Grading Ghana’s Coaching Shortlist || VAR with Sammy Bartels

In this episode of VAR, Sammy Bartels delivers the final verdict—grading each candidate on Ghana’s coaching shortlist.

From experience to tactics and track record, we break down what each coach brings to the table and who truly deserves the job.

Will the Ghana Football Association make the right call?

Transcript

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When Ghana has tried to dominate possession at the World Cup, we have often become vulnerable to counterattacks and we have struggled to break down teams that come at us with the low blocks. Former Chilean coach Horse Ampali once told this story. One night I went to a bar accompanied by a beautiful woman. We sat and talked for a very long time, and I was kind to her. I told her all about my life and wanted to get to know her better. I even paid for all the drinks that we had. At one moment, a handsome young man came and sat next to us. He spoke to her for just about five minutes. And then she excused herself and went into the bathroom with him. And they had fun. That night, I realized that ball possession doesn't matter in life. So what's the lesson in the story? It doesn't matter how long you possess the woman for. What matters is the person who actually gets to score the goals. Now, as Ghana lines up its next coach in preparation for the World Cup, there's been a big debate about the philosophy of the potential coaches that will be appointed by the Ghana Football Association. For some people, Ghana's identity is aggro football, reinvented as a DNA by the Ghana Football Association in recent years. For them, fluid, skillful, possession-based games are the way to go. But there are those who have also said when it comes to the World Cup, it is all about pragmatism and it's about winning. And just like Milovan Raiva did at the 2010 World Cup, it doesn't matter how you play. What matters is the goals that you score and the matches that you win. So I've heard a lot, and there are people who say they are experts on this and would not, under any circumstances, compromise on Ghana's aggro or DNA. So what do the facts and figures actually say about possession football versus pragmatism? And which one actually gets us the results? What I've done is to go back in time. Ghana made its World Cup debut at the 2006 World Cup. Between then and the last participation in the 2022 World Cup, Ghana has won five games. What I've done is to go back and examine the games that Ghana won and the viral results that Ghana has chalked over the years at the World Cup to find out exactly what got us the results that mattered. Was it pragmatism or was it aggro football? When Ghana has tried to dominate possession at the World Cup, we have often become vulnerable to counterattacks and we have struggled to break down teams that come at us with the low blocks. So here's a statistical trend as I analyze Ghana's matches across 2006, 2010, 2014, and the 2022 World Cup. What it reveals is a clear pattern. Ghana is most dangerous when we are outshot or have lower possession. It allows Ghana to exploit the pace in their transitions and manage to hit their opponents where they least expect them to. Now let's look at the match outcomes. The average possessions and a typical trend. In all of Ghana's five wins at the FIFA World Cup, we have typically had a ball possession percentage of between 42% and 48%. Nobody has to explain to you that that means that in all of those matches, Ghana has had less possession than its opponent. Not only that, Ghana has had high shot efficiency and has dominated the aerial and physical duels in the game. In the matches that Ghana has drawn, Ghana has often had between 50 and 52% of the possession, which clearly shows that the midfield action has been evenly contested. And often we have a high shot volume and a low conversion rate. And in the losses that Ghana has sustained at the FIFA World Cup, Ghana has had between 51 to 58% possession of the ball, which translates to high possession but conceding goals in transitions or from set pieces. In almost all of Ghana's historic wins at the FIFA World Cup, almost all, Ghana did not dominate the defense the offensive statistics in terms of volumes, in terms of the number of shots or the percentage of possession that Ghana has had. But what Ghana has done is to dominate the physical and defensive metrics and be efficient in conversion of the few chances that come the way of the Black Stars. So let's start from Ghana's first ever game at the World Cup in 2006. So Ghana's game against the Czech Republic, which Ghana won by two goals to know, is historic because it was the first time Ghana had won a game at the World Cup. Indeed, it was the first time Ghana had claimed a point of any sort at the FIFA World Cup, and it's often cited as one of Ghana's greatest ever performances. In reality, Ghana outshot the Czech Republic 20 to 14, but did so not by dominating possession, but playing a blistering counter-attacking game against the second-ranked team in the world who were favorites to moul Ghana by many goals to nothing. Ghana's midfield, made up of Steven Apia, Suleimuntari, and Mike Lesian, dominated their defensive duel and recoveries, running