Unity key to Stars AFCON success – Johnson

Ex- Ghana defender, Sam Johnson, is calling for unity among the Black Stars ahead of the 2019 AFCON tournament in Egypt. 

The former Hearts of Oak defender wants players of the Black Stars to unite and play as a team instead of seeking for personal glory.

Johnson, who excelled during his career, observed that the players play individual football to impress at the expense of the national interest and that, he said, does not help in the progress of the team.

Speaking on an Angel TV sports show yesterday, Johnson noted that the current crops of players are not united.

He cited the era of Stephen Appiah when he was the captain of the team as the most successful because his qualities and leadership skills were outstanding.

“With the Black Stars, most of them play selfishly, they play individual football. There is no unity in the team; they need to play as a team. Although there might be issues among them in one way or the other, they need not to bring those issues on the field,”

“The field of play is one area that one can find new friends and I urge the players to see themselves as friends and not take their personal matters there. Look, Stephen Appiah was very good, he used his leadership skills to unite the team, and this is what they need to be doing”, he said.

The performance of the Black Stars team in recent times have raised lots of eyebrows following their poor display in recent matches, especially the just ended qualifiers for the 2019 African Cup of Nations which will be hosted by Egypt in the month of June.

Johnson stressed that it was important for the players to insist on what is due them from the authorities before they feature for the national team.

He, however, cautioned that, the Black Stars players need to produce results, once they have been paid.