Member of the Executive Council of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kwesi Appiah has emphasized the importance of coaching autonomy in the various national teams.
In an interview with Asempa FM, Appiah who is also the head coach of Sudan, expressed his strong views on coaches being influenced in their decision-making.
He stated that it’s not appropriate for anyone to dictate a coach’s decisions, and if a coach allows this to happen, he would have reservations about their competence.
Appiah drew a clear distinction between club and national team coaching, noting that while there may be some influence at the club level, it’s crucial for a national team coach to stand by their decisions.
He emphasized that at the national team level, coaches should be resolute in their player call-ups and decisions, maintaining their autonomy.
“If you are a coach and you allow yourself to be dictated to then, I will have a problem. It is not appropriate for anybody to do that but if it happens and you the coach bow to that, from that time, I will respect you again and I will conclude that you don’t know your job because once you accept the influence, the player call ups will be determined by them.
“As a national team coach, the coach must stand by his decision. We see that at the club side because that is a developing area but not at the national team,” he added.
