Sports
Do not spare anybody, GFA!
An unidentified person in Germany was reported to have called players of Ghana Premier League side, Elmina Sharks, to throw one of their league fixtures for a $5,000 reward.
This was disclosed to the media by the Deputy General Manager of Elmina Sharks, Aboagye Yeboah, who said he reported the matter to the Ghana Football Association (GFA) but no action was taken.
Sharks themselves are being accused of playing a match-of-convenience against Asante Kotoko to escape the drop on the final day of action. They denied the offence.
But clearly, it tells you how bad the situation is already; and the GFA is all-too aware of how disparaging things could be – and have responded to calls for a probe into the match-day 34 fixture played between Ashanti Gold SC and Inter Allies FC at the Len Clay stadium at Obuasi on Saturday, July 17, 2021.
The two teams have been accused of playing a fixed game after viral social media footage showed what looked like two deliberate own goals scored by Inter Allies defender Hashmin Musah in the 7-0 win for home side AshGold.
In that game, Musah came from the bench and bundled the ball into his own net within 12 minutes and substituted himself just before full-time. It was like saying ‘I have completed my mission so I can now go off the pitch peacefully.’
True to his flimsy defence, Musah claimed rumours were rife ahead of the game that the afternoon had been compromised with scores of 5-0 flying everywhere. His mission in the game was therefore to “spoil the bet.”
But eliciting information that a game is fixed – even when that is the case, does not warrant that negative act which, obviously, brought the game into huge disrepute.
Could it not be possible that he placed a bet on himself, or rather a bet was placed on him to score two own goals? Could it also not be a kind of cover up to do his own thing? Where is the spirit of Fair Play in competitive football when you deliberately score own goals?
Seriously speaking, Hashim is as duplicitous as all those who participated in the match and others outside it. But of course, we need painstaking investigation to get to the bottom of the case and the appropriate sanctions enforced – no matter who is caught in the web.
There are people who believe Hashim should rather be applauded and awarded; limpidly demonstrating that there a deeper lack of understanding of the issue at stake.
Perhaps, if the Inter Allies’ defender was amply educated about match fixing, he and his team would have promptly reported the matter to the GFA, who may have cancelled the match and immediately invite the police to open up an investigation.
Well, this is one aspect – education – that the GFA should be taking a closer look at when they are done with the case before them.
It is limpidly clear now that the betting syndicates have invaded our games and we better nip them in the bud now before our leagues slip into a nadir of international shame and embarrassment.
Former GFA Communications Director, Sannie Daara, could not have put it better.
“The betting syndicates are the real threat to the game because they arrange to compromise the matches so they can win against betting companies. The betting companies are the ones that can bring benefit and legal money to clubs and the league like it does for the EPL, La Liga and all the major competitions of the world.
“The syndicates in our case might include club owners, players, coaches, referees and their rogue agents who are mostly abroad. Armed with the pre-arranged result they visit websites of betting companies abroad to place huge bets to win big. And they use their funds to bribe their surrogates locally to further compromise future matches,” he said.
Indeed, it is true that such combined activities trickle down to the country when many get hold of fixed results to invade the betting companies in Ghana and win millions too.
It is against this saturnine backdrop that the GFA must be commended for collaborating with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service to initiate a snake-pit inquisition into the matter – especially as regards the Inter Allies v AshantiGold game, in order to bring the perpetrators to book.
Truth is that, if we do not take draconian measures now we will witness this same sordid deed again next season. That is why we must not spare anybody caught up in the mesh. Our game must be cleansed!
PlainTalk with JOHN VIGAH
Attention will be at the Golden City Park in Berekum tomorrow as Hearts of Oak lock horns with Berekum Chelsea FC in a Ghana Premier League Matchday 6 game that promises an electrifying atmosphere.
Lying sixth on the league table with two wins and three draws, the Phobians visit a ground that has been favourable to them in recent times. In their last three visits to the Golden City Park, Hearts have amassed seven out of nine points, putting them in strong contention to win.
Head Coach Mas-Ud Didi Dramani says, “The team is making progress in its tactical identity despite the lack of goals, and this is something we are working on ahead of this game.”
