George Afriyie questions Ghana Premier League’s ability to produce Black Stars players

Former Ghana Football Association (GFA) vice-president George Afriyie has questioned the Ghana Premier League’s ability to develop players capable of competing for places in the Black Stars.

Afriyie believes the national team’s reliance on foreign-based players highlights weaknesses in Ghana’s domestic football system, particularly its capacity to produce suitable replacements when members of the squad are unavailable.

Speaking on Ahenfie FM, he cited an international assignment for which Ghana reportedly invited about 24 players, with 23 based abroad. He questioned why no player from the domestic league was called up to replace about nine players who withdrew.

“Isn’t it strange that Ghana will call players about 24 for an assignment, and 23 of them are foreign-based, and about nine are withdrawn? We couldn’t have one single player from the local league to replace them,” Afriyie said.

He argued that the situation should prompt a wider examination of the country’s football development structure.

“Then we must rightly admit that nothing is working right,” he added.

The former GFA vice-president also questioned the quality of the 18-team Ghana Premier League, arguing that established clubs should be producing players capable of stepping up to the senior national team.

He specifically mentioned Hearts of Oak, Asante Kotoko, Bibiani Gold Stars and FC Samartex, noting that the clubs compete regularly throughout the season.

Afriyie said the inability to identify even one suitable replacement from a league featuring those teams raised concerns about the foundations of Ghanaian football.

“Because if you have an 18-club league which comprises clubs like Hearts of Oak, Kotoko, Gold Stars, Samartex who play week in week out to get a single player to replace the nine players, then I don’t think that the foundation of our football is going well,” he said.

He linked the problem to shortcomings in youth development and the administration of domestic football, insisting that Ghana needs a stronger foundation to produce players capable of competing at the highest level.

Afriyie also criticised what he described as a lack of genuine competitiveness in the domestic league, questioning whether Ghanaian football could progress if the competition operated as a “friends-and-cronies league”.

“If we do a friends-and-cronies league, will we develop?” he asked.

He maintained that a more competitive Ghana Premier League, backed by an effective youth development system, would increase the number of players available for national team selection.

According to Afriyie, improving the domestic game would also give the Black Stars more options when foreign-based players are unavailable, while helping Ghana build a stronger pipeline of talent for the future.