The Black Stars drew their seventh 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying game against Chad on Thursday, September 4, 2025.
Celestin Ecua of Chad capitalised on a porous Ghanaian defence to equalise in the 89th minute, after Jordan Ayew had put Ghana ahead early in the 17th minute.
Since the result, unsatisfactory reactions have poured in from Ghanaian fans across the country, with some labelling the technical team as unfit for the job.
Ghana’s head coach, Otto Addo, attributed the team’s poor performance to the state of the Marshal Idriss Deby Itno Olympic Stadium, which hosted the match.
“The pitch was very slow for us. It makes it difficult to outplay the defenders,” Otto said after the game.
“They need to put water on it. The pitch was hard, and we couldn’t play fast. It was a disadvantage for us,” he added.
However, some stakeholders strongly disagree with the coach’s explanation. One of them, former Communications Director of the GFA, Ibrahim Sannie Daara, believes the real damage was caused by the timing of the Black Stars’ budget release.
He criticised the Sports Minister’s decision to make the budget public just about 48 hours before the Chad match.
“Which military in the history of mankind has been so foolish as to announce the reduction of the salaries of soldiers before a war? The timing of the Black Stars’ budget was completely needless!” he said on Sporty FM.
Interestingly, many Ghanaian fans and media personnel welcomed the Sports Minister’s move to publish the budget before the match. For years, taxpayers have demanded transparency, as the Black Stars’ budget typically remains hidden until after games or tournaments.
To the Sports Minister, Kofi Adams, the move will fulfil a campaign promise made by his government while in opposition, to ensure budgets are revealed before matches.
But Sannie Daara’s argument raises a lingering question: Can professional Black Stars players be demotivated simply because budget details have been shared with the very taxpayers who fund them?
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Story by: Simon Owusu Prempeh|univers.ug.edu.gh
Edited by Pius Asack
