Former Ghana Football Association (GFA) chairman, Dr. Nyaho-Nyaho Tamakloe, has strongly criticized Black Stars coach Chris Hughton for his decision to exclude Asante Kotoko midfielder Richmond Lamptey from the match against Namibia.
Dr. Tamakloe’s remarks come in the aftermath of the Black Stars’ goalless draw against the Brave Warriors in a friendly game at the Baba Yara Stadium on Monday night.
The match was a crucial part of the team’s preparations for the upcoming 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast, set to kick off this weekend. Despite Lamptey’s exceptional performance for Asante Kotoko in the ongoing 2023/24 Ghana Premier League, he was conspicuously absent from the game.
Expressing his discontent, Tamakloe, a vocal politician and football administrator, labeled Chris Hughton as clueless and useless for not giving Lamptey the opportunity to showcase his talents. He emphasized that the talented midfielder has much to contribute, stressing the importance of giving local players the chance to compete at the national level.
“I was told that the Asante Kotoko player (Richmond Lamptey) was not given the opportunity to play yesterday against Namibia,” Tamakloe revealed during an interview on Asempa FM’.
“The coach (Chris Hughton) is totally useless. The idea is that we bring them from the outside, thinking that they are better than our local boys, which I disagree with. I was expecting him to handle the local players in such a way that they could be better than the so-called foreign players that we have.”
Expressing disappointment in the coach’s decision, Tamakloe highlighted Lamptey’s potential and insisted on the need for effective handling of local talents. He pointed out that Ghana had succeeded in the past with an all-local player squad, questioning the competence of the coaching staff.
“It has happened in this country before where all the players invited to the Black Stars camp were local players, and yet we won our games. I am surprised, and this tells us that it is either we don’t know what we are doing or the coaches we bring in are useless and can never help us,” he added.
As the Black Stars gear up for the AFCON, they will undergo their final training at the Baba Yara Stadium today before departing for the tournament on Wednesday, November 10. Ghana finds itself in Group B alongside Cape Verde and Mozambique.