Former Black Stars striker, Prince Tagoe, has criticized the decision of the senior national team’s technical staff to appoint Mohammed Kudus as captain over Jordan Ayew.
Kudus, who plays for West Ham United, was named captain for Ghana’s doubleheader against Sudan in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifiers.
This decision followed the absence of regular captain Thomas Partey, who missed the matches due to a medical issue.
Speaking on Angel FM, Tagoe, a former Hearts of Oak player who represented Ghana at the 2010 World Cup, expressed his concerns over what he perceives as unnecessary controversy created by the team’s management.
According to him, Jordan Ayew should have been given the captain’s armband, as it would have fostered peace and unity within the squad.
“You can’t give the captaincy to Kudus when Jordan is present in the team. You don’t do that. Kudus is a very good player, but you need to be patient and allow his time to come before you give him the captaincy,” Tagoe stated.
“When you do it at the right time, you will see the impact, and he [Kudus] will feel good about it. The confusion in the team stems from decisions like this, and it’s a major issue we need to address. We must reconsider how we handle the captaincy,” he added.
Following the first leg of the doubleheader against Sudan, which ended in a goalless draw at the Accra Sports Stadium, Jordan Ayew was seen in a heated conversation with Sudan’s Ghanaian coach, Kwasi Appiah with reports suggesting that Ayew was venting his frustration over being overlooked for the captaincy.
Ghana’s woes continued as they suffered a 2-0 defeat in the second leg, played in Libya.
These results leave the Black Stars in third place with just two points.
Ghana will end it qualifiers in November with matches against Angola and Niger.