Opeele Boateng is a former Asante Kotoko coach
Ghanaian coach Isaac Opeele Boateng has opened up about an ordeal he went through while managing a local club.
According to him, there was a moment when the authorities in charge of the unnamed club warned him not to allow Christian prayers, regardless of a player’s religious affiliation.
The former Kotoko coach noted that he was compelled to allow only Muslim prayers in camp to stay aligned with their wishes, even though he was not comfortable with the decision.
Coach Opeele emphasized that there were other interferences in his job, including player selections, and expressed worry about how coaches are handled in Ghana.
“Then Laryea can’t be a coach in Ghana. Does he know what we’ve been through at local clubs? A club I was coaching banned Christian prayers; I was only allowed to permit Muslim prayers.
“We’ve seen a lot, including player selection interference. We go through worse in Ghana,” he wrote on X.
He commented after former Ghana U-17 coach Laryea Kingston shared his experience of how some Ghana Football Association (GFA) officials were interfering in his job during his stint with the team.
“Imagine, before a game, someone from the FA comes to give a speech to the team and says to the players, ‘If you don’t win the game against Côte d’Ivoire, your coach is going to lose his job.’ When I saw these things, I realized the environment just wasn’t good for me,” Kingston disclosed during an interview with Joy Sports.
Read coach Opeele’s tweet below:
Then Laryea can’t be a coach in Ghana.. Does he know what we’ve been through at local clubs?
A club I was coaching. I was banned not to let any player PRAY CHRISTIAN PRAYERS just Muslim prayers. We’ve seen lot, player selection etc etc etc etc. I can write 6K pages of book https://t.co/0WAWuV1YpX
— Isaac ‘Opeele’ Boateng (@CoachOpeele) February 22, 2025
Meanwhile, Watch as Ghanaians tell Dede Ayew to retire from Black Stars to protect his legacy:
SB/EK