Otto Addo, the head coach of the Black Stars says other players are doing better than Joseph Paintsil, hence his decision to exclude him from his squad for Brazil and Nicaragua friendly games.
Paintsil, who has been on in impressive form for KRC Genk in the Belgian topflight was left out of Addo’s 29-man squad.
The decision by the gaffer has led to divided opinions in football circles.
Quizzed on the decision to drop the former Tema Youth winger despite making the squad during the previous international window, Addo revealed he only decided what he had seen from his players.
“Joseph [Painstil] is doing very well. It would have been good for him to play the Japan and Chile games to show more of himself but he had problems and decided to leave the team,” he noted.
“Also, he wanted to start with his team [Genk], this one I can I understand. Surely I can just judge what I see.
“At the moment, I see others ahead of him but I think Joseph is a good player. He’s not with the squad now, it doesn’t mean everything is gone. Anything can still happen, we are monitoring all the players, and their performances so the gate is not closed.”
Paintsil has been directly involved in six goals in eight appearances for Genk this season and recently extended his contract with the club.
Ghana will take on Brazil on Friday, September 23 at the La Harve in France before taking on Nicaragua on Tuesday, September 27 in Spain.