Head of Content at the Confederation of African Football and former GFA spokesperson, Saani Daara, says Ghana coach Lars Kim Björkegren must build on the foundations laid by his predecessor Nora Hauptle and meet the high expectations of Ghanaians as the Black Queens chase their first-ever WAFCON title.
The Black Queens beat Algeria 4-2 on penalties after a goalless draw in the quarterfinals to reach the semi-finals of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations for the first time in nine years.
Speaking after the win, Saani highlighted that while Kim is still new in the role, the time for results is now.
Nora had two years and more in the position, so that gave her the opportunity to make mistakes and correct them,” he said.
Kim has not been in the position for that long, but he must also realize that if Nora lifted the team up and brought it to this level, we only expect him to take it a notch higher.
Saani acknowledged the philosophical transition the team is undergoing under the Swedish trainer but insisted the foundation laid by Hauptle gives Kim a platform to succeed.
There were a lot of advantages that came with Nora being in the position. Number one ; she’s a female, so she would understand certain nuances that Kim might not even know or understand.
So that gives Nora the edge. And I would say it would be too difficult to judge Kim at this point.
Ghana’s semifinal showdown against host nation Morocco on Tuesday offers Björkegren a major opportunity to silence any doubts and push the Queens closer to a historic continental title.