the fiscal battle against a much taller European side. And you remember that they had Jorgen Kula as a lead striker, a striker who was over 6'4. In Ghana's second group win at the 2006 World Cup against the United States of America, Ghana won by two goals to one. However, the statistics will reveal that Ghana got outpossessed for the ball by the USA. The US had a total of 55%, whilst Ghana had a mere 45% of possession. Not only that, the US outshot Ghana by 4-3 in terms of shots at okay. Not only that, the US outshot Ghana in terms of shots on goal by 10-9 and shots on target by 4-3. At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Ghana beat Serbia by 1 goal to nil. That was the only game Ghana won at the group stage. It was a tactical masterclass in pragmatism by Milovan Raivach. Possession was nearly 50-50, but Ghana's defense allowed only two shots on target the entire match. Ghana dominated the clearances, had a total of 25 clearances, and won the psychological battle by forcing a lead penalty, which was the deciding factor in the game. When Ghana faced the United States of America at the round of 16 at South Africa 2010, it was a gruelling endurance test for the Ghana team. The USA actually had more possession, 51%, less than they did in 2006, but still more than Ghana's total possession in this particular game. They also had more shots than Ghana in this particular game. But Ghana, once again, true to the playing style of Milovan Raivat, dominated in efficiency. Ghana scored with their few clear-cut chances, and defensively, Ghana was superior in terms of the number of tackles that the Ghanaians won, the interceptions, and effectively ensuring that the US were blanked until Asamoajan got Ghana's famous winner against the US in that game to take Ghana into the historic quarterfinal stage of the FIFA World Cup. Ghana's last win at the World Cup came during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. It was a chaotic, expansive game against South Korea. A mad game that went back and forth between the two teams. Ghana, then coached by Otuado. South Korea dominated every single one of the offensive statistics. They had 63% possession. They had 22 shots compared to Ghana's seven shots. The difference, again, was that Ghana was clinical, scoring three goals from just three shots on target. Ghana dominated with low block defensive positioning, surviving a late barrage of 19 corners from the South Koreans to edge them by three goals to two. So based on an analysis of Ghana's games at the World Cup and the matches that matter, which are the matches that Ghana won. So what would be the verdict as far as the pragmatism versus expansive, aggro-like, fluid, skillful football? It's obvious from the fact that Ghana's style is most rewarding when we play a pragmatic, organized, aggressive game that results in Ghana taking the few chances they are able to create in the game while shutting out their opponents and keeping them to minimal scoring opportunities. So for anybody arguing concerning Ghana's philosophy at the upcoming World Cup in the US, Canada, and Mexico, facts and stats do not lie. Ghana's expansive football often leads, as far as the World Cup is concerned in major tournaments, to high shot counts. However, at the World Cup level, most of Ghana's wins have come from defensive solidity, building from the back and taking chances. In matches where Ghana has had the most possession, for instance, in Ghana's quarterfinal game against Uruguay and against Portugal at the 2022 World Cup, Ghana has miserably failed to win. To summarize and take us home, historically, Ghana's high possession has correlated with a loss or a draw. In the matches that Ghana has won, Ghana has consistently won more than 55% of the 50-50 ground duels. When the midfield loses its physical shape and the team loses its structure and collapses, it often results in a loss for Ghana. So there can be no argument whatsoever about how Ghana should get results at a 2026 World Cup. It is not by playing expansive football, it is not by trying to dominate teams, it is about defensive fluidity, it's about a combative midfield that is able to win duels and recover balls and create chances for the attack. But the biggest question will be Ghana's ability to take the few chances they are able to create against opponents. There was a time when Assam Wajan would have guaranteed you that goal against the Czech Republic, would have guaranteed you that goal against the United States of America in the 116 stage of the 2010 World Cup, where perhaps Steven Apia would have converted your penalties for you. But the big question still remains where will the goals come for Ghana, even if we play pragmatic football? It's quite clear that pragmatism is still the way to go. And it will be a crucial factor in the selection of the next coach for the Black Stars. This is VR. My name is Samuel Bartels. Thank you for joining me for this edition. I'll see you for the next edition as we analyze the coaching options for Ghana. What are you waiting for? Yo, Charlie, subscribe to our pages and like our content as we bring you more world class content from football and everything else from the world of sports. I'll see you for the next edition.