Mariano Barretto has been following Ghana's progress closely on the way to the World Cup. Barretto coached the Ghana national team to first place in its World Cup qualifying group but grew disillusioned with conditions and left after 9 months to coach his native Portugese club side Maritimo. He was fired by the club after 4 months for poor performance and then became an assistant with Dynamo Moscow.

``I hope for the best for Ghana because I worked for the success of this team," said Barretto, who is seeking a move to a North American coaching position.

``When I left the national team after five matches, it was in first place after a 3-0 win over South Africa.

``But I couldn't accept all the troubles and the corruption around me. With Ghana, I had 33 games and only lost one with the Olympic team and one with the first team. So I am very happy with my work.

``I think that Ghana will make things interesting but not be able to go forward because only [Michael] Essien, [Stephen] Appiah, Sulley Muntari, Mensah, and [Sammy] Kuffour had consistent experience of top teams. But in football anything can happen."