AFCON 2015: Ghana expectations lower after World Cup heartbreak, but Avram Grant must still deliver

By Prince Teye 

It is not often that Ghana heads towards an Africa Cup of Nations tournament with an objective as simple as just “do well.”

Surreal as it sounds, the phrase used by the President of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kwesi Nyantakyi, during a recent press briefing, sums up Ghana’s recent predicament at international level, as the 30th African Cup of Nations tournament beckons.

Life after 2014 FIFA World Cup debacle

The shadow of Ghana’s disgrace at the 2014 FIFA World Cup lingers on. From issues relating to the suspension of Kevin-Prince Boateng and Sulley Muntari; the farcical airlift of over $3.5m in cash to Brazil to settle outstanding player appearance fees, to the unceremonious nature of their elimination, it is easy to understand why American movie outfit, Bugeater Films is considering shooting a blockbuster out of the spectacle. But there were still consequences to come.

With the public back home clearly feeling incredibly let down by the team, the Black Stars have not been given an easy time of it with vilification pouring in from all quarters.

Coming to terms with the Black Stars’ apparent apathy has been a bitter pill to swallow. With soaring anger and disinterest came a massive public boycott for the team’s first outing following the World Cup – a 2015 AFCON qualifier against Uganda. Tellingly, the attendance was at its lowest in years.

The formerly high-spirited atmosphere that had accompanied the Black Stars had turned into jaded boos and blatant disgust. It may be fair to say, there has never been such a dramatic change in public opinion towards such a formerly lauded national side.

A patchy AFCON 2015 Ghana qualifying campaign was to follow – with a ticket to the group stages clinched just in the nick of time. In a group alongside Togo, Guinea and Uganda, the Black Stars only booked their place following some uninspiring displays including draws to Cranes of Uganda (home), Guinea (away) and a 1-0 reverse away to the Cranes at the revered Mandela Stadium in Kampala.

Enter Avram Grant

After publicly backing under-fire trainer Kwesi Appiah – and even going as far as renewing his contract despite the World Cup debacle – the GFA brought a rather shocking brusque end to his reign. It announced the termination of his contract after a hard-fought 3-2 win away at Togo, in only Ghana’s second game after the World Cup.

Numerous sources suggest that the GFA had felt ‘disrespected’ by Appiah’s public declaration that he did not request for a technical adviser as proposed by the GFA – a consideration which had seen former Ghana trainer Milovan Rajevac, already in the country at the time for talks over the role, jump into the lead as forerunner to replace Appiah.

Having led the Black Stars to the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Cup, Rajevac’s comeback appeared to be on the cards, only to hit a snag when talks reportedly broke down over finances.

Former Chelsea boss Avram Grant would eventually get the nod from a five-man shortlist which had seen the two leading candidates: Marco Tardelli, a former Italian World Cup winner, and former Real Madrid manager Bernd Schuster – withdraw. However, without a doubt, neither caused more stir than the withdrawal of former Netherlands striker Patrick Kluivert who had been public favorite to get the position.

AFCON 2015 Ghana expects…

Drawn in the so-called ‘Group of Death’ alongside Algeria, Senegal and South Africa, what actually lies ahead may perhaps play out a true baptism of fire for Israeli Grant. Admittedly, an enormous amount of pressure may have been lifted off the 59-year-old’s shoulders when the president of the GFA disclosed Grant’s immediate task at the AFCON as simply “to do well” at his unveiling.

“His contract contains targets with some benchmarks; doing well in the AFCON 2015, winning the 2017 AFCON and placing well in the qualification to the 2018 World Cup,” Nyantakyi said.

Even so, the former Portsmouth boss knows too well that just “doing well” will not be enough to win the many irate fans back onside in his quest to restore Ghana’s pride.

“We want to win every game,” Grant told FIFA.com in a recent interview. “It is a hard task but we all know there are no easy games, especially with this group,” he added.

But for a team with such high AFCON pedigree and an impressive history to back, not all would agree with Grant’s AFCON mandate. Ghanian-born French international Marcel Desailly has carved a reputation as one who will not hesitate to speak his mind and, as expected, he has had his say in this debate.

Even so, the former Portsmouth boss knows too well that just “doing well” will not be enough to win the many irate fans back onside in his quest to restore Ghana’s pride.

“We want to win every game,” Grant told FIFA.com in a recent interview. “It is a hard task but we all know there are no easy games, especially with this group,” he added.

But for a team with such high AFCON pedigree and an impressive history to back, not all would agree with Grant’s AFCON mandate. Ghanian-born French international Marcel Desailly has carved a reputation as one who will not hesitate to speak his mind and, as expected, he has had his say in this debate.

“Grant should win the [AFCON] trophy or get sacked liked any other coach,” Desailly told Joy FM. “We are expecting him to win.”

Strong words indeed from the former Chelsea defender.

For the fans, recent developments indicate the scars from the World Cup have not yet fully healed, despite having a new manager in charge. The Brazil debacle has indeed shot the enthusiasm out of the majority of the fan base, and many are still reeling. The high buzz that usually comes along with a major tournament has not been seen, with less than a week to go.

Fair to say, Ghanians are now more careful in how much of their hearts they give to the Black Stars and are holding back on their expectations. Agreeably, the measured expectations, paradoxically, surreptitiously call for one thing – ‘win the AFCON and win back our love’.

Without a doubt Grant has a tough task ahead of him. For a team that has reached the semis of the past four AFCON tournaments, “doing well’ doesn’t exactly mean ‘doing well’. What is certain, though, is the security of his job – one that is scheduled to last for 27 months.

Source: Prince Narkortu Teye, Just Football