Former Black Stars striker Prince Tagoe remains discontented with how US Cremonese striker Felix Afena-Gyan was treated by the national team.
During his prime, the Black Stars’ management, despite expert advice, called up Afena-Gyan for the 2022 World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria.
The player accepted the invitation patriotically and performed admirably.
However, after the qualifiers, Afena-Gyan was omitted from the 2022 World Cup squad, a decision many perceived as unfair and a betrayal of the young talent.
Two years later, Prince Tagoe continues to feel aggrieved by this decision, expressing concerns about its impact on Afena-Gyan’s career.
In an interview on Accra FM, Tagoe argued that including Afena-Gyan in the World Cup squad would have significantly benefited his career.
Tagoe urged Ghanaians to treat players with respect and ensure they part ways with the national team on good terms.
“Some Ghanaians must learn to treat players right so they leave the national team with happiness, not with pain. When we needed this boy so badly for the World Cup, he came and performed with his pressing and work rate.
“Dropping that boy ahead of the World Cup would have been traumatic for him.
Look at how his career has gone since. He is doing well, but if we had taken him to the World Cup, it would have helped him.
“Sometimes I ask myself, How can people be that wicked? If you’ve followed football, you’d know that how we treated him wasn’t the best. Besides, we don’t have good strikers. When someone sacrifices and shows up for you, you don’t treat him like that,” he said.
Tagoe criticised the exclusion of Afena-Gyan from the squad, stressing that Ghana lacks quality strikers and should have valued his sacrifice and dedication.
Afena-Gyan gained attention as the first player born after January 1, 2003, to score in Italy’s top league.
He also became the third-youngest foreign player to score at least twice in a single Serie A match. His vital goals against Genoa secured a win for Jose Mourinho’s Roma.