Tunisia drop striker Sellimi for refusing friendly
Accra
(Greater Accra) 28 December 2001 - Deputy skipper of the Black Stars Samuel
Osei Kuffuor, has expressed his willingness to join his colleagues in camp
preparing for CAN 2002 and give off his best if invited.
A
statement signed by the Bayern Munich ace defender in Accra on Thursday
indicate that he was invited by the Minister of Youth and Sports, Mr Edward
Osei-Kwaku, for discussions on the problems which arisen in the aftermath of
the interviews he granted the BBC a few weeks ago.
In
that infamous interview, Kuffuor described the chances of the Stars as
hopeless, condemned the decision of coach Osam Duodu to axe then skipper C.K.
Akunnor out of the Black Stars and blamed the inability of Ghana to win the
Nations Cup in the last two decades to poor leadership at the GFA among others.
“At
the conclusion of the said discussions, I admitted that the statements might
have caused some embarrassment and inconvenience to the coach and the nation.
Without reservation, I apologise for the said inconvenience and embarrassment
referred to above”, Kuffuor stated.
The
player expressed his appreciation for the Minister’s intervention and promised
that “if I should be invited at this stage to join my colleagues in the Black
Stars I will give off my best and play my part in ensuring that Ghana wins the
African Cup of Nations for a record fifth time.”
Osei
Kuffuor took the opportunity to wish the President and the people of Ghana a
Happy and Prosperous New Year.
GRi…/
Send
your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Winneba
(Central Region) 28 December 2001 - All the 16 countries participating in the
CAN 2002 fiesta, will not only have each other to contend with for the ultimate
prize but the vagaries of the Malian weather, assistant coach Malik Jabir, made
the disclosure to the Ghanaian Times in an interview.
He
said, no team can boast of being familiar with the weather, “if anything at
all, it is the host that may have a bit of an advantage.”
Coach
Jabir, who has spent a decade coaching in Mali and Burkina Faso, was emphatic
on the weather being a real obstacle, especially, the harmattan weather, which
is intense around this time in the host country.
Touching
on the threat that Burkina Faso may pose to Ghana during the tournament, he
said, Ghana would be playing the psychological game to overcome them. He said,
Burkina Faso, like Mali are using players that graduated from their soccer
academies, who over the years featured in FIFA age world competitions.
“These
players I know very well because I was in charge of youth development in these
countries, so I do not think the Black Stars would have much of a problem
handling them technically,” he explained.
Coach
Jabir only regret it that, they do not have the opportunity to be spying on
their opponents during their friendlies, but that is being taken care of with
the supply of video tapes of their opponents’ matches.
He
said, Ghana is currently enjoying the underdogs status, a tag which would ease
the pressure on them. “Until it is over, nobody should write us off as we are
capable of making it,” he concluded.
GRi…/
Send
your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Prestea
(Western Region) 28 December 2001 - Division One League (DOL) side who are
hoping for a berth into the Premier division next season, have expressed their
profound gratitude to individuals and companies whose finals of the
competition.
In
a press release issued by the club in Prestea at the weekend, the management of
the club mentioned the managements of 06 Lotto, Bogoso Gold Company and Nana
Heman, all of the Western Region, for their assistance.
“The
management of Prestea Mines Stars assures their kind sponsors that the club
will fight with single-minded determination to win promotion to the Premier
League next football season,” the release signed by Mr Agyei-Acheampong, an
executive member of the club said.
Prestea
Mines Stars took the opportunity to appeal to other companies and the people of
Western Region especially, Prestea who have pledged similar assistance to them
to honour them.
The
club said the middle league has reached a crucial stage and this is the time it
needs the assistance of all to enable them attain their ambition. The Prestea club
is one of the six finalists contesting the finals to gain promotion to the
Premier League.
They
qualified at the expense of Sekondi Eleven Wise alongside Mpohor Iron Fighters
from the Southern Zone.
GRi…/
Send
your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Prince
and Baseline Promotions will switch boxing from its traditional Kaneshie Sports
Complex venue to the Accra Sports Stadium tonight. This brave innovation
involves a seven-bout showdown to crown the Yuletide behind the Osu Stand of
the Stadium.
Again,
this promotion of the year has another unique feature of a single championship
out of the lot, which is in sharp contrast to previous ones. But that certainly
cannot deprive fans of the excitement as the six other bouts have equal
potential of producing thrills similar to that of championship bouts.
