Abdul Hay Yartey,a football administrator and talent developer has scored high marks to the Ghana Football Association (GFA) President Kurt Okraku, in his short stint in office, saying he has changed the face of Ghana football.
According to the CEO of Kasoa-based Division Two side, Cheetah FC, Okraku’s administration having inherited a desolated Association has done remarkably well in reviving it and giving it hope.
Speaking in an interview on TV Africa’s Sportsworld show, Hay Yartey told host Dennis Osei Gyamfi that, the GFA President would score 90 percent on his scorecard, adding that the interruption caused by the novel Coronavirus pandemic was the only reason the President would not score full marks.
“I think he (Kurt Okraku) has done very well because he never inherited a running FA. It was an FA with problems,it is not like there was a transition from Kwesi Nyantakyi to him. It’s different, where our football was in trouble, where partners were running away and you have to bring back the love. And that slogan alone was something that was big,” he said.
“I will give him 90 percent. Even the reason why I’m not giving him full marks is because of COVID and because of that sponsorship is not coming in but definitely he will get there.”
Haye Yartey said it was refreshing to see how the GFA was taking marketing and branding of football to a new height that had not been experienced before. He commended the administration for the excellent communication and information flow.
“I have been in football for long and this is my first time seeing that apparently there are for instance 70 clubs in the Central region, there 103 clubs in Greater Accra. I’m now getting to know for the first time we have 400 and something referees. So we see good communication flow,” he added.
The manager of Black Stars midfielder, Christian Atsu, however, noted that, by the middle of the President’s term as leader of the GFA, football would be the most attractive and profitable business in the country.
Okraku was sworn into office in October 2019 after winning an election supervised by the FIFA Normalisation Committee.
Source:Â Dennis Osei Gyamfi, contributor