President John Dramani Mahama has encouraged the Black Stars to play their hearts out in tonight’s crucial final against the Elephants of Côte D’Ivoire.
“With determination, discipline, dedication to duty, fortitude and patriotism, you shall emerge victorious”, the President said in a goodwill message on behalf of all Ghanaians, both home and abroad.
[contextly_sidebar id=”814cabBpOhW3wXE4E0gWAkTJw76o1oal”]The Black Stars have come under heavy criticism following the saga of the 2014 World Cup over the payment of appearance fees.
There has been a growing perception from sections of the general public that financial reward is the motivation for the team and not national pride.
Ghana FA president, Kwesi Nyantakyi, who was giving explanations as to why the team performed poorly at the Brazil World Cup Tournament in 2014, attributed the team’s failure to cross the first round to the “appearance fee syndrome”.
“Money, money, money had been the refrain by the players, and it is a pity they allowed this to ruin our World Cup,” he said tearfully.
Many Ghanaians have also called for a dissolution of the team since many believe it lacks the required commitment needed to ensure victory in subsequent tournaments.
Commenting on the development, Mahama said : “many were angry from the last world cup the team played, and so when they started this AFCON, we[Ghanaians] did not have faith that they will be able to do anything meaningful..”
The President said though most Ghanaians have lost faith in the team, their performance in this recent tournament has been impressive, saying “after we met with Algeria, we scored a goal at the last minute and we did well…We met with Guinea and we were able to score 3 goals.”
He therefore urged Ghanaians to remember the team in their prayers ahead of the final match of the 2015 African Nations Cup, ongoing in Equatorial Guinea.
“Let us ask God for more favour for the Black Stars to do well in this match. We have been seeking to win this cup since 1982 so I am pleading with the Black Stars to do well in this match so we can bring the cup home.”
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By: Marian Efe Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana