Former Ghana international Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu believes the struggles of the Black Stars can be traced back to the decline of the national youth teams.
Agyemang-Badu argues that the senior national team’s past successes were largely due to the strong foundation provided by the junior teams.
Since the Black Starlets’ U-17 World Cup appearance in 2017, no male youth teams from Ghana have competed on the global stage, with only Mohammed Kudus from that squad making a regular impact on the senior team.
The Black Stars have experienced a decline in performance over the years, with no significant achievements to show for it. Speaking to the BBC, Agyemang-Badu emphasized the weakness in the foundation of the senior national team.
“It’s been very difficult for Ghana for the past four or five years. The fundamental structures that typically help us qualify for major competitions have changed,” he stated.
“Our strength as a nation lies in our junior teams, which are essential for developing players who transition to the Black Stars. Unfortunately, our youth teams are in disarray—the U-17 has collapsed, the U-20 is struggling, and the CHAN team isn’t performing either.”
Agyemang-Badu highlighted the importance of a steady pipeline of talent from youth to senior levels.
“Looking back to the year 2000, we had players like Michael Essien, Sulley Muntari, and Derek Boateng graduate from the U-20 to the Black Stars, and we enjoyed success from 2009 onward,” he explained.
“Since then, we haven’t been able to cultivate youth teams that can feed into the national squad, which has been frustrating for supporters and everyone involved.”
Following their defeat to Sudan on October 15, the Black Stars are now at risk of missing the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations.
“We’ve reached a point where qualifying for AFCON is becoming increasingly difficult. The last four years have been tough, and we need to return to the basics,” he added.
Currently, the Black Stars sit third in the qualifying series behind Angola and Sudan, and they must win their final two matches in November while hoping the Falcons of Jediane do not win theirs.
