I believe in Asamoah Gyan - Opeele Boateng

Former Asante Kotoko Assistant Coach, Isaac Opeele Boateng is confident Black Stars Striker Asamoah Gyan will put up his best to help bring the Africa Cup Of Nations trophy to Ghana, ABC News Ghana can confirm.

The leading African goal scorer in the history of the World Cup had earlier written to the technical team of the Senior National Team, the Black Stars, to be excluded from the provisional list of players selected to represent Ghana at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations tournament. He had opted to retire after he was stripped of the captaincy role of the Black Stars team.

But a phone call from the President, according to the player, got him to rescind his decision to quit international football. He says his undying love for Ghana and the appeal by the President of the Republic, were the main reasons why he rescinded his decision.

But that move by the President, and the player, have got many wondering whether or not the authority of the coach of the team, Kwesi Appiah, may not be undermined. There are concerns also about the possibility of a rift between Asamoah Gyan, former Captain of the Black Stars, and Andre Dede Ayew, the current captain of the team.

Many are also worried about the commitment of the former captain of the Stars’ team, Asamoah Gyan as the team prepares for the tournament scheduled to take place in a few weeks time.

But Coach Opeele is backing Gyan to help the team succeed in the upcoming tournament saying the player’s commitment to the national cause cannot be underestimated.

“Asamoah has made himself available, he has spoken with Kwesi Appiah and everything has been put in place and I know he is a humble person, if he gets there, he will speak calmly with the other players. Asamoah is not arrogant,” he said in an interview monitored by ABC News Ghana.

Opeele went further to commend the coach of the Black Stars for his team selection saying a blend of local and foreign talent was exactly what the country needed to make a good showing at the 2019 AFCON tournament.

“Kwesi Appiah has done well for selecting Heart of Oak’s commissioner of defence of Ghana local football, Mohammed Alhassan and Kotoko goalkeeper, Felix Annan, at least this will entice the local fans also to add more support for the team to win the cup,” he said.