It’s always a danger to get new players – Ghana coach Otto Addo

Published on: 26 September 2022
It’s always a danger to get new players – Ghana coach Otto Addo
Otto Addo - the Ghana coach

Black Stars Otto Addo acknowledged the "danger" of bringing in a number of new players ahead of the 2022 World Cup, but he does not believe it will destabilize the squad.

In Friday's 3-0 friendly loss to Brazil, Addo handed debuts to Inaki Williams, Tariq Lamptey, and Mohammed Salisu.

Williams, 28, earned one cap for Spain in 2016, while Lamptey, 21, was a regular for England's youth teams before switching allegiances.

Addo has also called up Ransford-Yeboah Konigsdorffer and Stephan Ambrosius, both of whom have represented Germany at the under-21 level.

“It’s always a danger to get new players, especially if the players who are there before achieved something really, really good,” said Addo, who oversaw the World Cup play-off win over Nigeria in March.

“There’s a group dynamic which I don’t want to break, but I think from what I saw they were welcomed well.

“They did well in training and get along with each other and it’s not like they were strangers. Before some knew each other from playing in the same league and everything is okay.”

Addo believes adding European-born members of the diaspora will increase competition for places and benefit the Black Stars.

“It’s a good situation. We have pressure from the bench because new people are there who are very, very solid in Europe, and we have players on the pitch who have to prove themselves,” he said.

Black Stars are heavy favourites in their second pre-World Cup friendly of the month against Nicaragua on Tuesday.

Ghana play Portugal in their opening match at the World Cup on November 24. They have also been drawn alongside Uruguay and South Korea in Group H.

 

 

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