Hearts will come face-to-face with former coach Samuel Boadu, whose side lies a distant 13th on the league table with a win and a draw from four games. Coach Boadu is yet to celebrate a victory over the Phobians since joining the Berekum lads and would hope this fixture marks a turnaround.
Ninth-placed Vision FC would trek to the Nana Fosu Gyeabour Park in Bechem to play Bechem United, while new boys Hohoe United host Aduana FC at the Hohoe Sports Stadium.
Returnees Swedru All Blacks will welcome Basake Holy Stars to the Swedru Sports Stadium, with defending league champions Bibiani Gold Stars staying put at their backyard, the Dun’s Park, to welcome second-placed Heart of Lions FC on Monday.
Today at the TnA Stadium in Tarkwa, Medeama SC will clash with Samartex FC in a Western derby. Other games scheduled for today would see Eleven Wonders FC host Karela United at the Swedru Sports Stadium, while Dreams FC face Nations FC at the Tuba Astro Turf.
By Raymond Ackumey
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Ghana coach Otto Addo may not command the kind of fear and respect like Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Luis Enrique and others in the modern game, but in his small corner, he is gradually climbing the ladder to greatness in Ghana, Africa and the world at large.
The aforementioned coaches attained greatness with club sides and, therefore, open an argument over whether one is not comparing apples to oranges. But no matter how one looks at it, they are all coaches harbouring similar ambitions to attain greatness in their fields.
Otto Addo is one of the young and upcoming coaches holding a lot of promise and was getting experience with his association with Borussia Dortmund in Germany until his path was directed by a Ghana call.
Although he was born in Germany, Otto Addo’s association with Ghana football dates back to 1999, spanning a period of about seven years; commencing with a 5–0 rout of Eritrea on February 28. He gained international prominence when he joined the squad for the 2000 African Cup of Nations. He featured as a midfielder in the team for the 2006 FIFA World Cup.
But like it’s often said, a prophet is not recognised in his own home and his efforts partially went unnoticed. He’ll go into the annals as one of the Black Stars coaches to have been fairly or otherwise criticised not just by ‘football people’ but fans who doubted him.
His sack has been discussed at various platforms by people whose knowledge and tactical acumen about the game remains questionable. Ghana’s Minister for Sports and Recreation, Mr Kofi Adams, at one point openly stated his doubts over Otto Addo’s ability to actually deliver.
No coach would feel secured in such turbulent times, but coach Otto Addo kept his calm and composure. On the corridors of his employers, however, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) president, Kurt Okraku, openly rallied support for him, though a few ‘doubting Thomases’ still questioned his credentials.
That painted a picture of a people that forget easily and are quick to crucify. In a brief moment of adversity, Ghanaians forgot how Otto Addo was brought in to pluck qualification for the Qatar 2022 FIFA World Cup from the jaws of the Super Eagles of Nigeria with a solitary goal over two legs.
The upshot of that feat was not one any Nigerian would want to remember. The scenes after the match were awfully chaotic, as fans vented their anger on facilities at the stadium. Back in Ghana, it was partying all night and day.
Otto Addo was labeled the football magician. He achieved something no Ghanaian coach had ever accomplished; a feat which Ghana with her all-time best teams could not attain. That was the climax to which Otto Addo took Ghana football, generating calls to start believing in the Ghanaian coach.
Following that to the World Cup proper was another story altogether. It was, or may have been, our poorest show at any of the four World Cup appearances. And just as it was stipulated in his contract, he bowed out after the Qatar World Cup to mind his Borussia Dortmund business with peace.
But as fate would have it, nature found a way to renew his romance with Ghana football after an unconvincing start to the America, Canada and Mexico dream World Cup under special advisor turned coach, Chris Hughton.
Ghana started the qualifiers on a winning note but not a convincing performance. It was saved by an Inaki Williams goal scored on the sixth minute of additional time against Madagascar at the Baba Yara Sports Stadium. The Black Stars then slumped to a 1-0 defeat at the Stade de Moroni to Comoros to heighten calls for a new technical direction.
Then stepped in Otto Addo when Ghana occupied the fourth position in Group I with three points but with the countries in the group evenly matched.
By Andrew Nortey
