AshantiGold SC have completed the signing of Burkina Faso international goalkeeper Aboubacar Babayouré Sawadogo.
The 31-year-old is joining the Elephants as a replacement for Frank Boateng who recently left the club.
Sawadogo has played for Burkina Faso top-flight sides AS Police FC, Rail Club Kadiogo and AS Douanes.
He also played for Saudi Arabia club Al-Nojoom FC from August 2018 to July 2019.
Sawadogo has 12 caps for the Burkina Faso national team since making his debut in October 2016 against Uzbekistan during an international friendly.
He kept the posts for Stallions in their last two games in the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations qualifications in November 2019 against Uganda and South Sudan.
The Ghanaian top-flight is set to admit 40 per cent attendance at league venues as the 2020-2021 season amid widespread reports that the president of Ghana might lift the restrictions on contact sports in his next COVID-19 address to the whole nation in the coming days.
The Ghana Premier League and all other football-related activities of the Ghana FA were put to on hold in mid-March as a measure to curb the fast spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Six months after the directives from the presidency, football is set to resume in mid-October as the FA tentatively set the second week of the month to begin the 2020-2021 season.
According to reports reaching Kumasi-based Oyerepa FM, the Ghana Premier League will admit 40% attendance at various league centres.
The report further indicated that the GFA Executive Council have agreed to allow all 18 clubs to use their home venues instead of a previously suggested two venues each for a zonal league.
Again, the GFA wants the Government of Ghana to foot the bill for the mandatory COVID-19 tests for players.
Former Ghana goalkeeper, Abubakar Damba has admonished the Ghana FA and all stakeholders. of the game not to force Asamoah Gyan into retirement, insisting there should be a dialogue to see the best way to handle it.
Gyan has been out of the Black Stars since he last featured for the side at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations which was held in Egypt.
Prior to the tournament in the North African county, Gyan was stripped off the captaincy by former coach James Kwesi Appiah.
Despite the arrival of a new coach in the person of CK Akonnor, Gyan was excluded from the leadership structure of the senior national team which is likely to cast major doubt on the future of the former Black Stars captain.
Abubakar Damba
Several former players of the Black Stars including Rev. Osei Kofi and coach Frimpong Manso have advised Gyan to retire from the Black Stars.
But the ex-Black Stars goalkeepers trainer, Damba believes it should be done in a way that Gyan will not retire in pain as it happened to other former players.
“It is a personal decision for Asamoah Gyan to make. Undoubtedly, he is someone we have to eulogize him. We have to understand he has played his role at the national and international level, ” Damba told Kumasi-based Hello FM.
“At the highest level, Gyan has always delivered. But we have to understand that there is always a transition. There is always time for everything and I believe we need to retire Asamoah Gyan very honourably.
“That’s why I am saying we need to have a dialogue and a time will come Gyan himself will see that now he has people behind him who can hold the flag of Ghana high so let me give them the opportunity and support them to play.
“Gyan as a footballer has a lot to offer after his retirement. The upcoming ones look up to him and will be a role model for them. We have to understand that we need to build that co-operation and that collaboration between him and the players not.
“Let’s not depict the mistakes we did in the past where some players retired with some sort of pain where people will say it is not worth dying for the national team.
“And Gyan too he is a hero of the land who needs to be eulogized. The transition should be very smooth where Gyan will always visit the Black Stars.
He called on the Ghana Football Association to hold a befitting send-off match for Gyan after a successful dialogue with him.
“It’s a wonderful thing. The testimonial game is good where we can invite the Stephen Appiah’s, Laryea Kingston’s, Osei Kuffour’s and other top players. You put them together and use it to thank them for their services. They will feel very proud and will be willing to be part of the team.
“If we don’t do that Gyan will be done and what will be the legacy that he’ll be leaving behind. That’s what we should be thinking about. So organising a testimonial game is very good because he’s an ambassador for Ghana.
“But then let’s have a dialogue to find out what time are we going to organise that. If we go like this we’ll know how exactly to organise it. I support a testimonial game for Asamoah Gyan because he deserves it.”
Former Ghana International Sola Ayew has stated that selecting a captain for the Senior National team should not be solely based on seniority.
According to him, captaincy should be reserved for players with great leadership skills.
The Technical team of the senior national team, the Black Stars, upon a broad consultation, has maintained Swansea City attacker Andre Ayew as Captain of the side after leading Ghana to the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt. He will be assisted by Thomas Teye Partey and Richard Ofori.
But since the announcement people have suggested that the position should have been given to senior players like Mubarak Wakaso and John Boye.
But Sola Ayew, who is the uncle of Dede believes that the system used to appoint captains of the Black Stars should be changed.
“The country has suffered for far too long with regards to captaincy issues. I have followed Black Stars for long and you will realise our leadership was selected based on seniority.
“But I think it’s time we change it. I think the current FA should make consultations about it. At times we go to certain games without our substantive captain as a result of maybe his age. We should look at that side, ” he told Hello FM.
Astute Brazilian legal practitioner, Nilo Aguillar Effori has been appointed as the head of Asante Kotoko international legal affairs.
