Is Chris Hughton because they can control him -Sam George

Member of Parliament for Ningo-Prampram has claimed that the Ghana Football Association’s choice of Chris Hughton as the new head coach of the Black Stars is because he is someone they can control.

According to the lawmaker, the GFA wants someone they can control when it comes to player selection and Chris Hughton suits their profile. He reacted to the GFA decision during a discussion on TV3.

“Why Chris Hughton? Is he the best hand available? Or is it because, he will be malleable and acceptable to the interest of people at the FA,” he asked.

He explained his reasoning by adding that selection into the national team is premised on favouritism other than merit.

“…the point I’m making here is that, the problem of Black Stars is one of favouritism, and one where we are not selecting our best players. It has become an issue of people having to pay money to even get selection,” he alleged adding that “or you have relationships and godfathers in the FA who will decide that this is the coach’s selection and tactics”.

The GFA on Sunday, February 12 announced the former Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton and Hove Albion manager as the new head coach of the Black Stars. He replaces Otto Addo who led the team through the playoff for the 2022 World Cup against Nigeria and oversaw the Black Stars abysmal run in Qatar. Chris Hughton served as Otto Addo’s technical advisor during that time while his current assistants of George Boateng and Didi Dramani were also assistants to the former Ghana midfielder.

Prior to the appointment of Otto Addo, many Ghanaian fans were calling for the role to be given to the ex-Ireland defender. His first assignment is to lead the Black Stars against Angola in the African Cup of Nations qualifiers in March.