‘I Won’t Get The Black Stars Job Even If I Apply’ – Bashir Hayford

Coach of Ashanti Gold SC, Bashir Hayford has stipulated that he will not even waste his time by applying for the vacant Black Stars job knowing that he will eventually be unable to land the job.

The search for the new Stars coach still lingers on as various names have been touted as potential suitors for the job, amongst them Bashir Hayford.

Coach Bash, as he is affectionately called in local circles is widely regarded as one of the most astute brains in the local game having won league titles with Asante Kotoko and Ashgold and could be able to handle the rigorous demands of the job if he were to be named according to certain stakeholders. However, speaking to Angel FM in Kumasi, he stated unequivocally that he will not be able to get the job even if he wants it.

“Kwabena, I won’t be unable to land the job no matter how hard I will try or how serious I am, it is as simple as it gets, I will not get the job. I have tried on three separate occasions in the past. I need to encourage and motivate myself as a coach and believe in my own potential but let’s call a spade a spade; I will not get the job. There is no doubt that I can put in the effort and just try and apply and you Kwabena can even put in the application for me and let’s see if I will be able to get the job. I know I won’t.”

When persisted again on why he will be unable to land the job, coach Bash threw further light on his stance.

“If I were to be named the new Stars coach, I will wholeheartedly serve my nation and give my all. I know a lot of the current players of the Black Stars and many of them have been under my tutelage before. So you are a player whom I once coached on the local scene and because you have been able to land yourself a team abroad you will not respect me? No way. That will never happen under my guidance. Asamoah Gyan was in my Academicals team that beat Nigeria some time back before Liberty snapped him into their junior side. Maybe you can mention a few exceptions like Andre Ayew whom I never had the chance to tutor because he never played on the local scene. So I do not share that notion that players will not show respect to a black Coach. It is not entirely true. I can do the job and handle the players really well with ease.”

“It is just a matter of bringing the boys together and psyching them up. The players are professionals already and they need not be taught basics like passing, heading, taking them to camp and all of that. They (the players) just need to be brought together, psyched up and just motivated to play, all of which will be so easy for me to do if I were to be named the new coach of the Black Stars. But the issue is I will not get the job, period!”

Ghana failed to clinch the AFCON in Gabon and coach Avram Grant immediately vacated his post after the end of the tourney. The search for the new Stars coach is one of the mostly talked about issue on the local scene and the GFA will be looking to put all of the anxiety to bed by naming a new coach sooner rather than later.

The coach will be expected to be named before the commencement of the AFCON 2019 qualifiers which kick-starts in June.

Meanwhile,assistant Maxwell Konadu has been tasked by the Ghana Football Association to manage the Black Stars team on a temporary basis until a substantive coach is named to succeed Avram Grant.