Hughton wasn’t imposed on us - Okraku

Ghana Football Association President Kurt Okraku says, contrary to what has been making the rounds, the new coach of the Black Stars Chris Hughton wasn’t imposed on them.

The former Brighton Hove Albion manager was appointed as the new Black Stars head coach after Otto Addo exited the position following Ghana’s elimination from the 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar.

In an exclusive interview with Juliet Bawuah on SuperSport, Okraku said the appointment was based on Hughton’s competence and the belief they had in him.

“Chris Houghton is a coach contracted by the Football Association of Ghana. If we didn’t have the belief in Chris Houghton, he will never have been the head coach of the Black Stars.

“So long as he is the coach, he has the support of the Executive Committee, he has the support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports.

“We have been very supportive of his works and we will forever continue to give him the all the support that he needs that will ensure that we win success. We trust in him and the rest of the backroom staff, if it is that we will win trophies, we have to stay with the team, we have to give them trust, we have to give them time.

“The Executive Committee had trust in him, we were sure about him we had a clear plan for him and we executed the plan.”

He further stated that Hughton, after being with the team for a while, now understands the set up better.

“Before we gave the job to Otto Addo, we knew he wouldn’t stay beyond December and we had a succession plan and his successor was Chris. It’s the reason we brought him closer to the team for him to get to know the team, the players' culture and ins and outs of the team and to get him ready to take over from Otto Addo.

“It was a very clear strategic strategy that we deployed and today Chris is in a better position to take over the team than he would have been if we had handed him the responsibility earlier.”

Chris Hughton has played two games since his appointment, all against Angola in the 2023 Afcon Qualifiers; he won one and drew one.