Ghana football bin dey suffer anoda blow.
Apart from say di senior national team di blackstars don embarrass diasef for di last two Afcons wit group stage exits, di kontri dey now struggle to find pitch to host international football games.
Di Ghana vs Angola 2025 Afcon qualifier for di Baba Yara sports stadium wey end in 0-1 defeat for di blackstars in September, raise questions about di standard of di pitch.
Angola coach Pedro Goncalves tok say di pitch wia dem play di game no good.
“Kontri like Ghana deserve beta pitch and stadium for dia players.”
Ghana coach Otto Addo also bin agree wit di Angola coach.
Na so CAF withdraw approval for dat stadium for Kumasi.
Di Ghana football association tok for one statement say CAF take dis decision sake of “technical infractions wey include di fact say di playing field no dey suitable.”
Di continental football body also tok say di stadium “no meet di standard wey go host category 3 international games.”
Di statement add say “bifor di Ghana v Angola game, CAF bin raise wahala about di baba Yara stadium wia dey also add say oda stadium for cape coast and Accra also get wahala.”
For dis reason, CAF don ask di GFA say make dem select oda approved venues outside Ghana for dia match day 3 and 4 Afcon qualifiers.
Already, di oda stadium for Accra no dey good condition.
On 15 September, Raja Cassablanca Coach Rusmir Cvirko vex say di pitch for Accra stadium wia im team play wit Samatex FC, no dey good condition.
“E dey impossible to play on dis kind pitch at dis level; but my team try well well to even get a 2-2 draw.”
Di Moroccan team go host di Ghana premier league champions for di stade zaouli.
Sports ministry react
Afta sabi pipo and oda sports fans bash di sports ministry and di oda agencies wey dey in charge of football management for di kontri, di sector minister bin issue statement ova di mata.
Di ministry direct di Ghana football association (GFA) say make dem tell CAF to inspect one stadium for di university of Ghana campus wey dem go fit use for di international games for October.
Dem add say, “we don solve most of di wahala wey CAF find wit di Accra sports stadium during dia last inspection, wia di university of Ghana stadium don already host 2 CAF category 2 games since we don open am, but CAF get to inspect dat one if e fit host category 3 games.”
Di statement also direct di sports authority say make dem “take steps to fix di issues wit di pitch for di Kumasi stadium.”
Afta di CAF champions league preliminary round game between Samatex and Raja Cassablanca wia di Morocco team coach bin complain about di Accra stadium pitch, di sports authority don close di Kumasi and Accra stadiums.
Goment sack sports authority boss
Not long afta di sports authority shutdown di two major stadiums, di presidency fire di authority boss.
Inside one letter from President Akufo-Addo, goment tok say make oga Dodzie Numekevor comot di sports authority office “wit immediate effect.”
“Di president say make you hand over your office to di chairman of di governing board of di sports authority,” di letter wey secretary to di president sign tok.
Di president add say, “make you ensure say you handover and cease to act as di director general for di sports authority by close of 17 September.”
Oga Dodzie Numekevor bin only dey office for six months, afta di president sack di former sports authority boss, Professor Peter Twumasi.
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Di sacking of di sports authority boss go trigger change for di Ghana poor stadium wahala?
Wit dis CAF ban, Ghana bin join kontris like Niger, Chad, Gabon, Sudan, Madagascar wey no get standard accredited pitch for international football games.
Oda kontris like Sierra Leone, Somalia, Central Africa republic, Zimbabwe, Eritrea and Burundi all no get correct stadium facilities to host dis games.
Sabi pesin Saddick Adams tok say “on paper, dis no be wia Ghana get to be, but dis na reality.”
“Of all dis kontris for Africa none of dem bin go World Cup four times, none of dem bin play Afcon 25 times, but Ghana get dat record, wia we be one of di first kontris to join FIFA wey we be founding member of CAF, but today, we no get one proper stadium wey go host international game.”
Im tok say bifor Ghana qualify for di 2022 World Cup, CAF don give “temporary approval say make dem use di Baba Yara sports stadium afta ogbonge pipo for Ghana football chook mouth inside di mata.”
Di latest sack of di sports authority boss go lead to di solution to di kontri stadium wahala?
Oga Saddick Adams no tink so.
According to di ogbonge sports analyst, “di destruction of di kontri stadiums and oda sports facilities don reach crisis level, no be di sack of di sports authority boss go fix am.”
“Dis no fit to clear di international embarrassment wey dis pitch and stadium mata don bring to us as a kontri. Dis no fit change di state of di pitch wey we get, e no go change di fact say we get to play our kontri home games outside Ghana,” im tell BBC Pidgin.
