Black Stars head coach Carlos Queiroz says national team coaches cannot dictate decisions made by club managers, insisting they must instead monitor players’ situations and react accordingly.
Queiroz made the comments while explaining his approach to player management, particularly the decision to leave Mohammed Kudus out of the Black Stars squad in order to protect the midfielder’s progress.
The Portuguese coach said national team managers have limited control over how players are used by their clubs because club coaches must prioritise their own teams’ needs and objectives.
“In the course of our decisions, we have the club games. The club games. And we national team coaches, we cannot control the decisions of the coaches in the clubs,” Queiroz said.
He explained that his technical team monitors players through their club performances before making decisions on their involvement with Ghana.
According to Queiroz, the initial information gathered on Kudus suggested that the midfielder was progressing as expected, but subsequent observations changed the assessment.
“So, in the course of our observations and conversations, it looks like Kudus was moving in the right direction,” he said.
“I had to make the decision, I think, on the 27th, Wednesday, Thursday, of my decisions with the matches, that I was able to scout and make the right observations.”
However, Queiroz said further information from Kudus’ subsequent club appearances raised concerns about his progress.
“But later on, other information about the stage of the play after the play, 70-something minutes, unfortunately, they were not progressing in the direction that we expected,” he added.
The Black Stars coach said discussions with Kudus eventually led to the decision to keep him out of the squad.
“So, in my final conversation with Kudus, we realised that the best decision was to protect this progress.”
Queiroz’s comments highlight the different responsibilities facing club and national team coaches, with the latter relying heavily on observation and communication when assessing the condition and readiness of players.
For the Black Stars, the decision to leave Kudus out was therefore presented as part of a broader player-management approach rather than an attempt to influence how he is handled at club level.
