Sports News of Tuesday, 2 January 2024
Source: www.ghanaweb.live
2024-01-02How Ghanaians on social media reacted to Black Stars' 27-man squad for 2023 AFCON
Black Stars coach, Chris Hughton
Chris Hughton, the head coach of the Black Stars on Monday, January 1, 2024, announced Ghana’s squad for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
Chris Hughton engaged sports journalists at the Alisa Hotel in Accra
Read full articleto announce his team and also explain some reasons behind the invitation and otherwise of some players.
The squad had usual faces such as Andre Dede Ayew, Jordan, Mohammed Kudus, and Daniel Amartey among others.
It also had three players from the Ghana Premier League who have excelled greatly in the ongoing season.
Kotoko’s Richmond Lamptey and Medeama duo Hamid Abdul Fatawu and Jonathan Sowah will be in Ivory Coast for the tournament.
The notable absentees in the list include Thomas Partey, Tariq Lamptey, Baba Rahman, Fatawu Issahaku and Kamaldeen Sulemana.
Explaining Thomas Partey’s situation, coach Chris Hughton said ““Thomas Partey is one of our most important players. Without his injury, he certainly would be in the squad; we know the quality of the player he is. This is a player that suffered a substantial injury,” stated Hughton.
“I’ve spent a lot of this period of time with Thomas and also engaged the medical staff at Arsenal. They will treat this injury with caution, and so will the player. This is a big injury for him, the biggest injury he’s had.”
“The most important thing for me as head coach is to give him the support he needs during this period of time. From all the information we’ve been given, the timelines of his recovery and the caution that will be taken, [his recovery] will not meet our timelines for the AFCON.”
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Baba Rahman has also taken to social media to explain the decision to recuse himself from the squad explaining that the decision is in the interest of his career and personal life.
On social media, there have been a myriad of reactions from Ghanaians to the announcement of the squad.
While some are happy with the team, others believe that the inclusion of some players does not bode well for the Black Stars.
Read the reactions below