He is the latest addition to the initial six appointments released by the club. He is a UK-based Sports lawyer.
Since 2006 he has been working as sports lawyer, acting before International sports decision making bodies like FIFA, FIBA, CAS and IOC
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Nilo is the founding partner of Effori Sports Law (Effori Sociedade de Advogados), a boutique law firm based in São Paulo and London, specialising entirely in all manner of international sports disputes.
With more than a decade of experience in this field, Nilo has advised clubs, athletes, agents, intermediaries and international sports federations and has successfully represented his clients in disciplinary, regulatory, contractual and doping disputes in proceedings before the Court of Arbitration for Sport, Basketball Arbitral Tribunal, FIFA Dispute Resolution Chamber, FIFA Players’ status committee, FEI Tribunal, FIA International Court of Appeal and other international sports federations’ decision-making bodies.
Nilo has also advised on international transfers as well as handling contractual matters for clubs and athletes, including formula one drivers and UEFA Champions League clubs winners.
More recently, Nilo has been advising clients in the Middle East, and particularly in Qatar, assisting the Qatar Sports for all Federation in improving the legal structure for the country’s clubs and federations.
Asante Kotoko has settled on Akua Pokuaa Kwarteng Esq as the head of their Legal Team(Domestic).
Akua Pokuaa Kwarteng who is Deputy Managing Counsel becomes the six appointees of the new Asante Kotoko Management Team led by Nana Yaw Amponsah.
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Akua Pokuaa Kwarteng is Deputy Managing Counsel. Akua was called to the Ghana Bar in 2011. She holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and is the Deputy Managing Counsel in charge of the Kumasi office of Legal Ink. She is also a member of the International Bar Association and Commonwealth Lawyers Association. She has extensive knowledge in Banking, Corporate Transactions and Civil litigation.
As the Deputy Managing Counsel at the Kumasi Office, she is the lead litigator on all recovery matters for banks and financial institutions in Kumasi. She has advised on several investment and banking transactions including advising a local bank on how to structure its affairs to minimize corporate disputes and tighten its credit approval processes.
Ashantigold defender, Richard Osei Agyemang has rejected suggestions that the side will struggle in the upcoming season following the departure of several ‘key’ players.
Several regular players of the Miners opted not to extend their contracts after expiration with others being put on transfer by the club.
Eric Donkor, Mubarik Yussif, Latif Anabila and James Akaminko all failed to renew their contracts with the 1997 Caf Champions League finalist.
Players like Emmanuel Osei Baffour, Akwasi Nti, defender Musah Mohammed, Stephen Owusu Banahene and Benedict Wobenu were also released.
However, Osei Agyemang believes that the club is drilled enough to be able to continue to showcase quality football without them, having secured the services of other experienced players.
“We wish the players who have left the AshantiGold SC club well. They have paid their dues at the club. I don’t think we will miss them because there are equally good players at the club. Nathaniel Asamoah, Hans Koffie, Samad Ibrahim are all around, ” Richard Osei Agyemang told Pure FM.
The four-time Ghana Premier League winners will represent Ghana in the 2020-21 Caf Confederation Cup.
Asante Kotoko have augmented their defensive unit with the signing of former Ashantigold defender Mubarik Yussif ahead of the 2020/2021 season.
footy.ghpush.com/ understands stalwart defender has penned a three-year deal with the Porcupines after fruitful negotiations.
Yusif thus joins the Ghanaian giants on a free transfer after deciding against extending contract at Ashsntigold.
He comes in to add up to other central defenders like Wahab Adams, Habib Mohammed, Ganiu and Emmanuel Agyemang Badu.
Mubarik joined the Miners lads from Liberty Professionals in 2017 after an impressive performance in the Ghana Premier League.
He was an instrumental in the Miners’ CAF Confederation Cup last season, and he will be expected to use his enormous experience to help the Reds in the 2020-21 Caf Champions League.
He played 14 games for AshantiGold in the 2019/20 Ghana Premier League season which was truncated due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Director-General of the National Sports Authority (NSA), Professor Peter Twumasi has confirmed government support for both Asante Kotoko and AshantiGold SC ahead of their Africa campaign.
Asante Kotoko and AshantiGold SC will be representing Ghana in the CAF inter-club competitions next season despite the cancelation of the 2019/20 league season in the country due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Asante-kotoko-Sc
Kotoko will be participating in the CAF Champions League whilst regional rivals AshantiGold Sporting Club will partake in the CAF Confederation Cup.
As part of government support to the two clubs, Professor Peter Twumasi has revealed that Asante Kotoko will be getting $200,000 for their acceptance to participate in Africa next season while AshantiGold SC will get $150,000.
Speaking on Kumasi-based Sikka FM, Professor Peter Twumasi said, “government will give Asante Kotoko and Ashgold $200,000 and $150,000 respectively for their qualifications to play in the Caf champions League and Confederations cup competitions.”
Ashantigold SC
Meanwhile, the two clubs are yet to resume training since football activities were banned in March this year due to the coronavirus disease.
