Ghana Football Association Executive Council member, Frederick Acheampong, has publicly stated that Chris Hughton was not the right choice for the Black Stars coaching job, and his failure to succeed did not come as a surprise.
Hughton was recently dismissed following Ghana’s disappointing performance at AFCON 2023, where they failed to win a single match in the group stage and were eliminated from the competition.
Acheampong criticised Hughton’s performance on Akoma FM, stating, “Chris Hughton, who took over the Black Stars Technical Advisory job, learned nothing, and the matches he played were unconvincing, even when we won. From the start, I saw him (Chris Hughton) as the wrong choice to lead our senior national squad.”
In the same interview, Acheampong defended the association against criticism over the team’s recent failures.
The Black Stars have not progressed beyond the group stage of their last three major tournaments and have not won a single AFCON match since 2019.
“People have attributed the Black Stars’ recent bad performance to the FA, claiming that we have failed, but this is false. I absolutely believe we will bounce back to our golden days, especially given the process we have begun by establishing the fundamentals,” he said.
Regarding the search for Hughton’s successor, a committee led by GFA Vice President Mark Addo is actively seeking a coach with 15 years of experience and a proven track record of winning.
Acheampong acknowledged the past challenges in appointing coaches but expressed confidence in the current criteria.
He said, “We admit that the appointment of coaches in the past has been problematic, but based on the criteria stated this time, the FA will hire a competent coach and will undoubtedly make the right choice this time around.”
Acheampong ended by disclosing that Herve Renard, a two-time AFCON winner, is the preferred choice for the job, but financial constraints may hinder his appointment.
He explained, “Hervé Renard has always been the preferred choice of the FA since the departure of CK Akonnor, and while the coach is willing to coach Ghana, the economic circumstances make it difficult for us to hire him.”