Sports News of Monday, 11 September 2017
Source: Graphic.com.gh
2017-09-11
Coach Maxwell Konadu, Amos Frimpong and Patrick Razak
Black Stars team B player, Amos Frimpong, says despite the absence of any started financial enticement, the exposure and benefits that may accrue from winning the West Africa Football Union (WAFU) Cup was enough motivation to win the competition.
He said for now the players had shut their minds to the issue about bonuses and have rather focusing on making the nation proud by winning the tournament.
The right-back told the Graphic Sports yesterday that the desire to take a step into the next level of their career was the ultimate driving force and that was what they wanted to pursue now.
“If we are able to win this competition I think it can move us to a different level so for now we are not thinking about money,” Frimpong said.
The 25-year-old player played an important role in Ghana’s 1-0 win over the Gambia in their first game last Saturday, describing it as “a very good exercise” but added that their qualification for the group stage was more important than their overall performance or the manner in which the victory was achieved.
Ghana had to wait until late into added-on time for a controversial penalty which Vincent Atinga scored to separate the two sides.
According to Frimpong, who is also the captain of Kumasi Asante Kotoko, they least expected the Gambia’s Scorpions to present them with such a tough challenge.
He said the team came under pressure to excel in the WAFU Cup of Nations to placate Ghanaians following their defeat to Burkina Faso in Kumasi, which denied Ghana a place at next year’s CHAN tournament in Kenya.
“We were determined not to disappoint Ghanaians so we ensured in win in the first game and we were looking forward to the next game.
“We haven’t seen our next opponents play yet so I can’t say what would happen in our next game but I want to urge all Ghanaians to keep on praying and supporting us to win because all the 16 teams in the competition are well prepared,” Frimpong stated.
Meanwhile, Ghana’s coach Maxwell Konadu declared his delight at his side’s narrow victory over the Gambia.
It may not have been the most convincing performance from Ghana, but Konadu insisted it was a good start and provides a foundation for his team to build on.
“We are always slow starters in tournaments but today I’m happy with our start, especially in the first half. It wasn’t easy but the players continued to push for the winner, and we got it in the last minute,” said the Ghana coach in a post-match interview.
“It’s not easy to start a tournament in front of your support, so I must commend the players for a wonderful job done. It was very difficult but we manage to sail through, he said.”
Ghana take up position 1 in Group 1 and will play their first second round match on Thursday.
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