Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu, a former midfielder for Ghana, has expressed disapproval with the way the senior national squad is now being assembled.
Citing a perceived dearth of potential in the domestic league, Ghana has been relying more and more on foreign-trained players to bolster the Black Stars.
FIFA U-20 World Cup winner Agyemang-Badu voiced displeasure over the lack of a systematic and long-term approach for developing a competitive national side.
He emphasized the Ben Koufie era, in which players such as Michael Essien and Sulley Muntari were formed over the course of a five-year development plan.
Using his own experience from winning the 2009 World Cup with the U-20 team and his smooth transition into the senior squad, Agyemang-Badu underlined the significance of a succession plan, which he feels is now absent.
There is no plan, he said, speaking on UTV. Ben Koufie oversaw a five-year development plan that yielded players from the young national teams, including Michael Essien and Sulley Muntari.
Agyemang-Badu went on to consider his generation’s path from the U-20 team’s success to their inclusion in the senior squad, highlighting their preparedness to take on leadership roles as the older players retired.
He bemoaned, hinting to a worrying deterioration in young development, “It’s been 15 years since we won that U-20 trophy for Ghana, but unfortunately, we don’t have a U-20 side close to the strength of the 2009 team.”
His comments highlighted more significant problems in Ghanaian football and forced a critical analysis of the country’s methods for developing young players and assembling squads.
