The discussion should have been focused on how slick Black Stars were against Ethiopia on Sunday. The team had been set up to do wonderful things and they duly performed.
The display was brilliant and it was even better than what we saw on the day we beat Egypt 6-1 in Kumasi.
That day, we conceded. On Sunday, we were not breached.
The defence was great but the offense was out of this world. Raphael Dwamena gave Asamoah Gyan support and when he needed to find the goal, he was very ready to score twice.
Ebenezer Ofori was a dynamo in midfield and he offered us something very different to what Mubarak Wakaso had been serving us in the last few years.
Ofori passed with ease and skill and it was very key to note how varied his methods. When the team overloaded one side of the pitch, he sprayed passes to the flanks to find and essentially liberate Thomas Agyepong; another top performer on the day.
Agyepong went on to have his marker for lunch, dinner and then some.
Thomas Agyepong (in jersey number 7) was superb on his Black Stars debut (Image credit: Images Image)
For the first time in three years, Ghana played with a rhythm and there was a pulse to what the players did on the turf which had been affected by rain.
We should have been going on and on about how Kwesi Appiah had started his second stint well and how, if he stuck to his guns and worked well with his assistants, the Black Stars would hopefully succeed.
However, the team has managed to take itself away from the applause of admirers and it is standing dead-centre in the midst of frowns and skeptic looks from bewildered onlookers.
How? Simple.
A very silly decision to allow captain Asamoah Gyan to wear a commemorative band to mark the occasion of scoring his 50th national team goal.
Such an achievement needs to be celebrated. The champagne must be popped. The goals need to be watched again and Gyan needs to look at himself and say “Wow!!!! I made it.”
However, when we want to enjoy such feats, we need to remember that football is played with rules and we are not above the law.
I do not know who sanctioned the shenanigans of allowing Gyan to bring his special band to the field but that person has put all of us in a bad place.
FIFA’s rules do not allow it and we simply failed to see it. We will have to wait to see if Mr. Infantino will give us a slap on the wrist.
For those who are doubting me, check the rules on special equipment out:
20.3 Captain’s armbands shall remain free of, and shall not produce, in FIFA’s discretion, the visual effect of a Manufacturer’s Identification, a sponsor, any Decorative Element or further elements, except for the word “captain” or an abbreviation or translation thereof.
So, we erred but that is a small issue, in my opinion. Not small because it is unimportant but it will not register that much because the punishment from the rule makers will not be very huge.
The bigger problem is that we have unwittingly told everyone what they have suspected for years: Asamoah Gyan and Andre Ayew want to lead the national team and they do not want to share the captain’s arm band.
Andre Ayew (Image credit: Senyuiedzorm Adadevoh/ Images Image)
You see, by doing what we thought was harmless and trivial, we have told the two gentlemen that they can continue their silly war and the national team and our nation can suffer and it is alright.
When Gyan was giving his comments on the episode and on the deeper issue of the national arm band, he dropped a very interesting quip of not knowing what the next man thought of him.
It was a great revelation about man and the need not to trust him. Even the Holy Bible preaches same.
But there, ladies and gentlemen, is paydirt. Gyan is telling all of us that even though he smiles with Andre Ayew, he does not trust his team mate and he is preparing for the unexpected.
There is mistrust in the national team. There are factions and it is very clear that the brightly painted elephant eating a bowl of waakye is in the room and it is making noise for those who are blind.
We can spin this episode until the characters get dizzy but the truth will remain solid on its feet.
And even though Kwesi Appiah has scored great marks on winning the match, he needs to sit down and find a resolution to this.
We often talk of how feuds destroyed the Abedi Pele and Tony Yeboah team of the early to mid-90s but true to our Ghanaian nature, we have not learned and we are waiting to see another great crop of players get eaten up by the egos of others.
The gaffer needs to wake up quickly. If not, we will score great marks on the field but we will score even better when it comes to the silly, stupid and downright useless.
The new journey we are on has no place for this.
