FORMER president of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Lepowura Alhaji MND Jawula, believes Ghana is supremely capable of annexing the African Cup of Nations Golden Fleece in Egypt, next month.
“Without any scintilla of doubt, we appear to have the materials to deliver in Cairo, after 37 years of waiting,” he told the Times Sports at the weekend.
However, he said breaking that embarrassing trophy hoodoo, would take more than quality player performance on the pitch.
“It’s a national crusade – and we as a nation must work religiously towards it – from the First Citizen to the ordinary Ghanaian.
“Indeed, we need all hands on deck and we must temporarily bury all our political colours with every citizen playing their bit to ensure the dream is accomplished,” said Lepowura Jawula, who is presently a senior member of the CAF Inter Club Committee.
He stressed the time come for every right-thinking Ghanaian to throw their unflinching support behind the Black Stars, cautioning that the team itself ought to be wholeheartedly united, bury all differences and focus on the ultimate goal for the good of the nation.
Lepowura Jawula was delighted by the decision of former captain Asamoah Gyan to rescind his retirement decision, following the Presidential intervention.
“Gyan’s U-turn is perfect and in the right direction,” he noted, lauding President Nana Akufo Addo for stepping in timely.
“Traditionally, the Black Stars, since independence have been the baby of various Presidents and Heads of State of the Republic, and the current president has underlined that fact.”
Lepowura Jawula, however, warned that the “schism emerging from the captaincy of the Black Stars could rob us of a potential trophy at the Cup of Nations, if the situation is not effectively handled.”
Former captain Andre Dede Ayew was last Thursday appointed new captain of the Black Stars, taking over from Gyan, who becomes the general captain.
But even before Coach Kwesi Appiah could unmask his new leader, Gyan had already nailed his colours to the mast – only to make a swift return after the President’s intervention.
The former GFA boss believes the players must be talked to and made to look at the bigger picture “which is Ghana’s interest alone.”
According to Lepowura Jawula, experience in the past tournaments had limpidly shown that the African Cup of Nations was about youth and power, advising the coach to be guided.
“Appiah’s selection shouldn’t overly be dwelled on names, but also about match fitness,” he asserted, adding that the coach must work his fingers to the bone and build a formidable team “so that injury to one or two players, wouldn’t be calamitous.”
The revered CAF Inter Club Committee member emphasised his belief in the Stars to break the 37-year-old trophy jinx, insisting that the nation importantly needs unity and cohesion, to nail it.
BY JOHN VIGAH
