How Otto Addo’s blind loyalty cost Ghana a sweet revenge and World Cup knockout dream - www.asempanews.com

Ultimately, it was Otto Addo’s loyalty in non-performing players that cost Ghana a sweet revenge and qualification to the knockout phase of the 2022 World Cup.

The signs had been clear and if the ill-fated performance against Brazil was enough to send home the message to Otto Addo that certain players, regardless of their pedigree and reputation needed to be relegated to the bench, the friendly against Switzerland and Portugal in the opening Group H game should have made the statement more succinct and emphatic.

For a coach leading a fledging team, it is understandable to bank your hopes on the few established names in the squad but game after game, Otto Addo’s trusted men have just failed to deliver, especially when it matters most.

The Switzerland game should have provided the blueprint for how Otto Addo was going to deal with the Partey situation.

To be honest it is not an easy move to make and it is one which if not handled properly could upset the dressing room but after that performance by Salis and Elisha Owusu against Switzerland and Partey’s underwhelming performance against Portugal, Otto Addo should have drawn the line

So regardless of what you think, Baba Rahman presence in the team is the sole decision of coach Otto Addo and the fact that he was drafted into the team after Gideon Mensah’s telling performance against South Korea shows the loyalty and faith Otto Addo had in him.

The Ghana team showed so much promise and there is enough reason to be positive about the future but the undeniable truth is that Otto Addo’s blind loyalty led us into this ditch.