Former Ghana Football Association (GFA) Technical Director Francis Oti Akenteng has criticised the domestic football governing body for often choosing foreign coaches over local ones.
He went ahead to warn that this could make Ghanaian coaches lose interest in working for the country.
Akenteng’s comments come after the appointment of Kim Lars Björkegren as interim technical team leader of the Black Stars ahead of their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifying doubleheader against Somalia.
Ghana’s coaching situation changed after a disappointing start to the qualifiers, with the Black Stars losing 2-0 to Ivory Coast in Bouaké before suffering a 4-2 defeat to The Gambia at the Accra Sports Stadium.
The results were followed by a mutual parting of ways between the GFA and former head coach Carlos Queiroz, which forced the association to make changes to the technical team.
Björkegren will work alongside Medeama SC head coach Ibrahim Tanko and Godwin Attram, while Fatawu Dauda retains his role as goalkeeper coach.
However, Akenteng believes Ghana has enough experienced local coaches who could step in to lead the senior national team, even on an interim basis, instead of being overlooked for such opportunities.
“There are local coaches who are capable of coaching the Black Stars,” he said in an interview with Asempa FM.
“If they are always overlooked, that is a sign of disrespect, and if the local coaches are not respected, they will not have an interest in coaching."
The Black Stars remain bottom of Group C after losing their opening two matches and are expected to face Somalia in November as they seek to revive their qualifying campaign.
After the doubleheader, Björkegren is expected to turn his attention to the Black Queens, who will pursue a place at the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup through the preliminary play-off phase scheduled for November 24 to December 5, 2026.
By: Pascal Amoah
