Former Vice President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), George Afriyie, has criticized Kurt Okraku’s decision to sack Kwesi Appiah as the head coach of the Black Stars.
Appiah’s dismissal occurred shortly after Okraku took over the presidency of the GFA, following Ghana’s exit in the Round of 16 at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Egypt. He was replaced by his assistant, CK Akonnor.
Currently coaching the Sudanese national team, Appiah recently led them to a 2-0 victory over the Black Stars in a 2025 AFCON qualifier, after a goalless draw in the first leg at the Accra Sports Stadium.
In response to Appiah’s recent success with Sudan, Afriyie elaborated on the reasoning behind Appiah’s initial appointment by the previous GFA administration, led by Kwesi Nyantakyi, and criticized Okraku’s decision to let him go.
“We should credit Kwesi Appiah for the good job he has done. He had a strong technical team and good players when Kurt Okraku was voted into office as president of the Ghana Football Association (GFA),” he told Asempa FM.
“Kwesi Nyantakyi’s administration decided to appoint Kwesi Appiah because we realised that he has deputised two Serbian coaches, and so he has experience. We should not forget that he even masterminded Ghana’s 6-1 win over Egypt to qualify us for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
“What happened in Brazil, we all know that it was not his fault because the Sports Minister was set up to fail but when Kurt Okraku took over, he said he didn’t want Kwesi Appiah and he convinced Akufo Addo that he must be sacked.
“When Kwesi Appiah met Ghana in the AFCON qualifiers, it was a payback time, and he has done that wonderfully well. That is nature,” Afriyie added.
As a result of Ghana’s loss to Sudan, the Black Stars sit third in Group F with just two points from four matches, while Appiah’s Sudan holds second place with seven points.
For Ghana to qualify for next year’s AFCON tournament, they will need Sudan to lose their remaining group matches against Niger and Angola.
Meanwhile, Ghana is set to face the same teams in their final group games next month.
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