Ghana Football Association (GFA) President Kurt Okraku has defended the decision to retain Otto Addo as head coach of the Black Stars despite the team’s failure to qualify for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Ghana missed the continental tournament in Morocco for the first time in over 20 years, finishing bottom of their group after six matches.

The disappointing results sparked calls from fans and media for Addo’s dismissal, but the GFA opted to keep him in charge.

Speaking to 3Sports, Okraku explained that he and the GFA Executive Council believed removing the coach at that stage was unnecessary.

I never believed that I had to let the coach go at that time. And we never believed, as an ExCo, that we had to let the coach go at that time. And we stay with that position.

Acknowledging the criticism that followed Ghana’s AFCON absence, Okraku added that decisions in football often involve considerations not visible to the public.

We’ve all done football at various levels, and sometimes there are auxiliary reasons why certain decisions have to be taken or not to be taken. Some of these reasons are not available to a lot of people.

Okraku emphasized that while public opinion is inevitable, the GFA’s decision to back Addo ultimately paid off, citing Ghana’s qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

But I look back, and I’m happy that we took that decision. At the end, we qualified for the Mundial with the same gaffer, and I don’t regret it at all.

Despite steering the team to the World Cup, Addo was dismissed following consecutive friendly defeats to Austria and Germany. The GFA is expected to announce a new head coach within the next two weeks.

Source: Ghanasoccernet