COVID-19: Don’t leave players to their fate – GFA Medical Committee chairman to clubs

Chairman of the GFA Medical Committee, Dr Adam Baba has advised Ghanaian clubs to keep an eye on their players in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 has brought the world on its knees leading to the death of over 200,000 people across the globe.

Ghana’s confirmed cases stand at 2,074 with 17 people recorded dead and 212 others said to have recovered from the virus. This has forced the Ghana Football Association to suspend all football competitions in the country following a ban imposed on all public gatherings.

“COVID-19 has come with its peculiarity and the sport has been hard hit. So the problem is, after COVID-19, what next?,” Dr Baba, who is also a senior medical doctor at the 37 Military Hospital quizzed.

He went on: “We must also adopt means of monitoring our footballers. We just don’t ask them to go home, stay till the situation improves and call them back.

“The wayforward is for handlers or team managers to monitor their players directly or indirectly. Directly might be a remote method, indirectly talk to them.

“The Coach or manager must be in direct contact, calling them. Let them send their videos and pictures of how they spend their time.

“Exercising is not forbidden, but just that you must limit the number of people you gather at a particular place to exercise. We don’t wait till COVID is over before you start getting the players ready.

“My little advice is that managers should think outside the box. Think of some innovations that will keep their players active and the only way you do that is monitoring.

“Insist that they are on their toes individually and bet you me, when the league starts, it’s just going to be a continuation of where it ended.

“With the players, this whole thing we are all hoping will end pretty soon and it must not end when they are starting, and to achieve that, they must not stay idle. They must train as though the competition is still ongoing, so with that as soon as the competition starts, it’s going to be a continuation but not a beginning.” – Ghanafa