Ghana Football Association (GFA) Communications Director Henry Asante Twum has defended the decision to omit several senior Black Stars players from the squad for this month’s international friendlies against Japan and South Korea, insisting the move was both deliberate and justified.
Head coach Otto Addo’s 22-man squad notably excludes key names such as Jordan Ayew, Thomas Partey, and Abdul Fatawu Issahaku, with the technical team instead calling up emerging talents including Kelvin Nkrumah, Prince Kwabena Adu, and Prince Osei Owusu.
Speaking to Asempa FM, Asante Twum explained that the omissions were not a result of travel logistics but rather well-considered technical and medical decisions.
“Absentees from the Black Stars squad for the Japan and South Korea friendly games are due to legitimate reasons and not the travelling distance,” he said.
“We all came to the agreement that some players will need to rest while others are nursing injuries, so we need to let them stay behind. The new faces in the squad have been on the list of the technical team for some time now, so it is an opportunity for them to prove their worth in these games.”
Asante Twum further emphasised that the fixtures in Asia were designed to serve a long-term purpose rather than short-term results.
“These friendly games are aimed at working on something in the Black Stars and among the players. We just want to make use of the best talent for the future,” he added.
The Black Stars opened camp in Nagoya on Tuesday, 11 November, and are expected to hold their first training session later today. They will face Japan in the Kirin Cup on Friday, 14 November, before travelling to Seoul to play South Korea on 18 November.
Both matches form part of Ghana’s broader preparations for the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
By: Pascal Amoah
