Ghanaian football legend Mohammed Polo says the lack of identity in the current football structure has halted Ghana’s progress, which has led to its poor performance at recent major tournaments.
According to the former Hearts coach, it would be very vital for football administrators to learn how things were done in the past to help Ghana reclaim its stature as an African football heavyweight.
Mohammed Polo, in an interview with GNA Sports, noted that the recent poor display of the Black Stars at the recent Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), was a testament to the weak local league system.
He noted that the reliance on foreign coaches to help in the formulation of a football identity was not the ideal way, stressing that there were equally good local coaches who could lead the transformation agenda.
“Getting a vivid football identity that runs through our local league and juvenile system would be key to changing our dwindling fortunes,” Polo said.
He indicated that “The core of building our very solid national team would depend on getting strong local players who understand our system and getting a few foreign players to add up, like the South Africans are doing.
“The league system forms the basis of how we develop our football, and we need an experienced coach to identify players who fit the system.” he told GNA Sports.
Polo recalled that the likes of the late Sam Arday have used this approach in the past, which yielded results, emphasising that revisiting such measures would be key to revitalising Ghana football.
When asked about the Ghana Football Association’s plans to appoint a new coach after the dismissal of Chris Hughton, Polo asserted that there was no need to rush the process of appointing a coach.
“We are in a crisis, and it has to be given sometime for us to get the right person for the job, but in the interim, we can get a stop-gap coach to handle our coming matches.
“We need a broader stakeholder consultation where we meet and discuss the kind of coach we would want for the Black Stars in the long term. We have wasted time and money with the appointment of foreign coaches, and that shouldn’t be the way,” he said.
“It is not that we, the local coaches, can’t do the job, but it is like we don’t believe in ourselves,” Polo stated.
GNA
WE
