Black Stars captain Andre Ayew has shared insights into how he prepared for his leadership role, revealing that he learned valuable lessons from previous captains.
In a recent guest lecture for the Sports Psychology class of 2024 at the University of Ghana, Ayew explained that his path to the captaincy involved a significant period of mentorship under former captain Asamoah Gyan. “I was already Asamoah’s assistant for about six years. When you know that [you can become a captain], sooner or later it’s going to happen. So you just need to prepare yourself and learn from Asamoah, who was the captain,” Ayew said.
He acknowledged that the captaincy in Ghana is often a subject of debate and that future leaders will face similar challenges. “It’s always an issue. That is why I say you have to know the society in which you are, the mentality of your country. How people see things, how people understand things, it’s very important,” Ayew noted. “The captaincy in our country will always be a debate sooner or later. The next one who is coming will be another debate. That is how it is. Anybody who is going to be the leader should be ready for that because you can’t take it away. There are things you need to learn from, be prepared, and you let it brush off like nothing and you move on.”
Ayew emphasized that his role as a deputy allowed him to gain the necessary experience and preparation for the captaincy. “Get the little guidelines because any decision that was supposed to be taken, you have the senior players, assistant, and captain who are there, so you are already in that group of leaders,” he added.
The captaincy debate between Ayew and Gyan, which began around 2017, came to a head in 2019 when Gyan threatened to retire from the national team ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations. Despite the controversies, Ayew’s approach was to focus on learning from Gyan and being ready for the responsibilities that lay ahead.
