体坛英语新闻：Ghana risks revisiting soccer "dark days" over captaincy row

ACCRA, Feb. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Sports Association of Ghana (SAG) said here on Monday that the West African country risked going back to the "dark days" twenty years ago when the national team was rocked by captaincy row if the issue was not resolved immediately.

The national team had come a long way from the era when the captain's band was the source of friction instead of harmony, a major factor behind its failure to be qualified for two successive World Cups as well as the last four editions of the Africa Cup of Nations since 2008.

In a statement issued here, SAG Secretary General William Ezah contended that Ghana could not afford to revisit the "dark days" of modest successes when conditions were congenial for the national team.

SAG was worried over reports from the camp of the national team in Gabon that issues bordering on the captainship arose during the semifinal game against Zambia last Wednesday.

Therefore, it called on the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to deal with the perceived captaincy row that seems to be rearing its ugly head in the team once again as early as possible before it got out of hand.

The statement noted with concern that a similar row over the captain's band largely accounted for the reported near-split that rocked the team 20 years ago when the Black Stars were on the verge of winning the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations in Senegal in 1992.

The SWAG appealed to the GFA to spell out the qualities and criteria for selecting a captain for the national team and define clearly the pecking order in terms of assuming captaincy of the team.

On the performance of the team in the African Cup of Nations, it said it was a deep source of concern with regard to player selection and the approach of Coach Goran Stevanovic in the management of the team since assuming office as the head coach.

SWAG claimed that selection into the national team has not been the best with the selection of some players flying in the face of common sense and appreciation of football before the start of the tournament.

It was evident that some players who had over the past months become bench warmers in Europe found their way into the national at the expense of players who were regular in their respective teams, even on the local scene, the statement added.

Ghanaian soccer fans have expressed disquiet over selection into the national team, alleging that certain individual were interfering with the process, an allegation the football association has flatly refuted.

The statement urged the GFA to begin preparations for the qualifiers for the next African Cup of Nations scheduled in South Africa early next year.

Ghana, pre-tournament favorites in the just ended Nations Cup co-hosted by Gabon and Equatorial Guinea, placed fourth after losing 0-2 to Mali in the third place match last Saturday.