Former Black Stars attacker, Augustine Arhinful has bemoaned the laid back demeanor of Black Stars head coach James Kwesi Appiah on the technical bench and has called on him to be more assertive going forward.
Ghana failed the round of 16 test when they came up against the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia on Monday, July 8, 2019.
Having ended the match 1-1 at the end of the 90 minutes plus extra time, the North African side went on to beat the Black Stars 5-4 on penalties. The result as expected eliminated Ghana from this year’s tournament.
The gaffer after the match has received backlash from some Ghanaians who believe his laid-back demeanor on the touchline did not help the course of the team and resulted in their loss yesterday.
Speaking on the issue on Fox FM earlier today, Augustine Arhinful opined that Coach Kwesi Appiah is naturally an introvert and does not look authorities when he is on the technical bench discharging his duties.
The former Dortmund star shared, “Our coach if you look at his demeanor, he’s always been like that and maybe he’s not like me, maybe he’s not like any other person”, Arhinful started, speaking to Fox Sports Talk. “For a national team if you come to take it up you need to be vociferous, if not you then it has to be your assistant.
He added, “Neither him (Kwasi Appiah) nor [Ibrahim] Tanko nor Stephen [Appiah] or Kinston is that, so even if it’s not him (Kwasi Appiah) has to talk, maybe one of them, you have to come out clear (about your policies) for people to know”.
He further stressed that coach Kwesi Appiah must adapt into a more assertive and a bit vociferous person if he is to continue as the head coach for the Ghana Black Stars.
“For Kwasi I think if he will continue to do the Black Stars job he has to be a bit assertive, he’s too laid back for that position, as a national team coach, master…oh, because when you are talking about your format you should be clear, you need to be clear to the public, let them understand you, even if they don’t understand you let them understand, because it’s you who know what you want the team to be like”, Arhinful emphasized.