Badou Zaki, head coach of the Niger national team, has expressed his concerns about the stark contrast between Ghana’s Black Stars of today and their formidable squad from the 2010 World Cup.
In an exclusive interview with Ghanasportspage.com, Zaki, a Moroccan football expert, highlighted the noticeable decline in the performance and cohesion of the Black Stars.
“The Black Stars is big and known as the Brazilians of Africa because the team is very heavy when you check the players. You have Seidu, Lamptey, Partey and many players who perform in the major leagues in Europe but I think something is happening. You don’t feel like the Black Stars we know before,” Badou Zaki said.
Zaki’s concerns are echoed by Ghana’s recent struggles in the AFCON qualifiers. The Black Stars’ performance at the recent tournament in Abidjan was underwhelming despite their impressive roster.
“We saw Ghana at the AFCON in Abidjan but it wasn’t good. They have big players, big team and players with good performance”
Drawing a comparison with the 2010 Black Stars squad, which narrowly missed out on a semi-final spot at the World Cup, Zaki pointed out the significant difference in the team’s quality and effectiveness.
“We watched Ghana at the World Cup 2010 and they almost qualified for the semi-finals. There is mass different between that team and the current team. They are not strong in attack and defence.
The Moroccan coach also highlighted Ghana’s defensive issues, which were evident in their recent 3-0 defeat to the Central African Republic at home.
“They concede many goals. They conceded three goals against Central African Republic at home which is not normal. They concede goals every time,” said the Moroccan trainer.
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