Ghana’s youth football programme needs more competent and properly equipped coaches, according to Prosper Narteh Ogum, head coach of the men’s Under-17 national team, the Black Starlets.
Ogum said Ghana had too few “quality, qualified” coaches working at youth level and called for more experienced and capable personnel to be assigned to grassroots football.
He made the comments on the sidelines of the 32nd Ghana Football Association (GFA) Ordinary Congress at the Ghanaman Soccer Centre of Excellence.
The Black Starlets coach was speaking against the backdrop of contrasting performances by Ghana’s national youth teams. While the women’s Under-17 and Under-20 sides have secured qualification for the World Cup in their respective age categories, Ghana’s men’s teams have continued to struggle to reach the same tournaments.
The men’s Under-17 team have not qualified for the World Cup since 2017. Ghana’s men’s Under-20 side have endured an even longer absence, having last reached the competition in 2015.
Ogum believes improving the quality of coaching at the foundation level is an important step towards addressing those results. He advocated for coaches who are properly prepared to work with young players to be placed in grassroots roles.
His appeal comes as Ghana’s record in youth football shows a clear difference between the women’s and men’s divisions. The women’s Under-17 and Under-20 teams have managed to earn World Cup places, while the corresponding men’s teams have been unable to do so in recent qualification cycles.
For Ogum, the issue is not simply the availability of coaches, but whether those working with young players have the appropriate competence and preparation for the role. He therefore urged the football authorities to ensure that youth teams and grassroots programmes are handled by coaches equipped to develop players at that stage of their careers.
The call also places renewed focus on the importance of youth development within Ghanaian football. The Under-17 and Under-20 levels are the pathway through which young players progress into senior international football, making the standard of coaching at those stages particularly significant.
However, the immediate concern remains Ghana’s failure to return to the men’s youth World Cup competitions. The Under-17 team have been absent since 2017, while the Under-20 side have not qualified since 2015.
Ogum’s comments therefore amount to a call for a more deliberate approach to coaching appointments at the grassroots, with greater emphasis on quality and suitability for youth football. He said assigning well-equipped coaches to those positions would help address the challenges facing Ghana’s men’s youth teams.
