Sports News of Thursday, 30 April 2020

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

GFA under pressure to scrap 2019/2020 season

Ghana Football Association Ghana Football Association

Pressure is mounting on the Ghana Football Association to scrap the 2019/2020 season and declare it null and void.

Football in the country has been on suspension since March 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier this week the Confederation of Africa Football gave the FA an ultimatum to decide on how it intends to complete the remainder of the season.

The FA has since Tuesday been engaging various stakeholders on the way for the football as the nation awaits on the government to lift the ban on social gathering.

As the wait continues, some club administrators have in various media interactions demanded a termination of the season.

According to the CEO of Techiman City, annulling the season will afford the league management the opportunity to synchronize the league with the European editions.

“This is not about our position on the league table now. Life is more important at this stage than football. We should consider the health situation than football. This is the time we should go to congress and correct some of our statutes, monitor situations going on in other Federations. Now we are in April and we don’t know when the Covid-19 will disappear”, he told Happy FM.

The owner of King Faisal, Alhaji Grunsah has been a consistent voice in the call for the cancellation of the season in the history of Ghana football.

"We should all pray that people in our country don't get infected with the deadly virus (Coronavirus) after two people were confirmed testing positive. The Ghana FA should be considering suspending the Ghana Premier League and other competitions for weeks or months”.

"I know people will say it's because my team [King Faisal] is in the drop zone that's why I am making those suggestions. But we should be thinking of the lives of human first before football. We should follow the steps of other Football Association to suspend our football activities for weeks or months.

New Edubiase United president Abdul Salam Yakubu has been arguing for the 2019/20 football season to be nullified.

"The GFA has to give us time to prepare our team when the pandemic is over to play the second round, because you can't tell us to resume immediately (play the following week).

"We need at least two weeks to a month to prepare and play the league of which time is not on our side because we want to synchronize with the European calendar.

''Clubs also are not disciplined as regards fielding unqualified players which need to be addressed because it will affect the league. The 2019/20 football should be voided for us to go to Congress.''

Respected medical doctor Dr Prince Pambo who worked with the FA and currently a member of CAF’s Medical Team has also been advocating for a cancellation of the league.

“We thinking the league will return anytime soon is not an issue we should even entertain because after COVID-19 the sort of psychological interventions you need to wake these players up to, the length of pre-season you need to give them all that, I mean 2020 we should just let it go and plan for next season," he said.