Black Satellites coach Desmond Ofei has asserted that his player selection process never encountered any form of interference.
The 36-year-old recently guided the Ghana U-20 side to win gold at the recently ended 2023 African Games hosted by Ghana.
The journey to success was characterised by dominant attacking football liaised with the individual brilliance of several young Ghanaian players including Jerry Afriyie whose third goal of the competition sealed the triumph for Ghana against Uganda.
Desmond Ofei’s Black Satellites – Buildup and progression vs reigning U20 AFCON champions Senegal.
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Addressing concerns about favouritism and nepotism in player selection often perceived to be instigated by higher authorities, Ofei was quick to dismiss that.
“We have five scouts in every region, and we selected these players based on certain criteria. We had over 1000 players go through the scouting process, categorized into three groups,” he explained on Asempa FM.
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“We identified players who were ready to represent the national team, those with the potential to do so, and others who needed further development to reach that level.
“Our selection was meticulous, and it paid off. I can confirm that nobody influenced my player selection. There was zero interference,” Ofei asserted.
During the tournament, Ghana were held to a goalless draw in the first game against Congo. They bounced back with crucial wins over Gambia and Benin and Benin to top group A. Desmond Ofei’s boys went on to clinch another important win in the semifinals against Senegal before capping off their impressive show with a late win over Uganda at the Accra Sports Stadium on Friday.
The win saw Ghana record double success in football with the Black Princesses also winning gold earlier by beating archrivals Nigeria in extra time.
Overall Ghana secured a record 19 gold medals across all disciplines in the African Games which added up to 68 total medals to enable the host nation to finish sixth in the final rankings.