Former Ghana international Augustine Arhinful says interference by club executives in technical decisions is discouraging qualified coaches from pursuing coaching careers in Ghana, calling on the Ghana Football Association (GFA) to establish a dedicated Technical Committee to strengthen oversight of the game.
Arhinful, a CAF Licence A-qualified coach, said he had not pursued a coaching career because he was unwilling to work in an environment where club officials could dictate player selection and other decisions that should fall within a coach’s professional responsibilities.
Speaking on Ahenfie FM, the former Black Stars striker questioned the extent of authority granted to coaches, arguing that those entrusted with managing teams must be allowed to exercise their technical judgement without undue pressure from club executives.
“This is why I haven’t coached. I am a certified Licence A coach, but I haven’t bothered to try coaching. Because I won’t coach a team, and the chairman of the team will select players for me to use on matchday,” he said.
He warned that such interference creates an unfair situation in which coaches are held accountable for results despite not having full control over the decisions that influence team performance.
According to Arhinful, club chairmen who insist on selecting players may still blame coaches when results fail to meet expectations.
“Even if I use the players he suggests, and the results don’t favour us, the chairman will turn around and blame me for the results. So I would prefer to stay at home,” he added.
To address the problem, Arhinful called on the GFA to establish a Technical Committee responsible for overseeing technical matters and ensuring that decisions affecting football development are guided by professional expertise.
He acknowledged that the Association has a Technical Directorate but questioned whether a functioning Technical Committee currently exists to provide the necessary oversight.
“This time around, have you heard that the GFA has a Technical Committee? But we have the Technical Directorate. There’s a Technical Directorate. But we don’t have a Technical Committee, not one I know of anyway. But as a Federation, we should have a Technical Committee that will be in charge of all these technical matters,” he said.
Arhinful also criticised what he described as a tendency for financial contributors to clubs to disregard the expertise of technical professionals, insisting that coaches’ recommendations should receive serious consideration.
“We are in a country where everyone shares their opinions, so if there is a technical person who knows the work and they speak, we don’t take it. Because those who use their money to fund football think they know more than the technical people they have put in charge of the team,” he said.
He believes a dedicated Technical Committee could help improve accountability, clarify responsibilities and strengthen respect for professional coaching decisions in Ghanaian football.
