- Otto Addo is the new head coach of Ghana as he has been given a three year contract with a further 24 months option to stay if he works to the satisfaction of the GFA.
- Joseph Laumann, John Paintsil and Fatau Dauda were recently named by Otto Addo as part of his coaching staff.
The 40-year-old Joseph Laumann was born in 1983, in Marrakech, Morocco to German father and Moroccan mother. He moved to Germany at the young age of 8 where he had his formal and football education.
He started his youth career at Oestrich-Iserlohn before making his mark in professional football. Standing tall at 1.91 meters (6 feet 3 inches), the former forward, Laumann’s height was a huge advantage to him in his playing days.
In 2005, he signed for Schalke 04, playing for both the first team and the reserves. Laumann joined 2. Bundesliga side Rot Weiss Ahlen in 2006, where he made 30 appearances and scored 11 goals. He later played for VfB Lübeck, Rot-Weiß Erfurt, Sportfreunde Siegen, and MSV Duisburg II, among others as his football career was a bit quiet.
Outside Germany, the Morocan born Laumann also had stints abroad with clubs like APOP Kinyras Peyias in Cyprus and Vissai Ninh Bình in Vietnam.
In his coaching career, the former Schalke 04 forward joined Sportfreunde Lotte as an assistant coach in 2015, later moving to VfL Bochum and returning to Sportfreunde Lotte in various capacities.
In English football, Laumann was an assistant coach at Barnsley in 2020 under Valérien Ismaël.
Laumanns biggest role in coaching is a brief stint as a caretaker manager of Barnsley in 2021 after the sacking of Markus Schopp. Just before joining the Black Stars, Laumann managed Standard Liège‘s feeder team, SL16 FC, showcasing his commitment to developing young players.
Joseph Laumann is trusted by Otto Addo as he is expected to add his immense experience gained in German, English and Belgium football to help Black Stars achieve their goals.
Joseph Laumann’s first assignment as first deputy of the four-time African Champions, will be Ghana’s two FIFA international friendlies against Nigeria and Uganda later this month.