Im tink say di decision to sack oga Dodzie Numekevor fit be sake of oda tins, sake of “di president sabi wetin happun for di last few years and di moni wey goment spend say dey don dey renovate various sports stadiums for di kontri.”
In di last seven years, di national sports authority bin get three directors, but dat no improve di state and management of di kontris stadiums.
Anoda sports analysts Gary Al-Smith bin tok say, “dem sack di sport authority boss, di next one go do little wen im come. Di system wey don put dem dia no go give dem moni or access to do good job. Make una target di one wey appoint di sports authority management and di board, na dem get di power to change.”
Like Saddick, many oda pipo and football fans say di fact say Ghana wey be football nation no get even one standard, FIFA-accredited stadium for games dey shocking.
Sports fans and oda pipo vex for di sports authority say in di last few years, say dem dey rent di kontris stadiums to pipo for concerts, crusades, rallies and oda events, wey dey destroy di pitch.
In fact, ten days to di Ghana v Angola Afcon qualifier for Kumasi, di sports authority bin rent di stadium for one church event.
For dis 5-day event, dem no protect di pitch wia videos wey bin dey social media show how thousands of pipo bin dey jam on top di grass wia cars dey drive for di pitch.
In July dis year, pipo bin complain about how di sports authority dey rent di stadium for plenti social events, but di authority tok say “we get plan wey our crack field maintenance team go recover di pitch and restore di facility in record time for di month of August . Stakeholders get to dey assured,” di authority for di Ashanti region tok.
But two months later, yawa happun.
Na so CAF withdraw di approval for di stadium until goment fix di wahala wit di pitch and oda facilities.
CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe for di opening of one coaching summit for Kenya chook mouth inside dis mata.
Oga Motsepe tok say “nothing dey frustrate me pass national team or club team wey no get standard pitch wia dem go play dia home games outside dia kontri.”
“You no fit grow football if di national teams and club teams no dey play in front of dia home fans,” Oga Motsepe tok.
Im add say, “wetin we dey tok authorities for every kontri na say make dem make sure dem get at least one stadium wey dey capable to host CAF category C game.”
Wetin oga Saddick Adams tink say go fit solve dis wahala be say make “goment comot politics from di management and administration of football, dat go be di only way we fit get back on top.”
“Dis wahala and shame no be mata about say you go sack di sport authority bosses, na di whole governance structure of football for di kontri wey get to change. Dis office need sabi pipo, pipo wey understand football management, no be political appointees, wetin dem call square pegs inside round holes.”
Oga Dodzie Numekevor wey di president don sack for di sports authority, bin dey campaign to enta parliament to represent di Sege constituency on top di governing party NPP ticket.
Where Ghana go host dia October games and wia local home teams dey play now?
Already, some local clubs dey feel di impact of di closure of di two main stadiums for Accra and Kumasi.
Four premier league clubs wey bin dey play dia home games for di Accra sports stadium as dia home ground, now go use di University of Ghana stadium as dia temporary home.
Accra hearts of oak, Accra lions, Dreams FC and Legon cities all bin relocate.
Goment bin renovate di University of Ghana stadium for di 2024 Africa games; di facility fit host 10,000 pipo.
Kumasi Asante Kotoko go also play dia home games for di Obuasi Len Clay sports stadium afta di shutdown of the Baba Yara stadium.
Di porcupine warriors face Young apostles on 22 September for Obuasi wey go be dia temporary home ground.
For di local premier league clubs, dem already decide stadiums dem fit to use for now, but for di senior national team, na ogbonge wahala.
Tori bin dey say di kontri don dey consider Ivory Coast and Togo to play dia 2025 Afcon qualifier vs Sudan for October.
Ivory Coast na Ghana neighbour wit many CAF-approved stadiums – na dem host di last Afcon.
Di blackstars bin play dia games for di 2023 Afcon for di Felix Houphet Boigny stadium; wey dat fit be option wey di GFA fit consider.
Wit di location of di kontri to Ghana and dia close ties, dat kontri dey offer wetin sabi pipo describe as “convenient and logistically feasible solution for di GFA.”
Sources also bin tok say di Togo National stadium na anoda place di GFA fit choose; wia conversation already dey happun wit di two parties.
Unless di kontri fix dia stadiums and pitches wey CAF get to inspect and give green light say make dem use am, Ghana get to settle wit venue outside di kontri.
Di football association and di oda sports agencies no confam which one dem go finally choose, but wetin dey certain na say di kontri no get FIFA-approved pitch to play international games as tins dey at dis particular moment.
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