“The Black Stars will be build around local players”

John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has pledged to revive the Ghana Black Stars if elected in the 2024 elections. The former President, currently on a campaign tour, expressed his commitment to collaborate with the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to reconstruct the national team, focusing on local-based players.

Attributing Ghana’s disappointing performance at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) to the overall decline in football within the country, Mahama outlined his strategy for revitalization. He emphasized the importance of nurturing young talents through collaboration with the football association.

“We performed abysmally because we are not growing our football. So we are going to work with the football association to start caching them young so that we can train them, and give them to local teams. They will get experience before if they even want to travel, abroad they can travel,” Mahama stated.

His vision for the new Black Stars involves building a team around homegrown players. Mahama proposed that domestic players, having trained extensively and played together as a team, should form the core of the squad. Foreign players would then complement the team, but the emphasis would be on blending their skills effectively.

Ghana’s football has faced criticism following the Black Stars’ premature exit from the AFCON, finishing third in Group B with two points. Mahama’s proposed approach aims to address the challenges faced by the national team, fostering teamwork and providing a platform for local talents to shine.