The late start of the First Capital Plus Premier League is taking a heavy toll on clubs whose income streams have dried up but are compelled to pay players for virtually no work done, thus creating a tensed atmosphere for club administrators to grapple with the loss of form by their inactive players.
AshantiGold CEO, Kudjoe Fianoo, says a court case against the Ghana Football Association (GFA), which has frozen the Premier League, has created so much stress for both administrators and players who are uncertain of when the competition would commence.
“If the league had started now, players would have been enjoying winning bonuses, as well as their salaries, especially if they win a couple of matches. But now they depend solely on their salaries, so the late start of the league is creating so much financial stress for our players,” he lamented.
“Following the success of Ashgold in the GHALCA Top 4 competition, we hit top form and so we felt the league would start soon afterwards for us to bring our form to bear on the league. But now that the league is yet to start, our players are losing their form because we are not playing high profile matches and this situation is affecting us so much.”
Mr Fianoo, who is a member of the FA’s Executive Committee, fears that any further delay in the start of the league could result in a fixture congestion that could see the competition being compressed in a way that could compel the teams to play two matches a week in order to complete the calendar in time.
“In case we play Wa All Stars in a league match on Sunday and we are to play Accra Hearts of Oak at Obuasi and then travel to Kpando to play Heart of Lions the following Sunday, it will put undue stress on the players and team officials which will affect our performance Fianoo expatiated”
