The current playing body of the Black Stars will miss the final farewell of a late colleague, Christian Atsu.
The 31-year-old is scheduled to be laid to rest on Friday, March 17.
However, the 25-man squad announced for the upcoming 2023 Africa Cup of Nations [AFCON] qualifiers against Angola will miss the final funeral rites.
The players will arrive in the country after the burial of Atsu in his hometown, Dogobome.
Andre Ayew, Thomas Partey, Jordan Ayew, and Daniel Amartey among others will miss an opportunity to pay their last respect to their former playing mate.
When asked whether the Black Stars would have any particular role to play at the funeral, Abdul Haye Yartey, owner of Cheetah FC and Atsu’s local manager, explained that the senior national team were not included in the funeral arrangements of the late footballer.
Yartey, who discovered Atsu’s talent and took him to Portugal to sign with FC Porto, said the preparation was being done by the office of the Chief of Staff, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and the late footballer’s family.
“The preparation for the funeral has not factored in a role by the Black Stars as it stands despite the GFA playing a significant role in the arrangement,” Mr Yartey told the Graphic Sports.
“Preparations are at an advanced stage and I can tell you that the government is playing a major role with the family to ensure Atsu gets a befitting burial.”
Meanwhile, the GFA says they did not factor in the Black Stars in Atsu’s funeral arrangement because the players are expected in town from March 19 after their club engagements but they are working with Atsu’s family and the government to ensure they paid the best of tributes to the late footballer.
“We are in constant communication with the family of Atsu and the government in the preparation for the funeral to ensure we send him off in a befitting way," Henry Asante Twum told Graphic Sports.
“There has not been any inclusion of the Stars because they will be arriving in the country after the funeral on Friday,” he added.
Atsu was confirmed dead after he was trapped in a rubble. His lifeless body was discovered after 12 days of intensive search.
He is famously remembered for winning the best player at the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations [AFCON] in Equatorial Guinea.
Atsu was a member of the Black Stars squad that featured at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.