Former Ghana coach Chris Hughton says the Black Stars are being harmed by the repeated changes in the national team dugout as they prepare for two crucial 2027 AFCON qualifiers against Somalia under an interim manager.
“When you have inconsistency in the amount of time when a manager is staying, it’s never good,” Hughton told BBC Sport Africa at the Best of Africa Awards.
“You want that consistency in the players [and] the players want that consistency in what they see in the manager.”
Ghana opened Group C with consecutive defeats last month, losing 2-0 to Cote d’Ivoire in Bouake before a 4-2 home defeat by The Gambia in Accra.
The results brought Carlos Queiroz’s second spell in charge to an end inside a month. The Ghana Football Association and the Portuguese coach agreed to terminate his contract on October 1.
Kim Bjorkegren, coach of Ghana’s women’s team, has been appointed to oversee the upcoming double-header. Ghana will host Somalia in Sekondi on Thursday, November 12, before travelling for the return fixture on Monday, November 16.
Hughton is familiar with the instability, having been one of five coaches to lead Ghana in the past six years. The other four are Charles Akonnor, Milovan Rajevac, Otto Addo and Queiroz.
Ghana dismissed Hughton in January 2024 after the team failed to progress beyond the group stage at the 2023 AFCON in Cote d’Ivoire.
He said repeated dismissals can affect the mentality of players, who begin to expect that “if he (the coach) doesn’t do well then he won’t be there”.
Hughton also identified a lack of investment and the increasing strength of African football as wider problems for Ghana.
“Many years ago Ghana were at a level that was, if not the best team in Africa, certainly right up there,” he said.
“I think the government needs to do more as regards putting money into the infrastructure.”
He added that Ghana’s domestic game, which “used to produce so many good players”, no longer receives enough support. Hughton said the country’s pitches are poor and supporters are staying away.
Ghana have not won the AFCON since 1982, although they held England to a goalless draw at the 2026 World Cup before losing 1-0 to Colombia in the last 32.
“What I saw in the World Cup is that they represented the country very well, particularly the England game,” Hughton said.
Queiroz’s qualifying campaign was also disrupted by player withdrawals, with six members of his original squad, including Antoine Semenyo and Mohammed Kudus, pulling out.
However, Hughton does not believe the uncertainty around the coaching position was responsible for those absences.
“Whether that was a reason or not, I don’t know. And I probably don’t think so.”
