Ghana coach Kwesi Appiah has played down talk that DR Congo’s Claude Le Roy has an advantage due to his knowledge of the Black Stars, ahead of the clash between the two sides at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Le Roy departed Ghana in 2008 with Appiah serving briefly under the Frenchman and he admits that it’s good to reunite again but for opposing sides.
“I have total respect for him,” Kwesi Appiah said. “It’s good that we are competing at the same level but the most important thing is making sure I raise a team that can compete at the highest level.”
After two more appointments following Le Roy’s exit, Appiah eventually took over the national team last year and believes the Frenchman’s familiarity with the Black Stars squad would not play any influence in the outcome of Sunday’s Group B clash at the Nations Cup.
“I actually worked under Claude Le Roy when I came to join the national team. For me, the team that he knew is not the team we have at the moment,” the Ghana coach said.
Appiah concedes that Le Roy might have an idea about the workings of some players but said it offers no extra influence.
“The only thing I can say is that he knows our mentality and the way we do things. But I can also say that during his days, it’s left with a few players. A player may play some kind of tactics today and the next time, if another coach is there, his tactical play may also change.
“I don’t believe that he being in Ghana before will make any difference. The most important thing is making sure that we go out there with the right attitude and being tactically disciplined, playing our roles that have been assigned to us and we should be fine,” he added.
Both sides have meet four times with Ghana having an upper hand, winning three and losing once.