A past management committee member of Black Stars, Ernest Thompson has claimed Ghana football almost suffered a storm when former coach of the team, Akwasi Appiah nearly axed Dede Ayew, Jordan Ayew and Mubarak Wakaso from the national team.
According to him, Akwasi Appiah had some issues with the players and decided to cut them from the team as he could not work with them anymore
Ernest Thompson revealed that if it had not been for his swift intervention together with those of other members of the committee, Akwasi Appiah’s decision could have disrupted the team’s harmony and brought about unwanted controversy
“At a point in time, Kwasi Appiah had problems with Andre Ayew, Jordan Ayew, and Wakaso. You remember that incident. Go back to history. He [Kwasi Appiah] wanted to drop them. He said he had dropped them. I’m telling you the truth now.”
“We [the Black Stars management committee team] said, Look, because of Jordan, Andre, and particularly their father Abedi [Pele], who is an icon, if you had problems with them in the team, we plead with you to go and see Abedi [Pele] and speak to Abedi because you can’t treat Abedi’s children that way. Let the father know, and see if the father can intervene.”
“It took Alhaji Hearts, who we called, to also go and speak to the boys about Kwasi Appiah’s concerns. Later on, Kwasi Appiah agreed, brought them back, and they came to save the team. Soc, a lot of things happen at the management committee level [of the Black Stars]. You can check all these from George Afriyie,” he said in an interview on Joy Sports.
He touted the Black Stars management team as one which does great work, provided they stay within their purview.
The Black Stars management committee was dissolved after the team’s failure to qualify for the 2024 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
