By Nana Kwame Bediako
Black Stars head coach Otto Addo named his 26-man squad on Wednesday, May 29, 2024, at the headquarters of the Ghana Football Association ahead of Ghana’s crucial World Cup qualification doubleheader games against Mali and the Central African Republic.
Otto Addo announcing his squad broke unfortunate news as there was no sign of the national team captain, Andre Ayew, in the squad, casting numerous thoughts on the minds of many Ghanaian football fans on the exact reason behind the omission of the 34-year-old.
Andre Ayew has been a key member of the Ghana national team, both for the youth and senior sides, since joining in 2007. The midfielder, throughout his career with his national team, has given his best for the shirt, earning a record 120 caps and scoring 24 goals for Ghana, although he sometimes falls victim to criticism from Ghanaians when things go otherwise.
This bold decision taken by Otto Addo will be monitored closely as the team prepares to inflame some new system into the squad without team captain Andre Ayew playing a key part of it, despite having recently been called up to the team for the friendly games against Nigeria and Uganda two months ago.
However, this can’t discount the good season Andre Ayew had, with his club side Le Harve, putting up six goals to help them secure a spot in the French Ligue 1 for next season.
On the flip side, Ghana will kick off preparations on Thursday, May 30, at the University of Ghana Sports Stadium for six days before heading to Bamako, Mali, on Tuesday, June 4, 2024, to play against their opponent Mali two days later at the Stade 26 Mars before playing their second match against Central African Republic at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium in Kumasi.
