2027 AFCON Qualifiers: Ghana FA explains Kim Lars Björkegren’s appointment to lead interim Black Stars team for Somalia games

Ghana Football Association (GFA) Communications Director Henry Asante Twum has explained the criteria used to select Kim Lars Björkegren to lead the interim Black Stars technical team for the November 2026 international window.

The decision to appoint the Black Queens coach has attracted attention, given his existing responsibilities with Ghana’s women’s national team.

However, Asante Twum said the selection was guided by the need for continuity, experience in the Ghana Premier League and technical expertise within the country’s national team structure.

“So, the first consideration was institutional memory and continuity. The second was to look within the Ghana Premier League.

“The third was to look at the national team structure, assess all our national teams and identify coaches handling them who had the competence and quality to join the technical team. They settled on Kim,” he told TV3.

Björkegren’s appointment comes after Ghana made a disappointing start to their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign, losing their opening two Group C matches.

The Black Stars suffered a 2-0 defeat away to Côte d’Ivoire before losing 4-2 to The Gambia after taking a two-goal lead in their second match.

The results preceded the departure of head coach Carlos Queiroz, prompting the GFA to put interim arrangements in place while its search committee continues the process of identifying a substantive replacement.

Björkegren will work alongside Ibrahim Tanko and Godwin Attram, who have been appointed assistant coaches, while former Ghana goalkeeper Fatawu Dauda will serve as goalkeepers’ coach.

The interim technical team has been assembled specifically for Ghana’s November doubleheader against Somalia.

The arrangement is expected to give the coach search committee additional time to identify a permanent head coach ahead of the remaining fixtures in the qualifying campaign next year.

According to Asante Twum’s explanation, the selection process was designed to combine continuity within Ghana’s national team setup with familiarity with domestic football and the technical experience of coaches already working in the country.

The Black Stars, who are without a point after two games, are racing to return to the AFCON having missed out in the last edition of the tournament hosted in Morocco.