michael Essien in his squad after the midfielder returned to national team duties on Monday.

Essien might be featured in the game on Friday when the Black Stars play Congo in a 2012 Nations Cup qualifier following his long spell out of the team since the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations group game against Ivory Coast. The midfielder joined his teammates for training on Monday.