Sports

Put football ahead of personal gains …Nii Lantey Vanderpuye tells new GFA team

Former Minister of Youth and Sports, Nii Lantey Vanderpuye has asked the newly elected executive of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to eschew selfishness and greediness in their administration as they rebuild the image of the association.

According to him, that would be the only way to ensure that they focus on football development for the benefit of the country.

“One of the woes of our football is that, people become selfish and greedy and think about themselves and what they stand to gain more than what the nation would get from football. If those sentiments continue, we would be going back to square one and not achieve all the results we are looking for, “he said on Accra-based Citi FM.

In order to move forward, he charged the Kurt Okraku-led administration to put football ahead of their personal gains.

“I pray that God would touch the hearts of the people we have elected, instigate their patriotic instincts to be nationalistic; have the passion and desire and be sacrificial to enhance football instead of themselves,” he said.

He added that, the management of national teams should be a key area to be addressed by the new administration, having been mismanaged in the previous administration.

“There must be a practical approach to develop a proper Under 12, 15 and 17 teams and competitions just like other countries in Europe to unearth talented young players for the national teams,” he stressed.

He said, the current administration has a very formidable Executive Council (ExCo) that would assist in transforming football for the better.

Mr Vanderpuye advised that some of the candidates who lost the elections can be involved to share their knowledge to help develop football.

“There is the need to also create the synergy between the GFA and Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS) to have a cohesive working relationship to develop our game,” he added.

Everyone, he said, must hold the new ‘football people’ accountable and not allow themselves to be influenced by sports administrators.

He congratulated the delegates for the discipline and patience on Friday during the elections, adding that, their composure painted a good picture for the future of football in the country.

“The congress was very peaceful, successful and very good for Ghana football in achieving what we have all been looking for; that is, transparency, fair play and accountability in our football,” he stated.

BY MICHAEL D. ABAYATEYE

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