The national Under 23 soccer team, Black Meteors, has been dissolved barely four days after their exit from the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco. The Chairman of the Black Meteors Management Committee and Executive Committee (ExCo) member of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Frederick Acheampong, made this known 24 hours after the team sneaked into the country.
The team’s performance has been described by some as shambolic at the eight-nation tournament. Mr Acheampong told Graphic Online that there was no need keeping a team which had failed to accomplish the task of picking a slot to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, especially where they were constituted for that project.
“The Meteors team is dissolved because they couldn’t qualify for the Olympic Games and the team was put together for that project, so once they failed it is over,” he explained. He stressed that it was of no use keeping the team since it would take the next four years to compete in the next Olympic Games qualifiers.
The fate of technical team
However, the fate of the Meteors technical team headed by Ibrahim Tanko hangs in the balance now as the GFA ExCo is yet to take a decision on the future. Mr Acheampong said, unlike the playing body, it was only the ExCo which could determine the fate of the technical handlers as the appointing authority.
“As an individual ExCo member and chairman of the Meteors management committee, I don’t have that capacity to determine the fate of the technical team single-handedly”.
Tanko’s second failed attempt
Coach Tanko failed to qualify the Meteors to the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games after losing on penalties to South Africa in a third-place match at the 2019 U-23 AFCON in Egypt. South Africa finished third for the second time in a row after beating Ghana 6-5 on penalties after the match ended 2-2 in regulation time.
Like this year, Tanko was assisted by Michael Osei in the previous tournament, with Godwin Attram being the latest addition. Tanko has taken responsibility for the team’s failure, acknowledging the lack of quality in the Meteors’ performance while stressing the need for a significant improvement in the team to return Ghana to the glory days.
Background
The Meteors opened the competition with a 3-2 victory over Congo and suffered a humiliating 5-1 defeat to host Morocco, before bowing out following a spiritless 1-1 draw with Guinea in the final Group A game.
By: Beatrice Laryea
