Chris Hughton, the Black Stars coach, did not select any players from the Ghana Premier League in his first 25-man squad for the upcoming matches against Angola on March 23 and March 27 at the Baba Yara Stadium in Kumasi and the reverse fixture in Luanda respectively.
The exclusion of local players is a setback for the league, which has recently received negative publicity.
However, Mas-Ud Didi Dramani, the second deputy coach of the Black Stars, explained the rationale behind the decision, citing the importance of consistency and frequency of games in relation to squad selection.
Didi Dramani cautioned against overstating the absence of local players and emphasized the coaching staff’s personal interest in the league, stating that they attend many games.
He also highlighted the importance of maintaining consistency in the team’s approach, even when local players are not invited.
“I think it goes with consistency and closeness of games. It is very important not to overstate that he (Chris Hughton) releases his squad and then no local player is in there. I think when we start doing that then I think we are pre-emptying on the negativities and I think that we are paying much attention to the local league as you can see me coming out to watch lot of the games,” he said in an interview with Citi Sports.
“When you look at the team, It is made of a consistent squad and we want to remain consistent when the decision not to invite any local player”
“The Black Stars is a team in progress and so the team will continuously be consistent in their approach. The team is a work in progress and so what you find is actually what is needed at the shortest possible time. In the longest possible time, in this era, you need to look out for things that will give you immediate team structure, you don’t have time. The team is playing on Thursday and then on Monday so there’s no time for you to be thinking about processes where you need players to have the chance to have strong integration and then adaptation.
“This is the time to be thinking about who to bring and then immediately you are able to get what you need, there’s no time in this period. These periods are very short-lived so we need to acknowledge the importance of the timelines.
Ghana will play Angola in the Kumasi on March 23 before travelling to Luanda for the reverse fixture four days later.
The Black Stars lead Group E of the qualifiers with four points.
