Chris Hughton was not imposed on GFA – Kurt Okraku
“The Executive Council had trust in him. We had a clear plan for him and we executed the plan."
Ghana Football Association (GFA) President, Kurt Okraku has responded to reports that their appointment of Black Stars coach Chris Hughton was a government directive.
The 64-year-old gaffer has enjoyed quite a good start as new boss of the male senior national team.
In an interview with Juliet Bawuah on SuperSport TV, Kurt Okraku dismissed the assertion that the ex-Premier League manager was imposed on the GFA with assurance that they have complete trust in his capabilities.
“Chris Hughton is a coach contracted by GFA for our senior national team, the Black Stars. He wouldn’t be Ghana’s coach if we had no belief in him.
“So long as he is the coach, he has the support of the Executive Council and the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
“We have been very supportive of his works and will forever continue to give him all the support he needs to ensure we succeed together.”
“We trust in him and the rest of the backroom staff. We have to give them trust and time,” the GFA boss added.
Hughton was in contention for the job after the GFA decided to sack Milovan Rajevac prior after a poor outing with the Black Stars at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Cameroon.
Despite pressure from very influential quarters, football authorities opted for Otto Addo to lead as acting head coach. They then engaged Hughton to join the backroom as Technical Advisor.
Chris Hughton starts Black Stars journey with Technical Advisor role
Hughton acted in the role from 2022 Fifa World Cup qualifying playoffs until the Black Stars’ campaign at Qatar ended.
“The Executive Council had trust in him. We had a clear plan for him and we executed the plan,” Okraku touted.
He then elaborated: “Before we gave the job to Otto Addo, we knew he wouldn’t stay beyond December and we had a succession plan and his successor was Chris.
“It is the reason we brought him closer. And that was for him to get to know the team and the players culture.
“It was a very clear strategy that we deployed and today Chris is in a better position to take over the team. Better than he would have been if we had handed him the responsibility earlier.”
Chris Hughton received his appointment as substantive Ghana boss last February on a deal that is to run through t until December 2024.
He has played two competitive games – a 1-0 home win and 1-1 draw away to Angola in the 2023 Afcon qualifiers. He returns with his charges for another bout of the campaign to the Cote d’Ivoire tournament this June.
