"He Could Have Handled the Andre Ayew Situation Better": Sannie Daara on Otto Addo's Shortcomings

• Ibrahim Sannie Daara has highlighted some of the mistakes made by Ghana coach Otto Addo during the AFCON qualifiers
• The West African nation failed to qualify for the continent's flagship competition for the first time in 20 years
• Andre Ayew has not played for the Black Stars since March 2024, when he was invited to the Nigeria and Uganda friendlies

Former Communications Director of the Ghana Football Association, Ibrahim Sannie Daara, believes Otto Addo's man-management was his undoing as the Black Stars failed to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Sannie Daara is backing the German-trained tactician to maintain his job as coach of the senior national team.

However, he was quick to also admit that there are aspects of his crafts that need to improve.

Speaking on Joy FM, the former GFA spokesperson stated that one of Addo's mistakes was how he handed the Andre Ayew omission.

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"The point of taking the decision not to come along with Andre Ayew, at a time that he himself has not taken a decision to exclude himself from the team and he was back playing," he said.

"I think he should have left the window open for Andre to make a decision by himself, and that would have endeared him to a lot of people.

"You hear a lot of the ex-players say the way we retire players complain the way we retire players is not the right way, and I thought Otto could have better handled the situation."

Ayew's leadership missed during AFCON qualifiers

The veteran forward has been Ghana's captain since 2019, leading the Black Stars to three Africa Cup of Nations and one World Cup.

Ayew has always delivered for the national team in crucial times, scoring an important freekick against Sudan in Omdurman during the 2021 AFCON qualifiers.

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In his absence, it was obvious the team lacked a leader who could inspire them in difficult moments.

Otto Addo had to move the armband around, with three different players leading the team in six games, including Ayew's younger brother Jordan, as reported by Ghana Soccernet.

Crystal Palace fans chant Ayew's name

Earlier, Yen.com.gh reported that Crystal Palace fans showed great affection for Ghanaian forward Jordan Ayew after reacting to his goal against Chelsea in the Premier League.

Ayew left the Eagles in the summer transfer window after eight years at Selhurst Park to join Leicester City.

The 33-year-old forward has been a key figure at King Power Stadium, netting his third goal of the season in the 2-1 defeat to Chelsea on Saturday.

Source: YEN.com.gh