In
the only championship fight, dreaded Anyetei Laryea who is still monarch of
all he surveys will stake his national
and West Africa bantamweight belts against Sumaila Badu. With tough opponents
like Malik Jabir and others finding no antidote to his bombs, it follows that
Sumaila sould be mince meat for the champion.
The
night’s bill will afford the “Emperor” and “Pride of Graphic”, Raymond Narh a
fine opportunity to build his full fight record to facilitate easy access to
overseas opponents as demanded by the local boxing authority when he battles
Samouna Malik in an eight-round super-featherweight bout.
But
a stable mate of the Commonwealth gold medallist, Ben Neequaye, faces a much
tougher opposition in Ben “Congo Soldier” Ankrah whom he contests in an
eight-round lightweight fight.
However,
after some fierce exchanges, Neequaye is expected to rely on the experience
gained from the Sydney Olympics to emerge victorious. Armed Forces pride, Moro
Tijani, whose search for Lartekwei Hammond’s national and West Africa titles
ended on rocks at the last minute will possibly use Ayanga Ayirige as a
sacrificial lamb for his fans in their light welterweight clash.
In
another interesting featherweight eight-rounder, Osumanu Akaba will have to
contend with the experience of Adamu Mohammed while Zakari Salifu faces Bedu
Akwetey in a fierce lightweight bout over eight rounds. Lartei Lartey and Alex
Brew will also square off in a six-round lightweight contest.
GRi…/
Send
your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Dakar
(Senegal) 28 December 2001 - Burkina Faso's national football team, the
Stallions, beat the Lions of Senegal 4-2 in a friendly game played in Dakar to
prepare the two teams for the African Cup of nations to be played in Mali next
year.
Halftime
score was 1-1. The hosts, who dominated throughout the match, played without
their
Europe-based stars like El Hadji Diouf, Khalilou Fadiga, Henry Camara and
Ferdinand Coly.
Scorers
were Toure Amadou (22nd), Sanou Wilfried (58th), Ouedraogo Ali (61st) and
Traore Ousseni (88nd) for Burkina Faso; Pape Thaiw (27th - penalty) and Cisse
Brahima (70th - own goal) for Senegal.
GRi…/
Send
your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com
Tunis
(Tunisia) 28 December 2001 - World Cup finalists Tunisia have dropped striker
Adel Sellimi after he refused to join the squad for a friendly in Spain, the
country's soccer federation said on Thursday.
"Adel
Sellimi was dismissed from the national squad after he refused to travel to
Spain and take part in the team preparations ahead of the African Nations Cup
finals," the federation said in a statement.
Sellimi
was the fourth player to be jettisoned by Tunisia this week for reasons other
than performance. Le Quotidien newspaper said he had been replaced by Club
Bizertin's Jamel
Zabi.
Goalkeeper
Mohamed Zouabi, striker Imed Benyounes and defender Mohamed Mkacher were dismissed
this week following violent incidents in recent club matches.
The
Federation said Sellimi, who plays at SC Freiburg in Germany, argued that his
club had made the renewal of his contract conditional on him staying away from
the African Cup finals. "Sellimi is putting his own interests above the
national squad interests," the Federation said.
Esperance
de Tunis' Zouabi and Etoile du Sahel's Mkacher were among players sanctioned
for their involvement in violence at a game on Sunday in the coastal city of
Sousse. Etoile beat Esperance 2-0. Benyounes, from Club Sfaxien, was also
punished for punching Hammam Lif coach Ridha Akacha a week ago when the two
clubs played a first division match in the southern town of Sfax.
Tunisia's
French coach Henri Michel has replaced Benyounes, Mkacher and Zouabi in his
22-man squad for Thursday's friendly against an Andalucian side.
"An
international player has a responsibility to respect some rules and anyone who
infringes such rules has no place in the national team," Michel told Le
Quotidien.
Tunisia
will play Liberia in a friendly on Sunday in Tunis before the African Nations
Cup finals begin on January 19 in Mali. Tunisia are drawn in group H for next
year's World Cup finals in South Korea and Japan. They face co-hosts Japan,
Belgium and Russia. It will be the third time Tunisia have played in the World
Cup finals after 1978 and 1998.
GRi…/
Send
your comments to viewpoint@ghanareview.com