Football purists say it’s not good for a team to look good without producing the goods.
This is exactly what my favourite English club, Manchester United, are doing. The crest fallen Red Devils are now a pale shadow of what oldies like some of us cherished in the Alex Ferguson days.
Conversely my dear national team the Black Stars of Ghana don’t look attractive but they are producing the goods all right. Therein lies the irony.
In five World Cup qualifying matches the Black Stars have not fully satisfied the fastidious football public with the trademark fluent, attractive football even though they top Group I with 19 points accrued from eight matches without defeat.
With two matches to go the odds are most likely Ghana will make it to World Cup 26.
The snag however, is that there seems to be a large school of thought that Coach Otto should not be the man to take the team to the big football festival. I beg to differ and I wholly back popular football analyst Kojo Addae Mensah who insists Ghana could be on a suicide mission if Coach Otto Addo is replaced after the qualifying series.
Kojo reminds us to note Ghana’s absence from AFCON in December would leave the Black Stars with no serious test of competitive strength before the World Cup. And this would definitely be a big headache if we had a new coach taking over from the familiar Otto Addo.
History does repeat itself in soccer indeed. Do you recall we had a similar tense atmosphere prior to the last World Cup in Qatar when Otto Addo came under heavy attack even after the brilliant show in Nigeria against the Super Green Eagles in the decisive qualifier?
I think the time has come for all of us to accept the fact the nation is dealing with a new generation of Black Stars that are not straightforward to deal with. Call them “imported Ghanaians” and you may be right. Majority of them grew up in Europe and not used to what may be called the intrinsic Ghanaian culture. Some of these players who were not brought up there but playing in top foreign clubs may be unnoticeably acquiring certain habits alien to Ghanaian culture.
Some of them may be visiting Ghana for the first time and meeting his colleagues face to face the first time. This is what some uncharitable fanatics may even label some of the players as football mercenaries. The most familiar faces may also be facing identity crisis.
Fame and money may also be cited. Club rivalry in Europe may also come in. All these factors an conspire to make national team building a tricky venture. Team spirit may be difficult to instill and the nation suffers in the end. This is not a Ghana issue but maybe worldwide.
I recall England skipper Steven Gerrard attributing their lacklustre show in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa to intense rivalry among players in the English Premier League.
My submission is that Coach Otto Addo himself an “imported Ghanaian” must be given the laxity to build the Black Stars into a winning attractive side. It will definitely be too late to change him now. Who knows, maybe the devil you know may be better than the angel you don’t know.
It is therefore my humble suggestion that we leave the issue of team tactics entirely in the hands of Coach Otto Addo and his technicians.
As I keep saying, some Ghanaians feel the Black Stars don’t play that attractive game. It is not that simple. There is more to it than meets the eye. My past experience with the Black Stars as management committee member shows me there is more in Football, behind the scene, than just seeing 22 players on the field in jerseys trotting around.
I can’t help quoting, once again, the authoritative football administrator Ohene Djan, who said “many lovers of the game know very little about the subterranean aspects of football management.”
This is what he told a commission of inquiry in 1966 after the Coup that toppled the CPP regime.
My considered opinion is Otto Addo and his Coaching staff are on the verge of qualifying Ghana for the World Cup once again and he should be given the free hand and all the support for this assignment.
Cheers everybody and keep loving sports.
