DESPERATION to succeed may be adorable, but sometimes, it could trigger a negative adrenaline for failure. 

In the case of the coach, they dare not play the Russian roulette; they got to be wholly focused, calculated and strategic in their manoevres to clinching the desired result. For, desperation can ultimately lead to destruction. 

So, what are we trying to say, at all?

Somewhere last week or so, we were boldly told that the ‘sweat merchant’ of the Black Stars – Coach Charles Kwablan Akonnor, had handed a call-up to Kelvin Yeboah – a 21-year-old Italian-Ghanaian forward who features for Austrian Bundesliga side SK Sturm Graz.

The prolific Yeboah, nephew of Ghana’s retired icon Anthony Yeboah, is reported to be in some swashbuckling, smashing form in Europe – banging in goals like nobody’s business. 

So, Ghanaians were naturally elated with the supposed ‘big catch’ when Yeboah’s name thundered across the country – believing Ghana was steadily building a formidably winsome team for a famished African conquest (Cameroon 2021).  Fiasco!

Sadly, barely 24 hours or so later, we were almost stunned into petrified silence to learn that the same player had reacted positively to a call-up into the Italian Under-21 team over Ghana’s senior national team – a former FIFA World Cup quarter finalist. 

The Italian Under-21 team were to play against neophytes like Luxembourg and Montenegro during the international break.

Indeed, many thought it was a huge embarrassment to the nation to watch Yeboah choose an Under-21 outfit over a senior national team of his native people. 

But do not blame Yeboah! He has committed no crime. There are 64,000-dollar questions that have to be answered.

Question number one: How was Yeboah invited? Who spoke to him, and did the young precocious striker agree to the invitation? Why would he opt for the Italian U-21 national team when very aware that Ghana had struck the first move? What did we not do right in this regard? Did Akonnor really have a personal interaction with him ahead of the call-up? Or, we were just interested in giving Yeboah an invitation in order to avert Italy from initiating any move?

Whatever the response may be, it is limpidly evident that the Ghana Football Association (GFA) and Akonnor failed in snatching the talented finisher; and that is not good for the Black Stars brand. 

Perhaps, we may not have lost Yeboah totally since he was not invited to Italy’s senior national side, but seriously, we ought to pick some harsh lessons in this regard.

The other day, too, we were told Ghana’s Southampton of England sturdy defender, Salifu Mohammed, was all-too ready to play for the Black Stars and was subsequently handed a call-up only for the player to turn his back on the nation. 

Coach Akonnor himself had assured us of his availability, but we were later to dine with another disappointment. 

It is true we need hordes of quality performers to build up the Black Stars into a fearsome unit. However, we must not out of desperation compel or cajole players into featuring for Ghana. No, it must not happen!

True, we may not have garnered home the African Cup ‘Holy Grail’ for nearly four decades – after the glories of 1963, ‘65, ‘78 and ‘82, but the senior national team is still freshly attractive. 

No matter what the situation is or how it looks like, players – whether megastars or superstars, must not be kowtowed to in an attempt to woo them into playing for their own motherland. 

They must play out of a supreme conviction to serve their country, and once they decline, we should respect their decision and leave them to their fate.

By so doing, we will succeed into erecting an aura of respect and reverence around the team whose members would now feel more nationalistic and be prepared to die a little more for a country that holds them in high esteem.